Opening a garden, sharing an experience: Dominique and Marie-Odile’s story

For Dominique and Marie-Odile Birault, opening their garden with Open Gardens/Jardins Ouverts began almost by chance. Eight years later, it has become a much-loved annual tradition — one built around sharing, conversation and a desire to support children’s charities.

Dominique first discovered Open Gardens/Jardins Ouverts when he spotted a leaflet on a restaurant table in Montmorillon. At the time, he had already been looking for a way to help visually impaired children and had considered creating raised illustrations for children’s books. When he learnt that opening his garden could provide another way of raising money for children, the idea immediately appealed.

After the Associations previous President, Mick Moat explained how Open Gardens/Jardins Ouverts worked, Dominique says simply: “The adventure began…”

A first opening to remember

Their first experience of opening their garden in 2018 was certainly memorable. They ambitiously opened for three consecutive days — Friday, Saturday and Sunday — from 10am until 7pm without a break. They soon discovered one small complication: their British visitors did not necessarily have the same lunch hours they did.

There was barely time to stop and eat, as there always seemed to be someone new arriving to welcome.

But what Dominique remembers most is the unexpected pleasure of receiving people they had never met before and finding themselves exchanging ideas and experiences with them. Visitors were curious about the garden and conversations naturally developed around plants and gardening techniques. For Dominique and Marie-Odile, this simple interaction is still one of the greatest pleasures of opening their garden. “It is a moment of sharing,” Dominique explains. Welcoming people into a garden creates something informal and authentic, where flowers and plants help people communicate and make connections.

And sometimes the greatest compliments are the simplest.

Dominique remembers the satisfaction of hearing British visitors leave the garden saying: “Pretty garden.”

Learning what works for you

Their openings have naturally evolved over the years. The opening hours have become shorter and, during the last couple of years, Dominique and Marie-Odile have also simplified the way they prepare the garden. There is less emphasis on creating a special “mise en scène”. Instead, the plants themselves take centre stage.
After around ten years of work, Dominique feels that the garden has now reached maturity. Visitors can enjoy beds filled with naturally grown flowers rather than planting designed around current fashions or trends.

It is perhaps an important reassurance for anyone considering opening their own garden: there is no single formula for a successful Open Gardens day.

Hosts learn what works for their garden, their visitors and themselves.

Friendship as well as flowers

Opening the garden has also brought friendships. For several years, Martin Looker and his wife Denise supported Dominique and Marie-Odile during their opening days. They provided practical help, while Martin also used his extensive network of contacts to publicise their opening dates — regularly bringing new visitors to the garden. The relationship became much more than simply organisational support.

It is another side of Open Gardens/Jardins Ouverts that is sometimes easy to overlook: opening a garden can create connections not only between gardeners and visitors, but between the people who make the events possible.

Dominique also particularly enjoys welcoming groups by appointment. For him, these smaller visits offer an opportunity to adapt his explanations to the interests and expectations of the particular visitors, making each visit slightly different.

Supporting a cause that matters

The charitable purpose behind Open Gardens/Jardins Ouverts remains extremely important to Dominique and Marie-Odile.

They have noticed that donations have become harder to raise since the Covid years and during the more recent economic difficulties. Whenever they are able to do so, they make an additional personal donation themselves to help compensate.

For them, knowing that money raised through their garden will be distributed carefully and used to improve the lives of sick children remains fundamental to their involvement.

Could you open your garden?

After opening their garden year after year since 2018, Dominique and Marie-Odile are well placed to reassure anyone wondering whether their own garden is “good enough” to take part. Their message is that Open Gardens/Jardins Ouverts offers enormous freedom. There is no required size of garden and no expectation that it should conform to a particular standard or style.

What matters is the desire to welcome people and to share something you enjoy.

Dominique also stresses the support available from the Open Gardens/Jardins Ouverts team. The association’s committee members are approachable and helpful, and can provide both practical assistance and advice when preparing for an opening.

Perhaps that is why, after all these years, Dominique and Marie-Odile continue to return. For them, opening the garden remains a chance for gardeners to meet, exchange ideas and enjoy plants together — and to show visitors that beautiful flowers and the pleasure of gardening can be accessible to everyone. Above all, it is a simple act of sharing: opening the gate to a garden they love and, at the same time, helping a cause they believe in.