Pollarding in Paris

The French have mastered the fine art of tree trimming. Since my first visit to Paris in 2007, I have been fascinated at the way they manicure the trees in the gardens. I've learned since,  this technique is called pollarding. Love seeing it in the fall at Tuileries.

Well Coiffed

Since most of my trips to Paris have been in the late fall and winter, I have been able to observe the trees in the gardens and along the Champs Elysées sans feuilles.   I've always been fascinated by the time consuming trimming that it must take to keep them all in shape.  Here in Tuileries late on a January afternoon, you can see the effects of pollarding.  One day I hope to catch the tree trimming crew in action and see exactly how the do it.  Merci to my blog friend Karin Bugge, who also happens to be a docent at the Huntington Gardens in Pasadena. She knew the term off the top of her head.  Trés impressed.