By Aurore Laborie
MONTREUIL, France Sept 26 (ScPo) - Just four kilometres from central Paris lies a well-kept secret: 30 hectares of hidden gardens enclosed by high, whitewashed walls. Once a major urban fruit production centre, this is what remains of the Montreuil suburb’s 'Peach Walls', the centuries-old pride of French arboriculture.
In July 2023, after four years of campaigning, two associations succeeded in having the art of “espalier” planting recognized as intangible cultural heritage in France. This first step in the recognition of this fruit-growing technique is a prerequisite for eventual recognition by UNESCO.
The “espalier” technique involves growing fruit trees on frames along garden walls made of plaster, which hold heat from the sun. Fastening the branches to the walls with nails and scraps of fabric allows them to benefit from the collected heat.
Not only does this technique help to produce fruits of high taste quality, it also enables peaches to grow close to Paris when they are usually cultivated in warmer climates in the south.
"We're fighting for UNESCO recognition because this skill threatens to be forgotten," said Michel Schlosser, president of Amis du potager de Versailles ('Friends of the Versailles Vegetable Garden'), which partners with the Murs à Pêches association ('Peach Walls') for UNESCO recognition.
A forgotten savoir-faire.
A Montreuil speciality since the 17th century, the peaches graced the tables of monarchs all over Europe, notably King Louis XIV, the Queen of England and the Czar of Russia.
Several varieties of peach were created in Montreuil, including the Prince of Wales, Grosse Mignonne and Téton de Vénus, which are still grown there today.
The Peach Walls continued to expand up to the 19th century - spreading across 600 kilometres in 1870, with harvest reaching 17 million fruits a year.
By the 1970s, only 50 hectares remained.
Back then, the city needed more land to construct housing, so protecting arboricultural heritage was not a top priority. According to Isabelle Faugeras, a volunteer at the Peach Walls association, the elected mayor in 1984, Jean Pierre Brard, saw the peach orchards as a 'land bank' to erect new buildings for new real estate projects.
Railroads and means of transport also enabled peaches from the south of France to reach Paris before the Montreuil high-quality peaches reached maturity. The Peach Walls of Montreuil became less important and were gradually forgotten.
The Peach Walls association has been fighting urban developers and political disinterest for almost 30 years, losing parcels of land to the construction of a swimming pool, a middle school and a retirement home. Other parcels were bought by construction companies who use them as storage.
Heavy construction blocks belonging to a company owning one of the parcels threaten to break down one of the peach walls.
Despite this, the Peach Walls have managed to survive, thanks to a collective of associations who managed to save some of the parcels and rehabilitate them into gardens. Their goal is not to bring back the Peach Walls to their production efficiency from the 19th century, but to safeguard an ancestral technique and protect this natural environment just a few kilometres away from Paris.
Map of what remains of the Peach Walls and the few parcels saved by various associations.
A tour of the walled gardens with Pascal Mage, co-president of the Peach Walls association, shows how this green space is now used for more than fruit production with diversified activities, where one parcel used for a reinsertion program for previously incarcerated people teaches how to mortar and plaster a wall or how to prune a fruit tree, another parcel plays host to a circus and theatre among the fruit trees.
The association also hosts weekend markets, selling what little amount of fruits and vegetables the gardens produce, harvested by volunteers.
Aurore Laborie, "Undocumented, I cross the border between city and country."
"It's because people defended this place that it survived," said Mage, while looking out at the rolling fields of white walls and green vines. From this vantage point, no buildings in sight, a respite from bustling Paris.
Aurore Laborie, Tour of the Peach Walls with Pascal Mage.
It was only two years ago, following a public demonstration of 5000 people, that the mayor's office changed its course and began working in tandem with the association, providing funds and raising awareness, Mage said.
Obtaining UNESCO recognition, an international affair.
His association hopes that winning a place on the UNESCO World Heritage list would bring international recognition to the art of espalier and help protect this long lasting tradition. The French association is filing a request along with Belgium, Switzerland, Germany and the Netherlands, which have used this technique for centuries.
"The art of espalier is not a uniquely French heritage, unlike the baguette," explained Michel Schlosser. Like France, Belgium was famous for using this same technique during the 19th century. Today, the Gaasbeek Castle, just outside of Brussels, is famous for its fruit tree garden, which features many ancestral production techniques, including espalier.
So far, the UNESCO intangible cultural world heritage compiles 676 elements, featuring Maghreb couscous production, artisanal know-how of the French baguette, and beer culture in Belgium.
UNESCO’s 2003 Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage proposes five broad ‘domains’, in which intangible cultural heritage is manifested, such as "performing arts" and "knowledge and practices concerning nature and the universe".
While the list provides a framework to set what is intangible cultural heritage, it is also not intended to be exclusive since each community may define its own idea of what it can represent.
"I'm not worried about getting UNESCO recognition," said Patrick Fontaine, who has owned a parcel (115m long and 12m large) of the Peach Walls since 2010.
Fontaine's garden is famous for its use of the art of espalier to make plants grow in all forms and sizes. He notably was made 'Knight of the Order of Rosemary' by the National Horticultural Society of France in 2018, for his remarkable action in respecting nature and beautifying the environment.
"It's just a matter of time but I don't see why UNESCO wouldn't recognize this centuries-old tradition like they've already done with other traditions," Fontaine explained while proudly showing some of his creations. At the far end, an apple tree is growing into the Olympic Rings. Next to it, a peach tree looks like giant flames sprouting from the ground.
Aurore Laborie, Peach Espalier of Olympic Games Rings and Flame.
It took up to five years for the art of espalier to be recognized as intangible cultural heritage in France. Michel Scholsser expects the same amount of time for UNESCO recognition.
"It's rare to recognize ancestral techniques linked to nature, but we managed to prove it in France so I don't see why we couldn't with UNESCO," he said, agreeing with Pascal Fontaine.
And while the art of espalier might be recognized eventually by UNESCO, the Montreuil Peach Walls still have to survive long enough to see it. Out of about 50 hectares, only 8,5 hectares have been recognized as a French cultural heritage. Fontaine's parcel is one of them. The Peach Walls Association is still trying to save the remaining parcels and rehabilitate them into gardens.
In the meantime, other countries have begun taking a closer look at Montreuil's peach walls. Case in point, a group of Erasmus students from Portugal, Senegal and Finland visited the site on Monday to see whether its traditional use of local raw materials can be imported abroad. American university students are also scheduled to come.
"Peach Walls in danger" petition to protect this natural heritage.
"People often assume espalier planting is exclusively for castles and fancy gardens, but it's actually important today because it can reintroduce fruit trees in cities," Schlosser said at the end of a long exchange. This savoir-faire could pave the way towards 'edible' cities.
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