400 years of Le Nôtre
This year marks the 400th anniversary of the birth of André Le Nôtre, and the great designer is being honoured with an exhibition at the Tuileries in Paris and at … Continue reading
Flowers or gravel?
How flowery were 17th century French parterres? That was the question put to me last week by the head gardener in charge of one of Le Nôtre’s most beautiful designs. … Continue reading
A mysterious French designer…
Search the internet for Elie Lainé and you’ll readily find that he was a once-celebrated nineteenth century French landscape designer. You’ll learn that he worked on big projects in at … Continue reading
Vaux le Vicomte
On Saturday I led a guided tour of the fabulous estate at Vaux le Vicomte, southeast of Paris, which was the first commission for André Le Nôtre. These are possibly … Continue reading
The essence of gardens
Sometimes the most poignant qualities of a site come not from what is actually there, but from what is connected to it, through time and space, by our recollections and … Continue reading
a landscape lover's blog 