Springtime and flowers … hopefully both are just around the corner! This photograph was taken last year at one of the best medieval gardens I have ever visited. It was full of fruit trees, roses, sunflowers, poppies, herbs and vegetables, some of which I had never even heard of before!
The garden had a medieval well, a pigeonniere and a vine covered canopy over a sitting area complete with trickling water fountain. Sounds idyllic I know … and it was! The colours and smells of that garden rebound every time I look at photographs like this one. The only sounds were the trickling water fountain and buzzing of bees … oh and the occasionally bleat of the goat happily grazing in the corner of the garden!
The poppies were amongst the biggest and reddest I have seen and the lavender incredibly rich in its scent. There was all manner of fruit from berries to quinces, apples and pears. It made me wonder what marvellous medieval recipes there might have been that used this wealth of natural food, herbs and spices. Here is a bird’s eye view of the garden from the top of the medieval donjon adjacent to it …
medieval garden bird’s eye view
South West France, and the Vendée in particular, is rich in medieval history. The donjon referred to above is one of the best examples of its kind still preserved today which you can go inside, tour the rooms and climb to the very top – which is exactly where I was standing when I took this photograph! You can see for miles and it is not surprising that donjons of this kind (keeps as they are known in England) gave such power and authority to their owners back in the 14th century. There is much to learn about Vendée history – read more in this dedicated page.
