When I learnt that the Catholic church in Saint Montan had donated the overgrown Jardin du Curé to the village, I offered to create a herb garden open to the public. Month by month, this book tells the story of how I replaced my kitchen fork with the gardening version, and designed then restored the long, narrow plot that lies next to our own garden at the foot of the ruined chateau. Villagers gave plants and seedlings from their own gardens and the mairie purchased shrubs to help furnish the space. I transported old varieties of climbing roses from England which are always appreciated in France. Beautifully designed by David Fordham with antique line drawings, this book has achieved success around the globe. Letters, emails and website references still arrive about the book and visitors travel from near and far to explore the Jardin du Curé and the village.
Diary Of A French Herb Garden tells the tale of how one of our most distinguished food writers fell in love with a small village in the Ardèche in France, and turned a vegetable plot into an aromatic garden. I started reading my copy after supper one night and it was deep into the night before I could put down this compelling portrait of life in rural France. All the characters are there – the mayor, the village council, the friends who arrive at all hours with cuttings and seedlings. There is a surprise discovery of an ancient irrigation system – and at the end of the book you find the garden plans, so you can even copy parts of the scheme if you have a spare bit of sunny garden.Needless to say, if you love cooking with herbs, Geraldene has a suggestion or two along the way. I shall certainly be installing a dish of herbes de Provence beside my stove, to throw into dishes with abandon, as she suggests.”
Orlando Murrin, editor of BBC Good Food magazine
GERALDENE HOLT 