Le Parfait Jardinier ou Instruction pour Les Jardins Fruitiers et Potagers. Avec un Traite des Orangers, suivi de Reflexions sur L'Agriculture. Derniere Edition, reveue, corrigee & augmentee d'une Nouvelle Instruction pour la Culture des Fleurs. Le tout enrichi de Figures en Taille douce

Paris : Claude Barbin , 1695 A fair to good set in 2 volumes, in contemporary full leather binding.M Jean de la Quintinye was trained as a lawyer, but is famed for his skills in kitchen gardening. He was commissioned by Louis XIV to create a new kitchen garden for Versailles - which can still be visited today. He is said to be the first gardener to advocate pruning young fruit trees hard to ensure better growth and fruiting for the future. This set is in contemporary speckled calf bindings with raised bands and gilt decoration and titles to spines. The bindings are sound but worn, with wear to corners, edges and the top and bottom of the spines. The gilt is particularly worn on Vol I. Vol II has some cracking to the top of the front joint. Both have some library numbers to the front pastedowns and a small early ink signature to the fep. Both have a round stamp of the 'Societe de Lecture de Geneve' to the title page. Paper has light toning throughout. Text with decorative headpieces, endpieces and illustrations. Vol I: frontispiece portrait of de la Quintinye; title page in red and black; Dedication au Roy 4pp; Poem 5pp; Idyll to Quintinye 7pp; Preface; blank; folding plate; text in 3 parts pp 1-310; further folding plate; Table of chapters pp 311-316; fin. The frontispiece has some repair tape to the outer side edge; the first folding plate has an old repair; there is a small piece missing from the bottom margin of pp 259/60; some light marking on pp 297-300; the final folding plate has a crumpled edge; and there is some marking to the rear endpaper. Vol II: Title page (with some reference numbers); text in 3 parts pp 3-265 with 6 plates (one large folding); table of chapters pp 266-271; fin; Traite de la Culture des Orangers pp 273-318; table of chapters p 319; 3 plates; title page - Nouvelle Instruction pour la Culture des Fleurs 1695; table of chapters 2pp; text pp 1-140; fin. The fep is loose at the top and there is a small loss to the bottom of the initial blank; title page with some crumpling; there is some worming in the outer edge margin affecting pp 1-51 - (with some very small holes for a further 50 pp) it does not affect the text; small loss to the bottom corner of p 207; some library notes to the rear pastedown; Culture des Fleurs - some browning in the gutter pp 40-41 and repaired tear to side margin of p 76. Please enquire if you would like further images to assess condition.