philippe dubreuil & french garden design

The best thing about having created My French Country Home is the many talented people I get to meet. From artists, to writers, to photographers, to cooks… and sometimes also garden designers. I just love garden design!

I first met Philippe Dubreuil a couple of years ago when I visited his fantastic garden. Created from scratch in the Perche region of Normandy, if you love gardens, then Les Jardins de Montperthuis are definitely worth the detour.

Having lived and worked in France, England and the United States, Philippe felt the urge to get back to his roots. So, he set out to find the ideal place to create his own home and garden.

He ended up buying a piece of land with nothing on it but a couple of abandoned century-old stone farm buildings. In terms of the garden, there were two old trees, but nothing more.

But, Philippe’s garden design started to come together. One weekend he sat down and put the whole thing to paper – and he has stuck to that vision ever since!

Now, with its passages of trees and pathways begging to be followed, visitors are invited to intuitively wander the gardens from ‘room’ to ‘room’.

Ten years later, his garden has been officially recognised as a ‘Jardin Remarquable’. This coveted French award is one to look out for when you are touring the French countryside.

Today, Philippe designs gardens around the world. From his home in Normandy and his office in Paris, he liaises with clients from California to Cape Cod, and from Paris to Morocco. Not only does he tackles huge properties, but also small Parisian town gardens, where space is at a premium.

I was fortunate this fall to have Philippe visit my own garden. Before arriving he found me on Google Earth and took a lay of the land. When he arrived we spent almost two hours wandering around (my garden is not that big!). I explained how the garden has grown up to now. As I shared some of my ideas for future development, Philippe weighed in with his own spontaneous suggestions for improvements. A few days later he kindly sent me over this sketch of his ideas.

It felt like a moment of pure luxury to have this master designer appraise our family garden. With every garden design, Philippe’s vision is crystal clear. And I’m looking forward to having my own sliver of perfection when I put his ideas into action this spring! Today on Instagram I explain exactly where Philippe’s suggestions would intervene.

If you want to contact Philippe for your own property, the best thing is to pop over to his website and send him an email.