Spring at my favourite chateau

When I last spoke to you about the Château de Miserey, it was June and Madame de Roumilly's rose collection was in full bloom.  Yesterday I crept into the grounds early to enjoy the first spring flowers.

A few years back the Château was chosen (along with Giverny!) by Dutch bulb producers to receive a gift of almost 30.000 spring bulbs.  Most people would faint at the thought of planting 30.000 anything, but not Madame de Roumilly.  Never short of a good idea, a smile and contagious energy, she enrolled the help of all the pupils in the small village school and planting became their autumn project!

In a property of this size there is always something to be done.  Restoring and maintaining the château has been a labour of love for over half a century.  When Monsieur de Roumilly's father bought Miserey from a local farmer, the main (20' ceiling) salon was used for storing hay, and one of the smaller salons was where they made cider.  The floors were only beaten earth, and most of the windows had long been bricked up.

same shot, different season!

The very first buds on a beautiful white magnolia

and primroses allowed to self seed in gravel (I'm going to copy that one!)

Madame de Roumilly used to be a fine horse woman, this water pump and trough
linked to a well is a reminder of the days when her horses were in the park.

I thought that the gardeners among you would appreciate this 'before and after' of 

a climbing rose, - a lesson in curving branches to maximise blooms!

This summer I will have the pleasure of taking people to visit the rose gardens  of Miserey.  We'll probably bump into the owners, pruning, labelling and generally loving this charming property - just the way they have done all their married life.

visiting our valley - the rose gardens of miserey

You know how sometimes you come across a place or a person that is so totally delicious you're torn between telling everyone about it or keeping it greedily just for yourself?  Well, that's how I feel about Monsieur and Madame de Roumilly and their beautiful château and rose garden.

 

 

If it wasn't all uphill, I would cycle to their home, they live in a village just above our valley.  His family bought this sweet doll's house of a château many years ago, and have lovingly restored it , and created gardens that people come from afar to visit.

 

 

I adore their old greenhouse with it's unusual rounded roof and generous roses climbing all over.

 

When Madame was creating the gardens, she wanted an idea for planting up a field; she thought of the very catholic theme of heaven, purgatory and hell!  Not one to be easily scared, she researched plants worldwide to fit into her theme.  The result?  A fascinating walk between rose bushes displaying  fiery reds and oranges, huge thorns and fierce prickles, a walk through hell.  Cross the path of purgatory, lined with 12 yews representing the 12 apostles, and you enter Eden, pastel coloured roses, mostly thorn less, smooth stemmed.

It takes almost 2 hours to walk around the park and gardens.  I have done this walk many times  in the company of Madame de Roumilly who never seems to tire of telling people about her rose collection, or the origins of the more unusual plants.

These pictures were taken just as their fantastic rose border was coming  into flower.  Many of the unusual roses are from America, others from Italy

Back at the château I love to chat to the charming owners.  Monsieur de Roumilly has always supported his wife's plans for the château and gardens, and through the years has turned his hand to many a project.  From rebuilding stone walls to hand painting door panels.  The restoration of this lovely family sized château has been a real labour of love.

There is so much more to say, but in the end I have to let the pictures talk for me.  Maybe one day you'll come this way and we'll be able to wander around the park together.  We'll ask permission to let ourselves in  early in the morning - it might mean getting our feet wet in the grass, but it will  be worthwhile simply for the joy of seeing colours at their very best.