Blisters, Heat Stroke and Pick Axes

At Le Domaine aux Quat'Saisons gardening is one of our many passions; here we describe how we planned and developed the Domaine's substantial garden in the Languedoc, taking it from a barren field to a colourful oasis in just 2 years. Guests staying at Le Domaine can now enjoy the magical garden and swimming pool complex. How did we come to do this?In the spring of 2004 we left our jobs in the city of London in the the United Kingdom and moved to France, simple as that!. We had already bought Le Domaine aux Quat'Saisons, an elegant maison de maitre near Carcassonne. Amongst other desirable features the house was blessed with a 2 acre garden and vineyard; but there was one big problem; there was nothing attractive in the garden whatsoever, just stumpy old vines and worn out fruit trees. As we planned to open the property as a luxury chambre d'hotes accommodation for holiday makers, we set about the task of planning a suitable garden. Little did we know what we had let ourselves in for! Our first Gardening Thoughts - Despair! It was now July 2004 and the Languedoc sun burnt brightly in the sky. Gardening readers of this article may be familiar with this: "the soil, hard baked clay, was like concrete, we could not even pierce the crust with a spade; "the few plants we brought with us from the UK all died in one week after exposure to the sun; "as we cut down weeds they sprang back up like Triffids; "the vines and old fruit trees that spread across the garden area were impossible to remove by hand; tough like steel. "the area was so huge that even after a walk in the garden at midday we needed to rest in the shade and drink copiously. At this point we longed for our corner of an English Garden, with its soft light, damp earth and profusion of flowers. Get Local Help - they have seen this before In despair we turned to Gill Pound at la Petite Pepinerie in Caunes-Minervois. What should we do? We realised we had found a font of local knowledge - with Gill's help we began to put a grand overall design for the garden in place. An avenue of Mimosa trees, large planted beds near the house, tropical planting near the pool, and a complete replanting of several wildly overgrown banks, the creation of several new ones, the installation of a pond and fountain, monument lighting for the 200 year old cedars trees that are at the centre of the garden, the list goes on and on. We were full of enthusiasm for the ambitious plan and we embarked open it with enormous energy and dedication. We hired in extra help, relatives came over to assist and we identified lists of plants that could survive the harsh summer, drought and winter frost. We attacked the ground with mechanical diggers and pick-axes, we toiled for many months, we watered . Over 1,500 plants, shrubs and trees went in in the first year alone and over 1,000 spring bulbs. Our First Taste of the Magic to Come In the spring of the following year we had our first taste of success; hundreds of Alliums bloomed and enchanted us with their gorgeous flowers. We were hooked and we gardened on, developing the plan with each new season and learning from failures (yes, like all gardeners we had our fair share) and scuccesses. Visitors staying at Le Domaine are now able to enjoy the unique pleasure of its 2 acre garden, vineyard and pool complex. From where we are nearly 3 years on, we have learnt an awful lot more about what to do; so here are our top 15 tips as well as our top Languedoc plants. Our top 15 tips for Success "Lawns are almost impossible in the Mediteranean, just mow the weeds and couch grass you have regularly. "Only plant what grows successfully in other gardens in the region - do not be tempted to try fancy hybrids or sub-species as they are all less resilient than their parents. "Only plant perennials in the autumn, after the first rains. This gives them a chance to establish before the heat of next summer. It will save you a lot of dead plants! "Expect some plantings to die. The different soils and microclimates across the Languedoc mean that what does well in one place may not do so well elsewhere. Re-plant or replace failures the following autumn. "Expect to water a lot in the first summer. Use well water if you have it, otherwise tap. Tap is expensive but if you don't do it the plants will die. "Water specimen plants with automatic irrigation thereafter. If you don't they will stay stunted and small. "Use mulch wherever you can, anything you can get your hands on (leaves, garden refuse, gravel, bark, etc. but not pine needles, they are a substantial fire hazard.) "Give up on window boxes, small pots and especially hanging baskets unless you plan to spend time every day watering in the summer, without fail. "Wrap tender specimens in fleece in mid December to protect from frost. "Hire in diggers and rotavators to break up the soil and uproot trees and shrubs in large areas. It will break your back manually. "Use glyphosate weed killer; weeding by hand will be an endless task except in small areas. "Stake all trees to protect from winter winds. "Forget nearly all annuals, they will die (see our list for some of those that will make it.) "Find or create a shaded, sheltered area for al-fresco eating, one of the greatest pleasures of Languedoc living. Top Mediterranean Toughies Believe us you need the toughest plants for south of france gardening; do not be tempted to think you can woo tender plants in your garden, you cannot! Shrubs and Perennials Viburnum tinus Pyracantha Nerium (Oleander) Teucrium species Rosemary Sage Salvia species (excellent for summer colour) Gallardia Gaura Solanum rantonettii Bottle brush Perovskia Euphorbia Cotoneaster horizontalis Melianthus major red hot pokers (non-hybrids) Iris species Cannas Yucca Photinia Grasses Miscanthus species and hybrids Pampus grass Pennisetum species Annuals Cosmos Zinnias Bulbs Allium species Agapanthus TreesMimosa Arbutus Umbrella pine Tamarisk Eucalyptus gunnei Palms (Trachycarpus fortunei, Washingtonia robusta) We would be pleased to share our wonderful, magical garden with you. For more information contact: Le Domaine aux Quat'Saisons 26 avenue georges celmenceau 11160 Rieux-minervois http://www.southoffrancehotel.com Tel + 33 (0) 4 68 24 49 73luxury bed and breakfast south of france