Mediterranean Garden Society
Mediterranean Garden Society
The French Branch of the MGS
In France, MGS members reside in all regions but most of us are in the South of France: Occitanie and Provence. Our gardens can be very different depending on the local climate and conditions: temperatures that fall more or less low in winter, and depending on whether they are steep or flat, seaside or inland but always with the challenge of water management.
The aims of the French Branch are to
Our Branch Head is Béatrice Bel (biography). Current and prospective members are welcome to contact her by email and to follow the Branch on the MGS French language website.
The photograph at the top of this page shows the experimental garden of Olivier Filippi at Mèze, close to Montpellier, specialising in plants that are adapted to particularly difficult conditions: prolonged summer drought, strong winds, sudden cold and poor soil. His work has been a source of inspiration to many MGS members. (Photo: Yvonne Barton)
Past Events
June 2019 - A talk in a library in Montpellier
Béatrice Bel talked to us about gardening in a mediterranean climate and how to make your garden sustainable. Béatrice then took us on a tour Mallorca and Alicante with photographs from the MGS AGM programme which she attended.
Branch Head Béatrice Bel writes:
“I have lived and taught abroad, teaching French, history and geography in sunny countries: Laos, Morocco and Polynesia. In each of these countries we had very different gardens with tropical and Mediterranean climates. My favourite was a Mediterranean garden in El Jadida on the Moroccan coast.
For twenty years, we have lived near Montpellier on the edge of a golf course: the terrain is sloping garrigue and without any trees. We have, my husband and I, gradually created this garden. Two books accompanied me on this adventure: “The Dry Gardening Handbook” by Olivier Filippi and “Mediterranean Gardening: A Waterwise Approach” by Heidi Gildemeister.
THE MEDITERRANEAN GARDEN is the registered trademark of The Mediterranean Garden Society in the European Union, Australia, and the United States of America