During a visit to Paris last July, my wife and I had the good fortune to visit the Potager du Roi, or “King’s Vegetable Garden,” in Versailles, which a a short train ride of about a half hour from Paris, France. The Potager was created in the late 1600’s in order to feed King Louis XIV’s court at the Chateau/Palace in Versailles. The Potager is not on the site of the Chateau, but rather it is a few minutes walk into the town. If you like Espalier fruit trees, this is definitely a fabulous place to visit. Entry only costs a few Euros, and our tour group were pretty much the only people in the garden. It was much more relaxed than the crazy crowds at the Chateau. I took lots of pictures of the various Espaliers and thought that I might share a couple with like-minded fruit fans. Some of these espaliered trees are very old, and some are just getting started.
Old pear espalier
Funky new forms
Peach, trained as a fan up against a wall
Row of cordons
Espalier trees are very easy to net
Cherries in a Palmette
The espalier rows surround large vegetable garden blocks
Large pear and apple archway