Over the decades since our founding in 1982, SGHS members have visited scores of landscapes and gardens covering a wide expanse of the southern United States, ranging from Texas to Maryland, Florida to Kentucky and all in between. Some spots have been small and intimate, while others are recognized as internationally important. We are creating and populating this page as a means of recalling those gardens and their significance with those who joined in, as well as with Society members who were absent. As well, some gardens may be those not yet toured but which we hope very much to add to a future itinerary. An additional goal is that any visitor to our website, member or not, will find these verbal sketches, images, links, and book recommendations a welcome boost to their understanding of the richly vibrant garden history of the American South.

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September 5, 2025

Bruton Parish Churchyard | Williamsburg, Virginia

Readers of these posts doubtlessly know that burying grounds, whether ancient churchyards or park-like cemeteries, can be fascinating designed landscapes...
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August 23, 2025

Dallas Arboretum and Botanical Garden | Dallas, Texas

The Southern Garden History Society has so far missed out on an annual meeting visit to the Dallas Arboretum and...
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August 15, 2025

Biltmore | Asheville, North Carolina

While often imposing in unique ways, gardens and homes visited by the Society have never matched the near-surreal scale and...
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August 11, 2025

Cummer Museum & Gardens | Jacksonville, Florida

SGHS members are particularly drawn to Ellen Biddle Shipman gardens. Although much of her work is found outside of our...
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August 4, 2025

Montpelier | Montpelier Station, Virginia

Twice visited by SGHS,  Montpelier was both the plantation home of an American presidential family as well as the early-twentieth-century...
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July 28, 2025

The Hermitage | Nashville, Tennessee

Society members have visited Andrew and Rachel Jackson’s home and gardens twice, the first time in 1988 during a Nashville...
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July 19, 2025

Edenton and Somerset Place | North Carolina

In our February 21, 2025, Tryon Palace “Gardens” post readers were promised a look at the historic landscape of Edenton,...
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July 11, 2025

The John Fairey Garden | Hempstead, Texas

Society members walked about what was then known as Peckerwood Garden during the Sunday tour of the March 1999 Houston...
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July 6, 2025

Kenmore | Fredericksburg, Virginia

Society members visiting Kenmore during the 2005 Fredericksburg annual meeting found a site steeped in the lore of both the...
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June 29, 2025

Afton Villa | St. Francisville, Louisiana

Southern Garden History Society members have visited the Afton Villa gardens during two annual meetings. The first occasion came during...
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