[Villandry castle] The most beautiful garden & somebody's ambitious project - Spring 2012

Confession:

I have a great ability that not many people possess.

I tend to kill living things that are green. :(

Mr.D told me once that I would be able to kill a cactus :(

And I couldn't even protest, because I knew that I was more than capable.

But, in this year, I made a big decision which Mr. D still casts doubts on.

I will become a  gardener~ :)

Well, it sounds like a massive exaggeration, even to me. LOL

I dream big and I am ambitious!

I will be a gardener to two 4' x 4' square-foot gardens that Mr. D will build for me once this cold be gone, hopefully in a few weeks.

As a near-future gardener :),

I feel sudden urge to share my love for a beautiful garden.

I am not (yet) a good gardener, but I admire beautiful gardens immensely.

I have seen a lot of beautiful gardens.

The garden of Versailles was the pride of Louis XIV, the Sun King.

The garden of Fontainebleau was adored by Napoleon I.



The garden of Het Loo in Apeldoorn, Netherlands boasts the 17th characteristics of a perfect symmetric beauty.

The garden of Herren Chiemsee, Germany stretches the dream of Ludwig II, the misfortunate Swan king of Bavarians.

(I'll post about these gardens later too)

  Nonetheless,

the garden that struck me with its useful artistry

was that of Château de Villandry.

Villandry is one of a few dozen Châteaux standing along the Loire valley.

The Château was built for over 2 centuries. The construction started in 16th century, but finished only in 18th century.

One noticeable fact about Villandry is that the Château is famous for its fascinating garden.

 

When we went there for the first time in 1996,

we were brave enough to bike 70 km or 43 miles,

to see three Châteaux in one day.

We biked for 70 km of valley where there were only uphills, surprisingly.

 We couldn't bike back to return our bikes since our bum hurt so much :(

We had to drag bikes for almost 2 km.

When we went back there for the second time a few years later, the trees in the garden seemed greener and taller, of course, thanks to the sweat we dropped in 1996. :)

 French gardening is totally different from North Americans os Japanese.

Everything has to be immaticularly trimmed and perfectly symmetric.

You can admire the garden from the balcony of the castle,

or walk between the flower/vegetable beds.

Villadry garden is not only filled with ornamental plants,

but mostly with edible vegetable and fruits.

You can appreciate each block of vegetables.

It was at Villandry that I realized how vegetables can be so beautiful. :)

Villandry has a huge man-made lake where a pair of graceful, but gigantic swans live.

I didn't know how big a swan was until I faced it in person.

The last time I visited Villandry was August 2005, when Remi was 16 months old.

Pablo has never had a chance to see this beautiful garden, and I think it's kind of unfair for my little 5+1/2-year-old baby. To be fair parents, we should  seriously plan our next trip to Villandry.

You see, I love gardens. It is something very different, according to Mr. D, from loving gardening.

But, this time, I'm firmly determined to keep green things alive in my square-foot garden :) What an ambition!

Please cheer for me.

I'll start the project within a month when spring finally comes, and post about the progress :)

Gardening