Top 7 highlights of a garden tour across Morocco

The botanical paradise of Jardin des Douars, open for stays or day visits, is just twenty minutes’ drive out into the desert from both Essaouira and its airport, the entrance via an avenue of multi-hued bougainvillea and palm trees. A tour of the stepped garden following a network of bejmat (handcrafted clay) tiled paths down from the pink-walled, fortress-like hotel leads to an impressive array of plants: sky-blue plumbago, crimson hibiscus, pink oleander, gigantic African milk trees (Euphorbia trigona), colonies of succulents and palms, pomegranate, lemon, orange and fig trees, red hot pokers, eglantine roses (Rosa rubiginosa) and swathes of silver and red-tinted fountain grass (Pennisetum). Back in Essaouira there are countless riads and rooftops to enjoy including the banana-leaved courtyard of L’Heure Bleue Palais hotel and a buttress-rooted secular Ficus tree (Ficus religiosa) within the craft centre.

Jnane Tamsna

A three-hour drive to Marrakech takes you past rows of olive and argan trees (Argania spinosa), and the goats that climb the branches to chew the fruits and spew out the oil-rich kernels. Buy certified argan oil from a cooperative along the way. The streets into the city are lined with nurseries of native and propagated plants that furnish gardens near and far, including the ochre-walled Jnane Tamsna hotel set within a centuries-old Palmeraie. With plant-inspired interiors by Meryanne Loum-Martin and grounds by her American ethnobotanist husband Gary Martin, there’s much to explore here including a rainwater-run off raised serpentine walkway lined with agaves, aloes, prickly pears, rose geraniums, and multi-layered trees and shrubs; an olive tree-lined courtyard; and areas for growing food and herbs, and conducting irrigation experiments. Book in for a retreat or a garden tour.

Jardin Majorelle

Jardin Majorelle with its cobalt blue and yellow Moorish-Art Deco aesthetic, is a must for lovers of succulents and cacti. The garden was first established in 1924 by the French artist Jaques Majorelle, who wove together hundreds of exotic plant species from around the world and introduced the captivating colour scheme. His former studio now houses the Musé Berbére, which is also well worth a visit for a greater insight into indigenous Moroccan culture including historic gardening practices and plants. Majorelle’s house and garden was bought by French fashion designer Yves Saint Laurent and his partner Pierre Bergé in 1980, the pair taking care to preserve the original aesthetic. Book a ticket to visit early in the morning when it’s less busy and you can get a clear view of the sculptural planting and brightly coloured focal points such as pots and ponds.

Jardin Secret

While Jardin Majorelle is located on the outskirts of Marrakech’s Medina, Jardin Secret is deep within its hustle and bustle, thus providing a welcome getaway for anyone who needs to take some time out, as well as multi-layered planting and design inspiration. A former Saadian dynasty garden then 19th-century palatial riad, the gardens were redesigned by Tom Stuart Smith and reopened to the public in 2016. Immediately inviting and relaxing thanks to its open and carefully ordered design, soft sensory arrangements of aromatic herbs and clumping grasses, gentle water features, and shade-creating rows of lemon and orange trees, there are multiple places to sit quietly, take lunch or hang out with friends. The four-part, geometric Islamic design complete with running water channels helps facilitate irrigation and the creation of a sacred space – a ‘metaphor of heaven’.

Jardin Bio Aromatique

Further afield, in the foothills of the High Atlas Mountains, about 35km drive from Marrakech, lies a charming herb garden that provides work for local women and grows plants that help create the oils and ointments that keep it running. For those with an interest in herbs, this is the first biological garden of aromatic and medicinal plants in Morocco, established in 1998 by two experts in the art of extracting essential oils. Visitors from near and far can wander the gardens of Jardin Bio Aromatique at their leisure, stopping to touch or smell over 50 different herbs and learn about their properties and uses. The garden also runs herbal workshops and provides restorative treatments via a massage area and a series of tiled footbaths – ideal if you’ve just been for a trek. This is also a good place to invest in some pure or herb-infused argan oil – or that of the prickly pear, said to do wonders for the skin.

Ourika Valley Tour

If you want to really explore the Ourika Valley, the local culture and its plant life, consider booking a driver and an expert guide. Our guide Hassan started our day trip with a visit to Poterie Amassine (Route de l’Ourika), a local terracotta co-operative where we were able to try throwing our own pots and marvel at the piled-high stacks of vessels and tiles and the snow-capped High Atlas Mountain views beyond. Higher up the mountain we witnessed gurgling glacial rivers, a source of water for local gardens and those further afield. Then back down into the valley, we took a 2-hour hike through the dusty, red-earth landscape, dotted with agaves and juniper, to reach an Amazigh/Berber homestead where we were served a traditional tagine and a refreshing 7-herb tea. Along the way, we witnessed an impressive network of irrigation channels designed to direct mountain water onto what are now lush green fields. More proof that where there’s water there’s a way.

Jardin Anima

Our final stop on our botanical tour was the Anima Garden, created by Austrian artist André Heller, combining snow-capped mountain views and colourful sculptures with exotic vegetation, flowers, grasses, a large pond, and immersive seating areas. Having grown up taking my art out in nature courtesy of the Yorkshire Sculpture Park near where I grew up, this felt like a home from home, with sculptures at every turn, three hectares of beautiful planting, and the wonders of the natural landscape beyond. Highlights included more swathes of fountain grass (an unexpected favourite plant of our trip alongside the plumbago), avenues of bulbous cacti and spiky aloes, and fantastical artworks by the by the likes of Pablo Picasso, Keith Haring, Andy Warhol, and Auguste Rodin. Perfect for all ages but beware the all-seeing eyes and steaming mouths in the hedges.