Le Labyrinthe - Jardin des Cinq Sens
N 46° 22.234 E 006° 19.554
32T E 294328 N 5138696
The Garden of the 5 Senses as its name translates in English in the picturesque medieval village of Yvoire makes a superb destination for a 1/2 day trip from Geneva.
Waymark Code: WMQBH
Location: Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, France
Date Posted: 09/13/2006
Views: 68
In former days the garden served as the Castle Yvoire's kitchen garden. In medieval times, gardens were enclosed by walls or fences and served the practical purpose of growing edible plants, as well as medicinal herbs, which provided the only available remedies.
Castle gardens gradually evolved into leisure gardens, where people even played games. They became a symbol of refinement and of courtly love, incoporating religious and mythological themes, particularly the labyrinth.
Here the garden has kept its original layout, with its paths, ponds, an dits old fruit trees. The hornbeam hedges and espaliered apple trees of the labyrinth mark out four areas containing plants and flowers which correspond to the four senses. The fifth sense, the sense of hearing, is represented by the babble of water and the singing of the birds.
There are actually 9 different individually themed parcels to explore which are :
- The Alpine Garden
- The Wood
- The Woven Garden
- The Cloister
- The Garden of Flavours
- The Garden of Fragrances
- The Garden of Textures
- The Garden of Sight
- The Garden of Hearing
There is also a short film presented (in French) which describes the different parts of the garden and how it was created.
The garden is classified as a "Jardin Remarquable" or "Remarkable Garden" by the French Ministry of Culture.
http://www.jardin5sens.net/