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Master Gardener residency
In 2026, the French Academy in Rome – Villa Medici, the École supérieure de jardin and the Fondation Diptyque have co-created a unique residency dedicated to the art of gardens, for apprentice master gardeners, to be held from May 24 to 29, 2026. This initiative represents a key moment for the students as they bring their year of training to a close.
The residency project
The aim of the program is to enable a class of Licence 3 students in master gardener training at the École supérieure de jardin (ESJ) to take part in a customized week-long residency at the Villa Médicis.
Rome’s historic gardens offer students a privileged field for experimentation and study, with a multidisciplinary approach: historical, botanical, artistic and societal.
The program
During a week’s immersion in Rome, supervised by a panel of expert garden and landscape designers, future master gardeners alternate classroom lessons in the history of gardens with field visits, developing a better understanding of complex sites and their day-to-day management, with a view to sustainability and respect for the environment. In this way, they can consolidate and apply the knowledge acquired throughout the year on plant species, the evolution of garden forms and culture over time, and their adaptation to today’s major ecological, landscape and societal challenges.
During the residency, students have the opportunity to visit several exceptional landscaped sites in Rome and Lazio, as well as talk to Villa Medici’s team of gardeners who have been tending the 7 hectares of historic gardens in an eco-responsible manner for over fifteen years. In particular, they discover the 300 citrus trees that adorn the gardens (bigaradiers, lemons and citron trees), drawing on the tradition of the Medici, who cultivated them for their pharmacological and ornamental virtues.
At the end of these visits, students attend several workshops and are assessed on their ability to carry out personalized diagnoses, identify the specific features and sensitivities of the sites observed, or analyze structuring plant formations.
Garden history courses pay particular attention to the knowledge and skills of European garden designers, from Antiquity to the present day. Drawing workshops enrich the curriculum, giving future master gardeners the means to draw both analytical and sensitive portraits of the gardens they visit, working on shapes, motifs, figures and composition at different scales.
Finally, the last day is devoted to the final presentations: the students present their work to a panel of experts including members of the École supérieure de jardin, Villa Medici and Fondation Diptyque.
The Master Gardener residency program is not open to applications; it is intended for students of the École supérieure de jardin.
Edition 2026
From May 24 to 29, 2026, the French Academy in Rome – Villa Medici will welcome apprentice master gardeners from the first graduating class of the École supérieure de jardin and their teaching staff. The residency program includes visits to emblematic sites such as the gardens of the Quirinale, the garden of the Palazzo Barberini, the Villa Borghese and the Villa d’Este in Tivoli.
This immersive week is a key part of their training, combining theoretical learning, field observation and exchanges with professionals.
In partnership with
Villa Medici parterre garden
Peacock on the shoulder of a Niobid
Cleopatra’s Loggia
Villa Medici parterre garden
Statue of Hermes in the garden paths
Villa Medici parterre garden
The Niobides group
The gardens of Villa Medici
The historic gardens of Villa Medici cover almost 7 hectares and boast a rich plant heritage, including the last remaining examples of the majestic umbrella pines planted by Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres in the early 19th century.
