Jardins de Salagon, Ethnobotanical garden and museum at the priory in Mane, France
Jardins de Salagon is a botanical garden and museum surrounding a 12th-century priory in Mane. The site is divided into sections showcasing medicinal plants, aromatic herbs, and useful plants from around the world.
People lived on this site since Roman times, and a priory was built here in the medieval period. The French Revolution brought changes that eventually led to its transformation into a public garden.
The medieval section shows plants that people actually used in their daily lives hundreds of years ago, including herbs for cooking and healing. Walking through, you notice how deeply plants were woven into medieval survival and comfort.
The site lies at an altitude of 500 metres between the Durance and the Lure mountain, 105 km from Marseille and 52 km from Digne-les-Bains. The five garden sections and the priory buildings are explored on foot; the church, with its 11th-century choir and 12th-century naves, is classified as a monument historique.
A section dedicated to fragrant plants demonstrates which parts of each plant are used to create perfumes. This area gives visitors a sensory understanding of how scents actually come from plants.
The community of curious travelers
AroundUs brings together thousands of curated places, local tips, and hidden gems, enriched daily by 93,574 contributors worldwide.
