In this small Brittany village, the gothic era church with its lacy steeple typical of this region of Brittany is decorated with colorful mixed borders, decorative grasses, hydrangea hedges, and seasonal containers boxes.
Tag Archives: french gardens
Castle of Trevarez in France: The Vegetable Garden & Greenhouses
The castle of Trevarez near Chateauneuf du Faou in northern Brittany, France, is one of the last great castles built in France. Construction began in 1892 for a French politician and brought together all the faste and excess of the Belle Epoque, frescoes, carvings, marble, mosaics, ornate panels and fireplaces.
It is often referred to as the pink or red castle, because of the pink color it gets from the bricks used. It was unfortunately bombed in the 1940s, and has not been occupied since, but it is being renovated by the government who purchased it in the 70s.
The gardens were neglected as well for many years and have been slowly brought back to their original glory, one area at a time. The grounds are extensive, with stables, a large wash house, theme gardens, formal gardens and much more.
In this post, I am featuring the potager, or kitchen garden and the greenhouses. They have been under renovation since 2013 after being abandoned for many years. Historians, landscape designers, gardeners and staff cleared out the brush while cataloguing the plants found and located the original concrete edging to the borders and the central water pond. They were able to begin to recreate the four large quadrants that made up the walled kitchen garden. A large greenhouse closes in the potager at one end, and on the other side of one wall are the rest of the greenhouses.
The other greenhouses for the potager are still standing but also in need of renovation.
The gardener’s cottage and annex has a lean in hothouse that was used at the time for exotic plants and hothouse flowers.
Brest Botanical Gardens Part II: The Preservation Gardens
In northern Brittany, the Botanical Gardens in Brest enjoy a privileged location in a small valley with a stream throughout, and creating a microclimate allowing endangered species to grow with additional protection. Long and narrow, these gardens are divided into the park area at one end, end the botanical gardens proper at the other.
In this second post, I am featuring the botanical gardens, which are largely dedicated to the preservation of endangered species of plants. The water features here are more extensive than in the park area, with large ponds and ducks in addition to the stream running the length of the park. Here again, the areas around the stream are reminiscent of Japanese rock gardens, and landscaped with a profusion of bridges, ferns or bamboo groves. Note the beautiful planting of Tasmanian tree ferns along the banks, as well as some particularly large gunneras.
Brest Botanical Gardens Part 1: The Park
In northern Brittany, the Botanical Gardens in Brest enjoy a privileged location in a small valley with a stream throughout, and creating a microclimate allowing endangered species to grow with additional protection. Long and narrow, these gardens are divided into the park area at one end, end thebotanical gardens proper at the other.
In this post, I am featuring the park. Common to both areas is the stream and therefore an abundance of water features. The park has the feel of a woodland garden, with more greenery, bamboos, mature trees, gunnera and the likes, than landscaped borders and flowers. The choice of plants as well as the use of rocky elements and bridges give it very much the feel of a Japanese garden, in certain areas of the park in particular.
A Small Rose Garden in Brittany Adds Curb Appeal
This house in a small coastal town in Brittany, France would be just one of many like it if it weren’t for the lush display of blooms from the small rose garden in the front yard. Shrub roses, climbing roses, old fashioned roses, bloom from spring to fall. Geraniums, cannas, dahlias and hydrangeas are mixed in for foliage and texture as well as extra blooms.
More Planter & Container Ideas From Brittany Villages
This is my second post featuring some of the fantastic container arrangements, planters and hanging baskets that villages in Brittany put together from spring until late fall.
Castle of Trevarez in France: The Art of Jacques Henri Lartigue in the Gardens
The castle of Trevarez near Chateauneuf du Faou in northern Brittany, France, is one of the last great castles built in France. Construction began in 1892 for a French politician and brought together all the faste and excess of the Belle Epoque, frescoes, carvings, marble, mosaics, ornate panels and fireplaces.
It is often referred to as the pink or red castle, because of the pink color it gets from the bricks used. It was unfortunately bombed in the 1940s, and has not been occupied since, but it is being renovated by the government who purchased it in the 70s.
The gardens were neglected as well for many years and have been slowly brought back to their original glory, one area at a time. The grounds are extensive, with stables, a large wash house, theme gardens, formal gardens and much more.
In this post, I am featuring the ART IN THEGARDENS, here the photographs of Jacques Henri Lartigue, renowned French photographer and chronicler of the lives of the wealthy in the heyday of Trevarez, in the teens and twenties until the war.
Trevarez seamlessly integrates large scale photos in black and white to the gardens in a series of garden “rooms” enclosed by hedges, with a series of paths create a perfect rhythm for viewing the art against the formal and almost stark background of that part of the gardens. Of course, in the spring, the formal gardens would be softened by the many azaleas and rhododendrons in bloom. I have included a few photos of the shrub borders for reference.
The exhibit starts by the theme gardens and ends past the hothouses and the stunning hydrangeas alley blooming into September.
Flowered Garden at the Old Stone Church in Crozon, France
This church is at the center of the village square in Crozon, Brittany. It has a small front garden planted with a lush mix of annuals and perennials, including banana trees, brugmansias, lion’s ear, papyrus, erigeron for ground cover, and black eyed susans.
The back of the church is flowered with hydrangeas and mixed arrangements of blooming plants.
A Fanciful Garden at the School of Applied Arts in Cordoba
The School of Applied Art in Cordoba, Spain, is perhaps best known for famed Spanish artist Angel Lopez Obrero. He was born in Cordoba, and after some time living in Barcelona he returned to his hometown and taught at the School of Applied Arts there. The school, housed in an old building in one of Cordoba’s historic neighborhoods, also has some stunning stained glass. And of course, a lovely walled-in sculpture garden.
A formal French Garden on a Locronan Roundabout
Next in my series of posts on French landscaped roundabouts, is this very elegantly landscaped one in Locronan, Brittany. Round shaped boxwoods, bonsai shaped trees, topiaries and assorted evergreens give it year round beauty, while hydrangeas which have a long blooming season in Brittany) add some color.
Globetrotting Gardener 