GARDENING GROUP

Visit to The Garden Montjoie at Sainte-Pexine on 23rd September

The garden Montjoie is a few kilometres from Sainte-Pexine. A visit there has much to offer with a huge variety of trees, shrubs, plants and vegetables.
The house dates to the 19th century and there are extensive accommodation buildings for when the 5 children and 18 grandchildren come to stay! There is even an area where the children perform a play or a concert.
The owner Madame Pauline Gillard-Chevallier, is an enthusiastic and knowledgeable guide for the garden tour. We went through shaded walkways where she has planted cuttings in pots and troughs, to the more formal areas where plants are changed and renewed annually dependent on how they grow. The garden has suffered the same problem as all gardens this summer with the drought and heatwaves. Where the plants were shaded, they have largely survived but many have not; but some of the 200 bush roses were budding and flowering for our visit.
The garden is open from the end of May – end of September by appointment. A visit in Spring is recommended when the bulbs are in full bloom.
Despite a temperature of 30 degrees, it was an enjoyable and informative visit.