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International Garden Festival of Chaumont-sur-Loire gets under way

The Garden Festival of Chaumont-sur-Loire began on April 30 and will run until October 19. This year the festival is organised by the Domaine de Chaumont-sur-Loire, a new institution set up in February that encompasses the International Conservatory of Parks, Gardens and Landscape of Chaumont-sur-Loire; the International Garden Festival, the Château de Chaumont and the Chaumont-sur-Loire Park. The title of this year's edition is Des jardins en partage.

The festival, first held in 1992, has gained international recognition as one of the most important landscape gardening events. The event is a showcase for the latest trends in parks and gardens.

The gardens chosen by the panel of judges relate to the main aspects of the theme for the 2008 edition, namely, the divide between man and fauna, and exchanges and the divide between generations and different civilisations.

This year professionals will have an opportunity to share their knowledge thanks to a special section called ‘Green Spaces’. The Domaine de Chaumont-sur-Loire will offer a series of children’s workshops that reflect the main theme of the festival. The activities are aimed at bringing kids into close contact with nature. Workshops on designing and organising gardens will also be held every other Saturday for the general public.

Five acclaimed landscape designers to take part

Five leading landscape designers are participating in the 2008 edition of the festival: Alexandre Chemetoff, Michel Corajoud, Florence Mercier, Michel Pena and Jacques Simon.

Two major cities – Lyon and Paris – and the Ecole Nationale d’Horticulture de Angers have also been invited to contribute to the event.

Opening hours

The festival will be open every day from 30 April to 19 October 2008, from 9:30 a.m. until dusk (the entrance will close at 7 p.m. until the end of August, and at 6 p.m. in September).

Admission

€ 9.00 (general); € 6.50 (reduced); € 3.50 for children aged 6 to 10; free of charge for children under six.

Location

Chaumont-sur-Loire is located 17 km from Blois, 44 km from Tours, and 185 km from Paris.

More information

• International Garden Festival of Chaumont-sur-Loire website

Source: texts – CDAN; photos courtesy of Domaine de Chaumont-sur-Loire / © Philippe Perdereau.

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