A nourishing garden

The rebirth

of a traditional garden

Since the end of the 18th century and the death of the last Marquis of Miromesnil, the property continuously changed hands, finally ending up with the Count and Countess of Voguë, the grandparents of the current owner, in 1938.

At that time, the vegetable garden was completely neglected and taken over by brambles. After the Second World War, Simone de Voguë took a great interest in its great potential and redesigned the 2,500 m² of that space. She split it into four squares separated by grassy walkways, growing fruits and vegetables intended to feed the local population, a non-negligible advantage during that period of rationing!

A vegetable garden

But that’s not all…

All (or nearly all) vegetables are represented there, particularly heirloom and forgotten varieties, as well as regional specialities like St. Valery carrots and Elbeuf leeks.

Although the straight rows are reminiscent of the geometry of French formal gardens, the mixed borders (jumbles of country flowerbeds) endow the garden with very English-style abundance. The subtle combination of roses, peonies and bellflowers attracts pollinating insects and are transformed into bouquets to beautify the château.

Lines of fruit trees and climbing plants in iridescent colours grow against the orangey-pink brick walls which protect the plants from sea breezes and retain heat.