Dans le sud préservé de l’île Maurice, au cœur du Domaine de Bel Ombre, Bertrand d’Unienville réinvente la relation entre nature, culture et durabilité. Son travail illustre une vision respectueuse et éclairée de la flore mauricienne.
Un domaine sous le signe de la biodiversité
Avec ses 2 500 hectares de nature préservée, bordés par la réserve « Man and Biosphere » de l’UNESCO, le Domaine de Bel Ombre se distingue comme un sanctuaire écologique au sud de Maurice. Entre forêts indigènes, lagons turquoise et cascades secrètes, ce territoire unique bénéficie depuis six ans de la vision de Bertrand d’Unienville, jardinier-paysagiste passionné.
Une enfance enracinée dans la botanique
Bertrand grandit dans une famille où la botanique fait partie du quotidien. « Je ramenais des graines dans mes poches à chaque promenade », se souvient-il. Après des études horticoles prestigieuses en France et des stages au Château de Versailles ou à la mairie de Paris, il revient à Maurice, mû par une volonté : redonner du sens au rapport entre l’homme et la nature.
Une philosophie du paysage durable
Opposé au principe du « koupé met prop » – qui consiste à tailler ou raser sans réflexion écologique – Bertrand milite pour une approche sensible et raisonnée de l’aménagement paysager. Pour lui, le jardin doit s’inscrire dans son environnement, respecter les cycles de croissance, et valoriser la diversité végétale locale sans pour autant rejeter les plantes venues d’ailleurs.
Repenser les métiers du jardin
À Bel Ombre, Bertrand s’est attelé à réorganiser les équipes de jardiniers autour de leurs compétences : taille douce, soins aux plantes, création de sentiers paysagers. Il a aussi instauré une gestion indépendante des budgets jardin dans chaque hôtel du Domaine, libérant ainsi le paysage de la mainmise de la maintenance technique. Une manière de reconnaître enfin le rôle fondamental des jardiniers dans la durabilité des lieux touristiques.
Restaurer les perspectives, raconter un territoire
Dans les jardins du Château de Bel Ombre, il rouvre les perspectives en redessinant les lignes végétales, pour mieux révéler la topographie naturelle. Il enrichit aussi le paysage de plantes indigènes et exotiques choisies avec soin, en cohérence avec l’histoire de l’île.
Un jardin entre cinq continents
« Maurice est un jardin sur la route des cinq continents », aime-t-il rappeler. L’histoire végétale de l’île est celle des migrations : flamboyants, bougainvilliers ou palmiers ont été apportés au fil des siècles. Bertrand évoque le botaniste Wenceslas Bojer, ami de Charles Telfair, qui fit transiter par Maurice des graines du flamboyant découvert à Madagascar, avant leur diffusion dans l’empire britannique.
Un modèle de développement paysager durable
À travers ses projets, Bertrand d’Unienville incarne une vision durable du tourisme et de l’hôtellerie : celle d’une cohabitation respectueuse entre les visiteurs et les écosystèmes. Son travail invite à repenser notre rapport à la nature, à valoriser les savoir-faire locaux et à cultiver une forme de beauté enracinée, évolutive et écologique.
Bertrand d’Unienville, the Eco-Gardener of Domaine de Bel Ombre
In the unspoiled south of Mauritius, at the heart of Domaine de Bel Ombre, Bertrand d’Unienville is redefining the relationship between nature, culture, and sustainability through thoughtful landscaping and a deep respect for local biodiversity.
A Sanctuary of Biodiversity
Spanning 2,500 hectares of protected land, bordered by an UNESCO Man and Biosphere reserve, Domaine de Bel Ombre is a haven of ecological richness in southern Mauritius. Amid lush forests, rivers, waterfalls, and pristine lagoons, Bertrand d’Unienville, landscape gardener and nature enthusiast, has been shaping this landscape with a sustainable vision for the past six years.
A Childhood Rooted in Botany
Raised in a family where botany was part of daily life, Bertrand recalls filling his pockets with seeds collected on his walks as a child. After studying horticulture and landscape design in France, including internships at the Château de Versailles and the City of Paris, he returned to Mauritius with a mission: to reconnect people with the natural world.
A Sustainable Philosophy of Landscape
Bertrand strongly opposes the “koupé met prop” approach—cutting and clearing without ecological consideration. Instead, he promotes a gentle, thoughtful philosophy of gardening, one that works with the rhythms of nature, embraces biodiversity, and respects both native and introduced plants.
Revaluing the Garden Professions
One of his first priorities at Bel Ombre was to restructure the gardening teams based on their skills: lawn care, flowerbed maintenance, pruning, plant health. He also advocated for independent gardening budgets for each hotel and property, freeing the gardens from the maintenance department’s grip (which traditionally oversees plumbing, electricity, etc.). This move helped elevate the role of gardeners as key players in sustainable tourism.
Restoring Perspectives, Telling Stories
In the gardens of Château de Bel Ombre, Bertrand redesigned planting lines to restore the natural perspective—removing hedges and lowering plant heights to reveal the mountain ridges. He continues to enrich the area with a carefully curated palette of plants, favouring indigenous species while honouring the island’s multicultural botanical heritage.
A Garden on the Route of Five Continents
“Mauritius is a garden along the route of five continents,” Bertrand says. The island’s plant life has long reflected its history of migrations and exchanges. Iconic trees like the flamboyant or bougainvillea were brought by travellers from afar. Bertrand shares the story of Wenceslas Bojer, a botanist and friend of Charles Telfair, who introduced flamboyant seeds from Madagascar. These were later sent from Mauritius to botanical gardens across the British Empire—helping spread the vibrant tree around the tropical world.
A Model for Sustainable Landscape Development
Through his work, Bertrand d’Unienville embodies a sustainable vision of tourism and hospitality—one that honours the landscape, empowers local teams, and invites guests to engage with the island’s living heritage. His approach proves that beauty, biodiversity, and responsible design can go hand in hand.
Reopening the view
Bertrand explains that it was necessary to train the gardeners and reorganise the teams according to their skills and the jobs in the garden: lawn trimming, flowerbed maintenance, stone cutting, plant care, etc. This upgrading of the gardening profession was not without trouble! As in many hotels in Mauritius, the budget for the gardens was in the hands of the maintenance department, which also looked after the electricity, plumbing, furniture, etc. Bertrand set up teams for every hotel so that they each had their own budget.
From there, he was able to tackle his objective. At the Château, for example, he redesigned the garden, which now ends at the mountain ridge. « We had to remove some of the hedges and lower quite a few shrubs. This has reopened up the view around the Château.” At the same time, Bertrand is constantly enriching the plant palette. While he favours Mauritian plants, he is against the planting of endemic plants on the façade.
A garden on the route of the five continents
« Mauritius is a garden on the route of the five continents; in fact, that’s the garden’s theme. It’s consistent with the history of Mauritius ». Many of the plants that have become emblematic of the island over the years, such as the bougainvillea and the flamboyant, were brought to us from elsewhere by travellers. The story of the flamboyant (flame tree), which turns red in December and heralds the end of year festivities, bears witness to this.
It was Wenceslas (Wenzel) Bojer, a friend of Telfair – a renowned botanist whose name was given to one of the Heritage hotels – who discovered the flamboyant « planted in front of the houses like a totem in Foulpointe, Madagascar. He brought back seeds, which were planted in the government nurseries in Mauritius and then sent to all the botanical gardens of the then British Empire. All the sublime flamboyants from India and Sri Lanka including the intertropical belt thus passed through Mauritius.”
No, Mauritius was not just a supply point on the Spice Route or the scene of the sad end of the dodo, but also a crossroads for encounters and sharing. The island has actually contributed to the richness of the world’s flora.
Thank you Bertrand for this beautiful walk through the Domaine de Bel Ombre gardens, a place that is worth a visit…or a revisit!
