Explore design possibilities for our region
Preston Montague
Preston Montague is a landscape architect and artist working to strengthen connections between people and the natural world in the service of improved public and environmental health. Through his multi-disciplinary, award-winning, environmental arts studio, Preston provides design and consultation services for clients with needs ranging in scale from intimate private gardens to large-scale public land planning and management projects. Preston Montague Studio collaborates with architects, engineers, and developers to provide clients with resilient, ecologically robust, cost-effective solutions with an attention to aesthetics that spark emotional reactions. Originally from the foothills of Virginia, Preston currently lives in Durham, North Carolina and holds a Masters of Landscape Architecture from NC State University and bachelor’s degrees in horticulture and fine art.
More info about Preston and his design work here.
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Keynote #1 Topic: Implementing the Piedmont Prairie Concept in your Residential Landscape
​More info coming soon
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Break Out Session Topic: A Completely Native (Residential) Design
More info coming soon
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​Jay Sifford
Jay Sifford is a garden designer, writer, speaker, and frequent podcast guest, who believes great gardens are built on four cornerstones: art, magic, story, and horticulture. He approaches garden design from a psychological, philosophical and spiritual standpoint. Named ‘North Carolina’s Most Outstanding Landscape Designer 2021” by LuxLife magazine, he has won numerous awards by Houzz, and has been featured in Fine Gardening, Southern Living, Better Homes and Gardens, and Country Gardens as well as in several books. Jay cultivates a 300-square-foot courtyard garden in Davidson, NC, and a mountain escape in the western part of North Carolina where he nurtures a sunny, stylized meadow and a shade garden underneath a canopy of mature rhododendrons.
More info about Jay and his design work here.
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​Break Out Session Topic: How To Beautifully Manage Stormwater
Water runoff and erosion caused by stormwater are increasingly becoming problematic as houses are built closer together. Why not solve these problems while creating a beautiful focal point around which a unique garden can be crafted?
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Keynote #2 Topic: The Stroll Garden: The Nuts and Bolts, The Magic and The Metaphor
“Not all those who wander are lost” wrote Tolkien. Learn the components of a stroll garden: unique entrances to interesting paths, immersive seating areas to intriguing plant combinations. Your audience will be inspired to create a space that encourages and celebrates the art of wandering.​​
​​​​Lunch Presentation: The Edible Garden as an Ecosystem
Learn the keys to designing and maintaining a healthy edible garden ecosystem where plants, microbes and animals (including the gardener) create and share resources that help the garden thrive with minimum effort and maximum benefit to all.
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Mary Roberts
Mary Roberts is the owner and manager of Windcrest Farm, a USDA Certified Organic farm and greenhouse in Monroe, NC. After twenty years as a corporate instructor and project manager, Mary turned her passion for growing plants organically into a business that supplies market farmers and home gardeners with over 300,000 heirloom vegetable, flower, herb, and fruit plants each year as well as growing fresh produce for local farmers markets and restaurants. In addition to growing specialty and hard-to-find plant varieties, Mary also conducts on-farm classes to help the beginner and the advanced farmer and as well as gardeners learn the principles and practices of sustainable agriculture. More info about Windcrest Farm here.
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