Chartreuse du Colombier garden in the Dordogne; visitor guide

Visit Chartreuse du Colombier

The Chartreuse du Colombier is a traditional country house in the Dordogne department of south-west France near to Le-Bugue. It is surrounded by lovely gardens which are open to visitors.

Explore the gardens of the Chartreuse du Colombier

The Chartreuse du Colombier is a country house built in the 17 and 18th centuries in a style traditional to the Dordogne department. The house is very pretty with its stone walls, deep roofs and painted shutters and the owners have planted attractive gardens all around the house.

The gardens were opened to the public in 2014 and have been awarded the 'Jardin Remarquable' or remarkable garden award.

In front of the Chartreuse a parterre of clipped box and small shaped trees forms a structured garden which draws the eye to the L shaped house whose beautiful facade is covered with various climbing plants.

Walking through the attached working farm the garden leads behind here to an ornamental potager (vegetable garden) area that has been built up near the former stables. Next to the stables raised beds in a formal pattern are planted with espaliered apple trees, topiaries, roses, camelias and clipped hedges.

This area leads to an impressive baroque fountain and the ornamental vegetable garden which uses topiaries, roses and camelias to provide structure and vegetables such as ornamental cabbages, ruby chard, rhubarb and artichokes to add drama.

These two areas are very charming and an inspiration to anyone wanting to make a decorative vegetable garden back home.

Walking round to the back of the house via the donkeys grazing in the field and the formal parterres and topiaries next to the house look out over a long view towards a music pavilion and the grass path to get there is bordered by shaped trees and shrubs. In the spring this area also contains carpets of spring bulbs.

From here a long border of irises and perennials leads to the garden at the side of the house which is called their English garden due to its beds of roses, peonies, and large shrub borders but it does have a very French feel with its many clipped hedges and topiaries.

Behind this garden is a lovely knot garden laid out in front of a stone dovecote. The knot garden is filled with cistus, hemerocallis, eremurus and a collection of a hundred peonies. There are also plenty of roses, clearly a favourite of the owners!

The gardens are open Wednesday to Sunday from 14 April to 1 October from 10.30 to 19.30. A visit costs 6 euros and is free for under 12s.

Teas and coffees and light refreshments are available and a lovely end to your visit.

The address is: Les jardins de la Chartreuse du Colombier, 630 route du Colombier, 24510 Paunat. Paunat is about half way between Tremolat and Limeuil.

Attractions nearby

The Chartreuse du Colombier is a 'jardin remarkable' and there are 10 of these in total in the Dordogne. Some of our favourites include the Jardins de Sardy, the Jardins du Marqueyssac, the Jardins de Cadiot and the Jardins d'Eau at Carsac-Aillac.

You can find more local travel ideas in the South West France guide,