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"The back-to-back greenhouses (...), which enjoy the sun on the other side,

In addition to this, you need to know more about it.

are excellent ”, Dezallier d'Argenville

In addition to this, you need to know more about it.In addition to this, you need to know more about it.

From the texts of Pliny the Elder, in the 1st century, we know that the Emperor Tiberius had his cucumber plants, so appreciated, protected from climatic hazards, under plates of selenite, a translucent gypsum. But this custom seems to have been lost with the fall of the Roman Empire and until the beginning of the Renaissance.

It is then that we see, initially with a scientific vocation, the appearance of botanical gardens in which glazed buildings allow the development and protection of species and varieties of plants gathered in collections.

Quickly, monarchs took an interest in this practice: the orangery became an essential element of great castles and properties from the 17th century. The royal orangery of Versailles built by the architect Louis le Vau (1662) could contain more than a thousand orange trees and other exotic shrubs tight within it (it is this "tightening" which then gave the word " tight "). These buildings, if they are glazed, still have a roof and some solid walls.

If they initially have a utilitarian aspect, from the 18th century, orangeries are also the subject of particular architectural care, adorned with ornaments and sometimes even sculptures. The orangery then becomes a place of socialization, welcoming parties and sumptuous receptions.

In the 19th century, with technical developments, the glazed parts grew. The English craftsmen were then masters in the matter but competed with the French. Different evolutions contribute to the appearance of the greenhouse as we still know it today. The Rohault de Fleury greenhouses, built in Paris in 1834, are among the first specimens. Iron and cast iron make possible the construction of fine and light structures with associated sheets of glass that have become particularly large and then even curved for domes.

The heyday of the greenhouse comes with the creation of large public greenhouses like the Crystal Palace in London (1851) which has crazy dimensions of more than 500 meters long and 7 hectares. People of all social classes come to visit these buildings for their architectural quality and the exotic plants and flowers displayed there.

With the beginning of the 20th century comes a gradual decline in the craze for greenhouses. Many of these constructions still exist and are a particularly rich heritage, both in the public and private domains. Some, however, show an advanced state of deterioration which requires restoration. Others have disappeared but can be partly recreated, from the existing iconography and our knowledge, to participate in exceptional gardens.In addition to this, you need to know more about it.