The fairy tale fa??ade of the Chateau de Chenonceaux rises majestically over the River Cher. Next to the Chateau are the equally spectacular potager gardens, a tapestry of checkerboard squares filled with designs made from delicious vegetables and decorative topiaries.
This winter, a new landscape architecture program will take students to the Chateau de Chenonceaux as well as Villandry and the city of Tours, located in the Loire Valley of France. The valley is renowned for its chateaux, gardens and vineyards.
\These sites are the best examples of Renaissance landscape design in that part of France,"" said Arnold Alanen, landscape architecture department chair.
The two-week trip is part of a three-credit workshop that aims to give students the opportunity to learn about the potager, or kitchen garden, which uses vegetables instead of flowers. Their assignment will then be to design their own potager.
The students will be staying in the town of Pontlevoy, in an abbey that was founded in the 11th century. Although a moat and gates still stand, the interiors have been upgraded to serve the needs of the students.
In addition to designing their own gardens, the students will study various aspects of a medieval village in France. They will learn about the ""slow-food movement,"" which Alanen described as the opposite of fast food, including how to plant, grow and prepare the food.
The students will thus delve into the world of sustainable agriculture, which emphasizes living off food from the gardens rather than purchasing it at a store.
The course ""will be full of life-long lessons,"" said Janet Silbernagel, assistant professor of landscape architecture department, who will be heading the design of the garden.
""It is a very unique, interdisciplinary program that combines the different perspectives of history, culture and landscape design,"" she said.
UW-Madison senior Jessica Thuli, who is signed up for the course, said she is excited to spend time in the abbey.
""It will be really interesting, staying in Europe and designing a French garden,"" she said.
The program occurs over the winter interim because ""the curriculum is so tight that students are not able to take the semester or the year to study abroad and miss required classes,"" Alanen said.
Although the trip was originally planned for upper-level landscape architecture undergraduate students, it has since been open to any interested UW-Madison students who meet general study-abroad requirements. The classes are taught in English, so there is no language requirement.
The workshop takes place between Dec. 29 to Jan. 15 and will cost approximately $1,200, which includes tuition, lodging and meals.
Students interested in the workshop should contact the Landscape Architecture Department.
