Few French gardens can rival those of Château Villandry and it is on every garden lover’s “must see” list when visiting the Loire. While known for its extraordinary formal gardens that surround the château, the enormous decorative kitchen garden is perhaps the most beautiful and impressive of all the gardens at Villandry.
The Loire Valley was nicknamed “Garden of France” by the nobles of the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries and is still called that today. They hired the best known Italian architects of the time as well as craftsmen and gardeners to come to France to redesign and build extravagant residences often surrounded by impressive formal gardens and parks. These magnificent gardens were used like outdoor salons for entertaining. Today, the Loire is full of vineyards that produce wines of great diversity, orchards and gardens, one of the most famous are the château gardens found at Château Villandry.
Villandry, listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site, is a family owned château that was transformed from a fortress to a château in the 16th century. In 1906, Joachim Carvallo, a Spanish doctor and his American wife Ann Coleman bought the château and restored it and the terraced gardens to their original splendor. It is now in the care of their great-grandson Henri Carvallo.
If you plan a trip to Château Villandry, visit the beautifully done château before exploring the gardens. It has a warm, intimate and inviting interior with bouquets of fresh flowers in the rooms and baskets of vegetables in the kitchen. The views from the upper rooms of the grand country house are spectacular and from that height, you see the six distinct gardens.
The formal ornamental garden is divided into three parts and all have intricate patterns of perfectly trimmed hedges filled with a variety of flowers. Further away, there is also a tranquil water garden with pools and fountains and a sun garden.
The enormous decorative kitchen garden, which is perhaps the most beautiful and impressive of the gardens at Villandry consists of nine same sized beds in which a variety of vegetables and flowers grow side by side. There are two planting periods during the year, one in the spring and then in the summer, with 40 different species of vegetables. There is also a medicinal garden planted with varieties of plants to treat all kinds of ailments.
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If you plan to be in the area around Tours, I would definitely recommend visiting Château Villandry, it is only nine miles away. This magnificent Loire Valley castle is a “must visit”, if only for its exceptional gardens. They are beautiful whether filled with roses blooming in June or cabbages, pumpkins and colorful vegetables in September.
Back Road Journal 
It’s such an amazing place. I’ve been in Loire area a lot but not visited this chateau, though have seen programmes about it on TV. Thank you for a great guide, Karen. I must go sometime!
It looks fabulous, Karen. I seem to remember seeing it on one of Monty Don’s garden series. We will be in Brittany next weekend. Not far away but just a bit too far to fit with our plans 🤗🩷
Looks amazing!! Must make a note of it.
I’ve been to the Gardens of Versailles and they were stunning – the sculptures and fountains too! The pictures you’ve shared are just beautiful and make me wish I could visit 🙂
Oh my! What a place.
Karen, thanks so much for sharing these beautiful gardens! We have never visited the Loire Valley, but it is on my list!
How beautiful, I’d love the kitchen garden!
So magnificent! I especially like the kitchen gardens. Lovely!!!Thank you Karen. 🙂
Lovely pictures of a lovely garden. We were there a couple decades ago, and found ourselves the only ones there that morning. It was a bright overcast day; without shadows, time seemed to stand still. All the more so when, from beyond the garden wall, somewhere in the village, a brass choir started playing renaissance music, perhaps practicing for an upcoming concert or festival. It really was like being transported to another era. Thanks for the pictoral tour!
Can you even imagine the work it takes to maintain this, not to mention what it took to design and plant it all in the first place — the vision, the back breaking labor? It’s stunning.
Incredible Karen! Stunning garden designs and beautiful colors! I bet it is truly breathtaking seeing them in person!
Jenna
Wow! I feel the urge to clip a hedge!
Looks absolutely stunning!
angiesrecipes
http://angiesrecipes.blogspot.com
I think it would be great fun to get lost in these gardens!
I don’t know what single word can describe those gardens. They are magnificent, but that seems inadequate. I’m not fond of gardening. I’m glad there are people who enjoy it and clearly some people excel in gardening.
I have been in the Loire valley but missed this garden. That’s a good reason to go back.
That place is amazing and the kitchen garden is unbelievable.
The gardens are incredible, it must take an army to upkeep it, I wouldn’t even know where to start! I’m interested in the kitchen garden and the specific herbs they grow.
incredible. I imagine you took about a thousand photos!
Your photos are stunning, Karen! We absolutely loved Villandry the last time we were in the Loire Valley. A bit sad we didn’t make it back this year but we really wanted to just kick back and relax after a whirlwind two weeks in Paris. So happy to see it again though your eyes!
Beautifully kept and so well designed. Your photos are fabulous Karen!
We have been to Tours! Wish I knew about these gardens then. They are stunning.
Karen, you take awesome vacations!
Wow! A girl can dream.
Well add this to the ever-growing list of places to visit! I’ve always dreamed of having hedges and flowers like that in our backyard…but then I realize that it takes a full-time staff to keep it looking nice. Can you imagine the amount of weeding that must be done there?? Thanks for sharing!
Wow! What a stunning garden.
Wow, those really are stunning gardens! So colourful too 🙂
It looks an amazing place to visit. The gardens are beautiful.
This looks like an amazing place. The gardens are beautiful.
Looks like an amazing place. The gardens are beautiful!
The gardens at Château Villandry sound absolutely breathtaking! Your vivid photos have truly captivated me to say the least. Thanks for sharing such a delightful glimpse into the beauty of the Loire Valley!
The gardens at Château Villandry sound absolutely breathtaking! Your vivid photos have truly captivated me to say the least. Thanks for sharing such a delightful glimpse into the beauty of the Loire Valley!
I’m not really a garden type person, but oh wow – this place looks absolutely magnificent and charming! Such beautiful landscaping.
What magical gardens around this chateau!! (I really need to use the word “chateau” more often lol, I love it) I enjoyed your photos very much, I can only imagine how impressive it all is in person, Karen!!
Those gardens are truly works of art. As someone who most often has a black rather than a green thumb, I so appreciate gardeners who can create majestic gardens like that — and keep them thriving.