France Trip—Summer 2007
Master Gardener French Garden Tour 2007
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An evening cruise down the Seine welcomed the MGs to the sights of one of the loveliest cities in the world. Notre Dame, the Louvre, the Musee d’Orsay and a dozen romantic bridges were illuminated for the benefit of those on the river. Every hour the Eiffel Tower sparkled with thousands of strobe lights installed for the 2000 millennium celebration. It was a chilly night — hard for a group of Floridians to imagine in June!
A highlight for many MGs was the day trip to Claude Monet’s home and gardens at Giverny. Scenes so familiar in Monet’s paintings—the green Japanese bridge, water lilies, rose arbors, garden paths and pink house
— came to life at Giverny. Staying with an artistic theme, the group also visited Auvers-sur-Oise, where Vincent Van Gogh painted 71 paintings in the last 70 days of his life. MGs explored the town, standing in the
same spots where Van Gogh painted.
Another day trip outside Paris took the group to the greenhouses of Vacherot and Lecoufle, a world-renown orchid breeder and producer. UF’s Tom Sheehan, also an orchid expert, and Philippe Lecoufle explained how orchids are bred, grown and cared for properly.
Many of the gardens visited by the MGs were the work of landscape designer Andre le Notre. His first major garden, judged by many to be his best work, was at Vaux le Vicomte, just outside Paris. The MGs marveled at his use of perspective and visual tricks to create a remarkable formal garden for the chateau. The group enjoyed dinner at the chateau and stayed for the “Night of Candles,” a summer evening event when the chateau is illuminated with candles as it would have been in the eighteenth century, and the garden paths are lined with luminaries.
The grand finale for the MG Tour of France was a Sunday at Versailles, where the magnificent Hall of Mirrors had just reopened after a two-year restoration. The annuals were in full bloom, the fountains were splashing and the sounds of classical music filled the gardens. The landscape masterpiece of Andre le Notre was a fitting end to a marvelous trip!
