Hortillonnages d'Amiens, Wetland market gardens east of Amiens, France

The Hortillonnages d'Amiens is a 300-hectare marsh east of Amiens, in the communes of Rivery, Camon and Longueau. It consists of alluvial islands called aires, separated by 65 kilometres of narrow canals called rieux. The banks are often reinforced with wooden planks, and the plots are used for market gardening or turned into leisure gardens.

These marshlands were converted into farm plots during the Middle Ages to grow vegetables for the growing population. The water system has endured for centuries and continues to define how this part of the city works.

Gardeners navigate the waterways in flat-bottomed boats as if tending fields on land, with these shallow vessels serving as traditional transport between plots. This method of moving fresh produce directly by water shapes how locals still understand and experience these spaces.

The gardens are accessible to visitors from March through October, mainly via guided electric boat tours that follow the main water channels. The private garden plots themselves cannot be entered, but the tours give a good overview of the entire layout.

The site's canals are called rieux in Picard, and many carry old names such as la Cauchiette, le Peuple or le rieu de la Crosse. Peat dug out as fuel also shaped the plots, leaving water-filled pits known as intailles, the largest pond being the étang de Clermont.