Roquebrun is a lovely village, which I have now happily visited many times. However, I had never been to the Jardin Méditerranéen. Until now. This garden is home to an impressive collection of cactuses, lemon trees and all kinds of exotic plants from the Mediterranean region. On top of that, you will get a fantastic view of the Orb river.
Stuck
As the kids were on their school holiday, I thought this would be a good moment to visit the Jardin Méditerranéen. First, we would pay a visit to the garden, followed by trying to catch a few little fish in the river Orb. Sounded like a plan. Well… once we’d managed to extract our car from the very, very narrow streets of Roquebrun! Normally I park by the river, so I had never driven into Roquebrun itself. As the Jardin Méditerranéen is nestled at the top of the village, beneath the tower, my GPS indicated to go straight after the bridge, and then to the right. So that’s what I did- stupid enough- without thinking. Even though there was a very clear sign advising NOT to do that because of the narrow streets. From my personal experience, I can now say this is good advice, which needs to be followed. Fortunately, the car didn’t get completely stuck, but we came close…
Great view
After this quite exciting adventure, the kids had absolutely no trouble walking to the garden. I also enjoyed it, as it was a lovely walk. Normally we lie by the river and admire the great view of the village. As we were on the other side of the river, we had a beautiful outlook over the surroundings and the Orb River. Magnifique! The well-signposted way to the garden is a steep but easy walk. You will find the garden just beneath the medieval tower.
Unique local plants
Le Jardin Méditerranéen, founded in 1986, has the most important greenery collection of the region, including unique plants from across the Languedoc area. Because of Roquebrun’s position in the Orb valley, the village has its own microclimate, which is just perfect for mimosa, cactuses, lemons and all kinds of exotic plants. Hence its nickname ‘Little Nice’. Even though I do not have green fingers, I enjoyed our visit. I especially loved walking around the tower of Roquebrun. About 4000 plants grow and bloom in the Mediterranean garden, thanks to some passionate gardeners. As Le Jardin Méditerranéen is quite isolated, the material to create the garden – 1000 tonnes in total – was brought on the backs of people and donkeys. What a job that must have been!
