Montreuil, murs à pêches, municipality, Seine-Saint-Denis, urban landscape, walls, agriculture, Paris, commune, peach walls, garden, environmental protection
Montreuil is a neighbouring municipality of the city of Paris. It is part of the Seine-Saint-Denis department. The "murs à pêches" is a maze of walls used to grow fruit trees. It is an enclosed space, a green setting in an urban landscape. They were created in the 17th century using local materials: stone, clay and plaster made from gypsum and charcoal. Montreuil was ideally situated for the development of horticulture: close to the Paris markets (Montreuil fruit had a special place in the Halles de Paris), plenty of sunshine, rich soil, numerous water sources and gypsum quarries for making plaster. Trellising made fruit growing easier, both for picking and pruning. After the revolution, luxury agriculture developed. In the 18th century, the commune was nicknamed "Montreuil aux pêches" ("Montreuil with peaches").
[...] One of the constraints is the conservation of landscaped areas. The attractiveness of the site is an important factor in its preservation. The aim is therefore to include the public and raise awareness of horticultural and arboricultural practices. Grafting workshops provide an opportunity to discover this essential technique for adapting peach trees to limestone soil (almond trees are generally used as rootstocks). The Murs à pêches festival is a weekend showcasing the gardens, with performances and debates. It was created by the Murs à pêches association in 2001. [...]
[...] In 2018, a project for the Murs à pêches was included in the PLU. 26 hectares are reserved for nature activities. They are the subject of a Development and Programming Orientation (OAP) with the aim of developing leisure activities and sports, and opening up the site to pedestrians and cyclists. Part of the funding comes from the public sector. For example, the project to create "Biodiversity Trails" on the 26 hectares classified as agricultural land is co-financed by the Île-de-France region, the Est Ensemble inter-municipality and the European Union (European Regional and Economic Development Fund (ERDF)). [...]
[...] Their survival depends on citizen initiatives. The Maison des Murs à pêches was created in 2016. It hosts exhibitions, debates and meetings between associations. There are fifteen associations on the site, grouped together under the Fédération des Murs à pêches. They offer a wide range of activities, including art, care for the elderly, permaculture and dyeing. The Mur à Pêches (MAP) association was set up in 1994 with the aim of restoring the fishing walls. It played a fundamental role in the classification procedure. [...]
[...] It is run by the Société régionale d'horticulture de Montreuil, founded in 1878. Conclusion: The stakes are twofold: on the one hand, public players need to introduce regulations to combat urban pressure and not give in to developers; on the other, associations need to get their act together and publicise the site, because if citizens take ownership of it, they'll want to defend it. Despite the improvements visible over the last decade, the site is not yet free of its threats. [...]
[...] This neglect has led to the deterioration of the Murs à pêches. Today, there are 17 km of walls (compared with 600 km in the past) covering 34 hectares (compared with 75% of the commune in 1870). Bad weather and ivy are causing the walls to crumble. Until recently, many plots of land were used as dumping grounds, which polluted the soil. However, this pollution is mainly the result of past farming practices, which used organic soil improvers and fertilisers, and atmospheric fallout from urban and industrial emissions. [...]
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