International Garden Festival, Chateau de Chaumont

The Chateau de Chaumont in the Loire Valley holds the Chaumont Garden Festival, the French equivalent to the Chelsea Garden Show, each year from late April to mid-October.

26 plots are given to international garden designers to have their way. There’s a set theme that changes each year. The year we were there (2006) was, “At Play in the Garden.” 2007’s theme was

Chateau de Chaumont

“Mobile! Gardens for a World on the Move!”

Above you see the permanent walkways that lead to the 25 gardens from the Chateau. In successive posts, I’ll show what fun some of the designers had playing in this garden.

Friday, January 25, 2008

The stables.

The view of the Loire from the Chateau.

The “tree” entrance to the gardens and bridge are all made of concrete.

Above is the layout of the grounds. The sweeping curves area on the right is the park for picnicking and horseback riding. Very upper left is the Loire River. The Chateau is the big box near the River. The stables and permanent gardening exhibitions are in the lower center. The 26 garden exhibits that change each year are on the lower left, the octopus-looking paths. I’ll feature a few of these in upcoming posts.