The only garden village in France

Yes, Chédigny, from flower to butterfly, is fortunate to be recognized as the only garden village in France! And we can deplore the unusual nature of this distinction....


Chédigny, in Indre-et-Loire, of course....
Everyone knows and recognizes that the Loire Valley is the garden of France (how can I be a chauvinist? And first of all, how did you know I'm a Touraine?).
And this unique garden has seduced kings and princes who have sprinkled it with castles, tributes paid to its beauty, precious ornaments of its valleys and hills (how can I not be objective?)
In short, in the Loire Valley, there is Indre-et-Loire, and in Indre-et-Loire, nestled among roses, there is Chédigny!


Chédigny
Chédigny is indeed the only village in France that is classified as a "Remarkable Garden".
It started in 1998, under the impetus of its then mayor, Pierre Louault, who overturned the traditional layout of the sidewalks by creating flowery areas.
Indeed, the central street had become a road full of trucks, lined with parked cars, as happens in many villages. But in this case, the mayor wanted to turn the tide, and make his village more attractive, more welcoming, and more aesthetic for all.
Soon, generous flower beds planted with roses, shrubs and perennials appeared on the sidewalks.
And then, taking advantage of the necessary work to bury the networks, well... the sidewalks... they have disappeared altogether! In favour of the appearance of all kinds of perennial flowers, various plants, shrubs, and very many roses.
And, over time, each year, new streets that serve the centre of the village are planted with vegetation.
There are now more than 1000 roses, mainly old roses, hundreds of shrubs, thousands of perennials,
and many bulbs that bloom again every spring.
And no weedkiller is used!
And, as a gift, the birds come back, and chirp in the climbing roses that go up along the facades!

 

The heart of the village is a "meeting place"
The signs clearly indicate that pedestrians are a priority, and both residents and visitors use the roadway quietly, as the cars that share it with them drive at a walking pace: 20 km/h maximum!
The inhabitants "play the game", and participate greatly in this flowery environment, the flowering of private courtyards and gardens being in beautiful harmony with that of the streets.
During your walk, don't forget to visit the garden of the presbytery, which has been reworked by specialists, and which is at the origin of the rebirth of the vegetable garden, the orchard, the apothecary square, without forgetting of course the superb flower beds!If you can, try to spend the Mother's Day weekend there, the date of the annual Chédigny Rose Festival.

 

A little walk?
To prolong the bucolic, quiet, almost dreamy atmosphere of this garden village, you are invited to do, in whole or in part, a 13-kilometre hike, starting next to the 12th century church. You will discover forest paths, the sweetness of the Tours meadows, and the secrets of the Indre valley, and the Indrois.
You can also choose the bike, which the holiday village La Saulaie offers for rent, and, thus, follow the cycle touring loop "the rose in the valley" or, if you like, in a few pedal rides, go visit Loches, which is only about fifteen kilometres away...

 

Mairie de Chédigny 
5, place de la Mairie 
37310 Chédigny
Tél. : 02 47 92 51 43


mairie-chedigny@wanadoo.fr

 

*** Translated with www.DeepL.com/

Translator (free version) ***


To go further....

Chédigny : La vie en roses

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Loches

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Loches, c’est 1000 ans d’Art et d’histoire. Au fil des siècles, la Ville a su préserver ses témoignages de puissance et de raffinement et garder ses parts de mystère. Loches, cette cité médiévale unique entre l’Indre et l’Indrois, a séduit des personnalités d’exception. Fougue, délicatesse et raffinement s’y sont mêlés : Agnès Sorel, première favorite officielle et son gisant d’albâtre, Anne de Bretagne, deux fois reine et cet oratoire somptueux de délicatesse, Diane de Poitiers, toute intelligence et raffinement, Catherine de Médicis, plusieurs fois régente et l’immense François Ier qui a doté Loches et la France des idées neuves de la Renaissance et choisi la ville pour une rencontre avec Lempereur Charles Quint. Loches a préservé sa beauté et se plaît à conter son histoire au gré des festivals et des rendez-vous culturels ou gastronomiques. Une cité riante où il fait bon flâner et s’émerveiller, qui est l’âme vivante de la Touraine Sud, active et sereine.
Les rives de l'Indre à vélo : Indre-et-Loire & Indre au fil de l'eau

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Beaux villages et cités de charme du Val de Loire

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La réputation de certains villages ou petites cités n'est plus à faire, mais combien d'autres se font discrets ? A l'heure où ne l'on quitte plus l'autoroute pour traverser la France, qu'il est bon de se laisser aller au gré des petites routes de campagne afin de découvrir ces nombreux bourgs et petites villes. On connaît tous, de nom au moins, des villes ou villages comme Sully-sur-Loire, Saint-Aignan-sur-Cher, Chenonceaux ou Montreuil-Bellay, mais qui s'est arrêté à Meung-sur-Loire, Lavardin, Preuilly-sur-Claise ou au Thoureil ? Prendre le temps d'aller dans ces villages et petites villes de charme, lever les yeux pour apprécier des maisons troglodytiques, pousser les portes des églises, se balader sur les quais de Loire au soleil couchant et imaginer les temps où l'on naviguait encore beaucoup sur le fleuve, c'est toujours aller à la rencontre de la vie qui a fait le charme des lieux.

Also to be seen in the department

Good and useful plants just at your feet....

placeCéré-la-Ronde - Indre-et-Loire 
label Small trades Natural curiosities People from here Fitness & Wellness Gastronomy[to eat]  
Le Château de Langeais,

Château de Langeais, two-sided and impossible to photograph!

placeLangeais - Indre-et-Loire  
label Castles & Monuments  
La Forteresse de Chinon

Chinon : the invisible fortress

placeChinon - Indre-et-Loire 
label Castles & Monuments cities and villages  
Le château d’Ussé

Ussé Castle, Sleeping Beauty Castle!

placeRigny-Ussé - Indre-et-Loire 
label Remarkable buildings Castles & Monuments  

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