day 4 Loire Valley

Today we are at Vouvray, the famous white wine area, to visit the garden of le Chateau de Valmer where the Countess is a renowned landscape gardener and seed collector. The roses are past their best but there are still rare hortensias (pay attention - hydrangeas) amongst the yew

buttresses and a series of hanging gardens.

Here is David on the top lawn with the heavy terracotta urns.

Valmer is famous as a repository of old seeds which, in a reverse twist from European Union sameness, are being propogated and saved from extinction. The Countess now has over 3000 different seeds in her kitchen garden which is amazing in its size and scope.

It is also the home of France's collection of gourds - just a few of them shown here.

This is David and Merryle discussing the advisability of growing in Australia oxalis tuberosum, an edible tuber rather similar to new potatoes.
(David is not convinced.)

The son of the house, the delicious Jean, runs the winery and took us on a tour of the caves (underground cellars) and a wine tasting. Merylle was worried that we would let down Australia as it was so early on the day but she needn't have worried: we all loved the delicious sparkling and chenin blanc wines and bought up at the shop afterwards. His ancestors have been there since 1434 and he seems to have inherited their passion. Lunch was served from the bus under the stern eyes of 4 large shiny horses. It was a very warm day and by the time we got to Villandry the temperature was 36'!

Villandry was established in 1536 and is regarded as one of France's finest gardens. As you can see it is very formal: the Ornmental Garden is divided into "Tender Love", "Passionate Love", "Fickle Love" and "Tragic Love". Then there's the Water Garden, The Sun Garden, The Maze and the Herb and Vegetable Garden - where gardeners deposited just-picked eggplants, tomatoes, grapes and pears for the lucky customers, who happened to include us.

Here I am in the Sun Garden, well named in the heat of today.