It is in a way a subject of the Sun King who now grows in the center of an orangery invaded by palm trees and contiguous to the station of Val-de-Reuil (Eure).
Beside it, a yellow label which recalls the origins of the shrub: “Quercus robur.
Offered by Versailles ”.
Every morning, Christophe Prestot, green spaces team leader in Val-de-Reuil, stares at his protégé, “very small but already remarkable”.
Since it is not yet "strong" enough to be planted, the gardener checks that the soil in the pot is well decompacted, also very humid, "as it would be in the forest".
“Of course we pay close attention to it,” he smiles.
It is not an oak like any other, it comes from one of the most prestigious parks in Europe.
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The cutting of a venerable tree as a gift
Thirty cuttings were made from the oldest oak in Versailles, itself planted in 1670, with the idea of donating it to symbolic places.
The first to make the trip outside the domain is therefore the one offered to the city of Val-de-Reuil.
A gift which can be explained by the “old friendship” which binds the mayor of the city, Marc-Antoine Jamet, and the president of the Palace of Versailles, Catherine Pégard.
Very different in aspects, the two cities have in common that they were created from scratch, the first out of the imagination of Louis XIV, the other, the youngest municipality in France, in the 1970s, to respond to the growth of the Trente Glorieuses.
A symbolism that seduced their two representatives.
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The small Versailles tree was therefore planted on Norman soil on May 8, opposite the old Vaudreuil castle, "resonating there too since the gardens of the castle were designed by André Le Nôtre, gardener of Versailles", specifies the City.
But, since, the puny subject and of less than three years had to be dug up for a shelter.
He would have risked a lot by facing alone the summer heat, episodes of storms or possible acts of vandalism.
“We told Versailles and its chief gardener that we will watch over him like the apple of our eye,” guarantees the City.
"Bringing History to the New Town"
The contemporary city of Val-de-Reuil has very few very old subjects and this gift "brings history here", analyzes Anne Lehelloco, responsible for sustainable development.
“However, the streets have continued to be enriched with new rows of trees.
Six hundred trees have been planted this year.
We count and we identify our subjects.
And we plant new ones where they are lacking, to limit the heat levels.
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The Versailles cutting is an oak, a species very present in the area, and which should become acclimatized.
The small tree should now gain volume.
It may take several years of waiting before seeing it flourish in public.