A 17th-century priory in France converted into a medieval-inspired topiary garden
An unassuming wooden sign on a country lane an hour north of Tours belies the spectacular garden that it points towards. It is only as you walk through a simple trellis gate into a narrow passage that you get the first indication something special is about to happen. Its walls are lined with chestnut logs stacked two metres high, topped with a blanket of vine twigs. Underfoot, log sections are set on end, creating an uneven surface that obliges visitors to slow their pace for what lies beyond.
As you enter the garden proper, it is the house that first draws your attention – the beautiful, imposing old priory Le Prieuré de Vauboin, which dates back to the 17th century. Second, is the overwhelming sense of peace – due, no doubt, to the silence as well as the feeling of being encircled by greenery, including lawns, vines, dramatic gunnera leaves and, most of all, neatly clipped box interspersed only by stone, brick and cinder paths.
Thierry Juge, who formerly lived in Paris, bought the house in January. ‘The building was pretty much a ruin, with no running water or electricity,’ he recalls. ‘The old lady who lived here previously collected water from the spring in the garden.’ Despite having no prior experience and never having read a gardening book, he started to make a garden in the half hectare of rough paddock round the building. His aim was to create a medieval-style hortus conclusus, with box topiary that provides year-round structure and interest. It was also important for him to make it a spiritual place, a reproduction of Paradise. ‘It was to be the symbol of a perfect life in God enclosed in order to escape the torments and temptations of the world,’ explains Thierry on the garden’s website.
He began by building the boundary wall of chestnut logs and these form a charming backdrop as well as a refuge for wildlife. As you look out from the front door of the house, a large stepping stone crosses a small spring-fed stream into the garden. Formal parterres and topiary divide the space. There is an enclosed seating area, an orchard of cherry trees with box balls like giant marbles set on the diagonal under them, and a neat box-edged potager. A labyrinth, adjacent to the orchard, is dedicated to meditation and contemplations. Thierry calls it the ‘spiritual heart of the garden’.
Today, the garden is composed of three main parts. As well as the hortus conclusus around the house, Thierry bought a further half hectare years ago, made up of a steep bank behind the house and a level area, yet to be developed, at the top.
Once the walled garden nearest the house was complete, Thierry began on the second garden on the bank, clearing numerous trees and making sense of the thicket of wild box. ‘The steep terrain and shade of the large deciduous trees led to some astonishing shapes,’ he says. Unlike the strict geometry in the area below, here he followed the underlying sculptural nature of the box, clipping it into shapes and unique forms, each with a distinct personality. ‘I use my instinct and allow the plants to guide me,’ he explains, admitting he is far more interested in these irregular forms than the standard topiary.
Some forms are totemic, others expressive; some work as isolated pieces, others as part of a collection. Thierry points out those that reference artists such as the Japanese painter Katsushika Hokusai, known for The Great Wave off Kanagawa, Henri Matisse and Joan Miró. Some are cascades, while others resemble dancers, umbrellas, garlands, pompoms and eyes. There are many wonderful vignettes, too, which lead visitors as if drawn by a magical thread through the varied spaces.
His energy, passion and familiarity with each plant is remarkable – as are his techniques for creating the shapes. One of the most interesting is tightly clipping foliage on bare stems to encourage growth until the trunk is clothed in leaves.
I ask if he has a favourite and, on the top path, Thierry points out his chouchou (darling) – a particularly elegant form with sinuous branches supporting variously shaped pompoms. ‘It changes so much depending on the viewpoint,’ he says. And it is truly fascinating how the mass and void and light and shade, as well as the interplay with the forms around it, alter one’s perspective.
Evidently, the majority of the planting here is box and, although it is beautiful and extremely versatile, there is no ignoring the fact that it is increasingly difficult to grow healthily. Box tree caterpillar is a particular problem and can decimate plants, so is Thierry concerned? ‘The important thing is to not panic,’ he says. ‘You must be vigilant and understand the life cycle of the caterpillar in order to eradicate it.’ He recommends spraying with a biological control every eight weeks from spring through to autumn, when the caterpillars are active.
The garden has won the coveted title of Jardin Remarquable (an award given by the French Ministry of Culture) and also the first prize for the nationally recognised Prix de l’Art du Jardin from the Fondation Signature and Ministry of Culture. ‘When I began creating the garden, I never thought for a moment that I would receive visitors, let alone that it would become recognised as exceptional,’ says Thierry. ‘It’s a complicated garden.’ That may well be, but his devotion to it is clearly straightforward and complete.
The garden of Le Prieuré de Vauboin, Beaumont-sur-Dême, Sarthe is open by appointment only: leprieuredevauboin.fr
