The Garden and Park

(He worked for the King of Belgium, Leopold II, on his property in Belgium and Saint Jean Cap Ferrat, and on the Trocadero Gardens at the 1900 World’s Fair).

More used to urban gardens than to country homes, he extended the concept of city grids to garden settings. This grid system is unmistakable on the south side. The lawns are interspersed with patios and magnolias fringe the entrance (grandiflora produce beautiful large white fragrant flowers in June). Jules Vacherot also commissioned sculptors to create magnificent fantasies and balustrades facing west and north.

A succession of projects since 2003 have resized the garden. To give it more relief, bushes have been planted to give a coherent feel to the patios. The final stage of work was to create a magnificent flowerbed surrounding the fountain.

The yew trees overlooking the Dordogne Valley have been severely pruned to make them more elegant and to produce magnificent topiaries in the long term.

In the main park, many species of trees have taken root, particularly Atlas Cypress making a beautiful hedge, cork oaks, common variants, Virginia tulips, a beautiful arrangement of cornflowers and magnificent pine cove, among others.

The gardens to the west will undergo a major restoration during the winter 2016.