The presence of gods and heroes was typical of the Roman tradition of gardens. Fountains, an important feature of the Arabic art of gardens, appeared in the Syrian and Byzantine gardens of the eastern Roman Empire, and were diffused by the Arab conquests. From the end of the crusades in the fifteenth century onwards, French gardens were very much influenced by the Italian. In Renaissance Italy, the art of gardening had been transformed by the rule of science and the mathematical division of space. The art of the classical garden found a ready home in France.
Mythology again triumphs as it did in the Roman garden of earlier days.
From the Parisian region, where many such examples exist, this style spread throughout the whole of Europe. The Orangery Court, as conceived in the eighteenth century, is a place for the seasonal display of citrus plants, in particular orange trees, and of other plants susceptible to frost, particularly those with Mediterranean origins. The flower beds are planted with flowers selected for their fragrance. In order that such a display of specialized varieties should be maintained in peak condition throughout the summer season, as it is at Saint-Loup, constant attention must be given throughout the year to the conditions that are carefully adapted to the rhythm of the local climate. The citrus trees and plants are taken into the orangery building in the second half of October, before which they receive a final pruning to ensure that they enter the orangery in fine health.