The Best of French Gardens
Our Featured Plant for this trip is The
Rose
Goals
In the 1850s and 1860s, the
landscaper and plantsman, Andre Leroy, shipped over 3 thousand plants from
the Loire Valley
to the American colonies. In 1855,
his sales catalog became the most commonly used, world reference for
horticultural classification. This
is just one example of French history that shaped the gardens of the
world. We will find many more examples
as we study both history and future trends in French gardening. Our studies will emphasize the
initiatives and practices that are still uniquely French today.
Centuries of gardens,
lovingly maintained, result in gardening examples as deeply contrasting as
the classical designs of Le Notre in the 1600s (Versailles) and the Priest’s
Garden (Jardin du Cure) where flowers and vegetables riot, exemplifying the
essence of romanticism. We will
discuss the art and practice of both formal and informal French landscaping
designs with instructors who have won International recognition for their
contributions to French landscaping today.
The instructors will take us to gardens where we can see the history
that influenced their design.
The French are renowned for
their cuisine, some of the best in the world. Why?
They focus on fresh vegetables and fruits, grown in their own
kitchen (potager) gardens. In
addition to studying the potager, we will learn how the chef’s competitive
quest for the freshest and the best tasting, the most colorful fruits and
vegetables fuels a profound and direct relationship between the farmer and
the consumer.
We will learn how the French
use intensive gardening methods to not only increase yield and extend the
seasons, but to dramatically increase the variety of fruits, vegetables and
flowers that they can grow in small garden spaces.
Objectives
§
Learn the cultural and historical influences
that defined French garden styles today.
§
Study the differences between various formal
and informal gardening styles: the
classical French designs of Le Notre vs. the jardin anglais, the systemic, botanical garden, etc.
§
Understand the convergence of landscaping
and food gardening in France: edible landscaping, intensive gardening
techniques, and espalier.
§
Observe and discuss how plant materials
contribute to the architecture of a garden.
§
Discover the market influences that support
gardening’s growing economic ascendancy in France,
including community gardens and the potager.
§
Look at the history and trends for the
commerce of gardening in France.