Louis XIV Vegetable garden The Potager du roi, near the Palace of Versailles, produced fresh vegetables and fruits for the table of the court of Louis XIV. It was created between 1678 and 1683 by Jean-Baptiste de La Quintinie, the director of the royal fruit and vegetable gardens. “A good gardener must have a passion for new things” confided to Louis XIV, Jean-Baptiste de La Quintinie, agronomist and founder of the King’s Vegetable Garden of Versailles. La Quintinie trained as a lawyer in Paris but gave it up to devote himself to gardening. In 1670 he was appointed director of the Kings’ gardens and vegetable gardens. In 1678 he designed the vegetable garden. By then Versailles was already making a name for itself as one of the most splendid palaces in the world, the garden simply added to the wonderment. It was said he could provide up to 4000 figs and …