{"id":40830,"date":"2026-09-25T09:00:39","date_gmt":"2026-09-25T05:00:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.lagazette-mag.io\/?p=40830"},"modified":"2026-09-25T09:00:39","modified_gmt":"2026-09-25T05:00:39","slug":"bel-ombre-as-told-by-its-plants","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lagazette-mag.io\/en\/bel-ombre-as-told-by-its-plants\/","title":{"rendered":"Bel Ombre as Told by Its Plants"},"content":{"rendered":"

Built in 1810, the Ch\u00e2teau de Bel Ombre continues, two centuries later, to dazzle its visitors\u2026 Dotted with magnificent fountains, its French-style gardens\u2014which are reminiscent of a miniature Versailles\u2014stretch as far as the eye can see. Watching over this gem are Bertrand d\u2019Unienville\u2014a local version of Andr\u00e9 Le N\u00f4tre\u2014passionate gardeners, and a beautiful philosophy. <\/b><\/b><\/p>\n

\u201cOur gardens are the beating heart of the estate,\u201d begins Bertrand, a landscape gardener. While their design is French-inspired, they are also meant to embody the very essence of the great Mauritian gardens, where native plants harmoniously coexist with trees and species from all corners of the world. Seasonality reigns supreme here, and the challenge is considerable. \u201cWe strive to ensure the gardens are in bloom every day of the year, so visitors can enjoy perfect strolls at all times,\u201d he says. To meet this challenge, about ten gardeners, trained in horticulture, cover the grounds, each tending to an area they have fully made their own and where they have developed horticultural methods specific to that section. <\/p>\n

Bertrand\u2019s approach is almost poetic, as it places continuity at the heart of his work: the landscape sequence\u2014which is of paramount importance\u2014opens up the view and stretches from the colonial building to the mountains, occasionally brushing past the golf course and the real estate developments springing up throughout the estate. More than just a beautiful panorama, it is also a breeding ground for life taking shape. \u201cWe also cultivate plants that promote biodiversity at all levels; the idea is to create uninterrupted biodiversity corridors all the way to the mountains,\u201d he explains. As endemic vetiver grasses thrive, insects and birds abound\u2014a beauty of life that the estate is committed to preserving at all costs, for example by protecting nests until the young birds\u2019 first flight. <\/p>\n

And like any self-respecting garden, the Domaine de Bel Ombre can also boast one of the most\u2026 eclectic vegetable gardens around! Heirloom and forgotten vegetables sit alongside less common varieties of our classics and culinary staples. Mango-flavored ginger, Angole greens, Syrian fava beans, white chayotes, yellow-fleshed cassava, white-fleshed sweet potatoes\u2026 \u201cWhat interests us is building a bridge between Mauritian home cooking and avant-garde cuisine,\u201d explains Bertrand. A lover of varieties that have become little-known today, his latest success is the cambar de riz\u2014or winged yam, as connoisseurs call it\u2014from which he has just harvested his first crop. <\/p>\n

Once again, sustainability permeates every corner of this vegetable garden, where seasonal crops are grown in rotation. \u201cWe don\u2019t use any chemical inputs, and the concept of \u2018weeds\u2019 doesn\u2019t exist here: we observe them and eat them when they\u2019re edible,\u201d he says. Designed like a large laboratory, this marvelous vegetable garden supplies the chefs at the estate: there are no advance orders; the chefs must work with whatever they receive each week, almost blindly. And this yields excellent results, such as Chef Ram Appadoo\u2019s delicious risotto with br\u00e8des mouroum at Ch\u00e2teau de Bel Ombre\u2026 <\/p>\n

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Built in 1810, the Ch\u00e2teau de Bel Ombre continues, two centuries later, to dazzle its visitors\u2026 Dotted with magnificent fountains, its French-style gardens\u2014which are reminiscent of a miniature Versailles\u2014stretch as far as the eye can see. Watching over this gem are Bertrand d\u2019Unienville\u2014a local version of Andr\u00e9 Le N\u00f4tre\u2014passionate gardeners, and a beautiful philosophy. \u201cOur […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":40831,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1780],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-40830","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-focus-en-en"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t