The high-altitude en permaculture
Established in 2019, the permaculture garden at Chez Pépé Nicolas covers approximately 2,000 m² at an elevation of 2,000 meters. It produces herbs, edible flowers, vegetables, and berries that are used in the restaurant’s dishes.
Aromatic spirals, terraced fields and flower-filled meadows
The high-altitude vegetable garden is a place of sharing, where a genuine, generous, committed, and creative family spirit thrives. In this unique garden, Magali Suchet has learned to listen to nature. She has passed on her values and positivity to Joseph, our gardener, who helps an entire ecosystem grow and flourish.
Like a jewel nestled among the peaks, the garden at Chez Pépé Nicolas has gone through several stages of development: it began as a small alpine vegetable garden created in 2012. Then, in 2020, Thierry Suchet, Pépé Nicolas’s grandson, and Christophe Gonthier, a landscape architect from Chambéry, took on the challenge of creating a garden at an altitude of 2,000 meters that reflects their shared commitment to environmental protection.
Across 2,000 square meters, the attentive visitor can discover various permaculture techniques: herb spirals, raised garden beds, mounds, terraces, crop rotations, and more. In this garden, everything is edible—even the edible flowers that appear in the restaurant’s summer and winter menus.
An invitation to contemplation and curiosity at 2000 m altitude
From the nurturing garden to the restaurant plate
Martial Vuillemin, the restaurant’s head chef, creates his menus based on what’s available from the garden. What better way to embark on this culinary journey than by cultivating a garden brimming with aromatic herbs, edible flowers, and an abundance of fruits and vegetables?
From the soil to the locavore plate, in a short circuit.
Guided tours of the garden on permaculture techniques
We offer an exclusive guided tour every Thursday during the summer season, led by Joseph, our gardener. He’ll share the techniques and key principles of permaculture that we carefully apply in our garden.
These tours, which are reserved for adults or children with a genuine interest in culture and gardening, take place every Thursday at 10:30 a.m. and last between one hour and one and a half hours.
Discover a different way of gardening, in keeping with our ecological values.
Living with the seasons
Like all our activities, the garden adapts to the rhythm of the seasons…
- In winter, a time of peace and quiet, the garden rests under the snow.
- Spring heralds a time of great activity. The soil is meticulously prepared, the new shoots are carefully planted, and great care is taken with the seedlings.
- During the summer, it’s harvest time, and each plant is tended to, while cultivation requires careful patience.
- In the fall, Joseph prepares for the next season, dries the herbs, and maintains the garden’s features to ensure its long-term health.
Our high-altitude permaculture garden is unique in Europe at 2000 m altitude.
Among the areas to discover in our garden…
- The aromatic spiral provides several microclimates conducive to the growth of many species.
- The gardens were designed to resemble flowers with 12 petals, symbolizing the 12 principles of permaculture.
- The mounds, shaped according to the contour lines to take advantage of rainwater runoff.
- Restanques, where the stones act as gentle radiators, spreading heat and offering protection from the elements.
- The pond, which allows us to warm the water from the stream so we can then water our crops.
- Hot beds, which allow us to start all our seedlings early in the season thanks to the heat released by decomposing organic matter.
See how our garden's harvest has changed over the years.
Click on this link to see how our garden’s harvest is coming along.
A unique view over the Belleville valley
The walk through our garden takes about 30 minutes. It includes a viewing platform offering a panoramic view of the majestic peaks of the Belleville Valley, notably Cime Caron and Peclet Polset.
Be sure to bring your binoculars: you might spot a pair of eagles soaring over the garden or some marmots downstream from Lake Lou.
