Les jardins Québécois

The gardens we saw in Québec were not remarkable - unlike the amazing Maine gardens last June. Admittedly, it was the end of the season, but we saw a lot of the same things - hydrangeas (including oak leaf hydrangeas in full sun, in bloom much later than at home), rudbeckias, sunflowers. Not terribly inspiring - the leaves were more beautiful.

But I know there's a famous Québec garden that is worth a trip, so maybe high summer would be a better time for garden viewing.
 
This is the inn in Baie-St.Paul where we spent our first night.  
The main building, dating from the 1850's, featured this garden entwined around the dining room window.

This inn in Petit-Saguenay was actually most remarkable for its site, up against a steep palisade (see the background), rather than for its pleasant but not unusual gardens.

 
These sunflowers bloomed cheerfully behind the inn.

 

Coming into L'Anse St. Jean from the hiking trail, we noticed this well-groomed garden with a waterfall on one side. In fact, the gardens were all so well maintained that it made me think of the Pennsylvania Dutch - satisfyingly tidy or stultifyingly tidy?? Okay, maybe I'm just jealous...

In Québec city, we saw a couple of window gardens.  
This one made the most of a tiny space, surely no more than eight inches wide!



 

This is, as Mom would say, a riot of color - but isn't that salmon-colored tuberous begonia beautiful?

 
This one blooms even during the long Québec winter.



 
Here's a bright red Canadian maple leaf from the trail.