BOBOLI GARDEN {Florence}

If anyone tells you that Florence is flat, don't believe it !

In truth, much of Florence is flat, as the city is built along the Arno River, but once you cross over the Arno from the Historic Center to the south side of the city called the Oltrarno things can change. Our destination on a early May afternoon was the Boboli Garden. The entrance to the garden is behind the Pitti Palace, a former residence of the Grand Duke of Tuscany, Cosimo I de' Medici (1519-1574) and his wife, Eleanora de Toledo. They purchased the palazzo from Luca Pitta.

This Cosimo is not to be mistaken for Cosimo de' Medici ( 1389-1464)  the Renaissance  powerhouse, founder of the Medici Bank and patron of the arts in Florence. He was grandfather to Lorenzo de' Medici known as Lorenzo the Magnificent.

The very formal Amphitheater is build on flat ground just behind the Pitti Palace, it is quite easy to imagine the members of the Medici family and their guests strolling on a summer evening. In the center is an Egyptian Obelisk that was brought from a Medici Villa in Rome. I guess they must have figured that Rome had plenty of Egyptian Obelisks, why not bring that one to Florence.

From here it is all up.

The center piece of Florence is the Duomo and Brunelleschi's Dome. From this vantage point the view is just about eye level to the famous dome.

The garden has inspired the design of many Italian gardens. There are avenues lined with clipped hedges of boxwood, and alloro.  Wide cedar lined gravel paths take you past statuary sculpted  in marble and bronze which create visual stops along the way.  I was happy to find benches placed along the walks for moments of rest and welcomed shade. Throughout the garden are nymphems and fountains that speak to the formality of the design and wealth of the Medici family.
 One of the treasures that we must find before we leave is the mysterious Buontalenti Grotto.

More stairs yet to conquer!
James and Paul are up there ahead of Betty and I, we still have that final climb to make to the top of Boboli Hill.

On the top of Florence we found flowers.....roses and peonies... and expansive views over Tuscany. The Boboli Garden is grand in scale stretching from the Pitti Palace to Florence's Porta Romana which in the 1600's was the main gate into the city.

Our timing was perfect, the roses were in full bloom and the peonies just opening. I have to admit, and I think the others would agree, it was worth the climb.

Peonies

A Rose Garden with a  Tuscan view.

I wonder how often the Medici walked up to the top of their garden?
My guess...they went on horseback!
,

The building at the end of the garden is the Casino del Cavaliere, which the Medici family used as a place of recreation. It currently houses the Porcelain Museum.

But where is the Grotto?

From this vantage point in the garden, we are high above the city of Florence as we look down at the Duomo.

Our descent begins....

..........with a walk past the 'Kaffeehaus' that was built in the 18th Century. The Boboli Garden is a 'work in progress' it's fair to say. There is constant restoration work and upkeep to maintain the
vast expanse of gardens and buildings.

Just before we are ready to leave....

we stumble upon this...
The Grotto by Buontalenti!


Giorgio Vasari laid out the plans for the grotto and Sculptor, Bernardo Buontalenti was responsible for the sculpture and the ornamentation of this crazy, strange and beautiful Grotto.  Stalactites and shell ornamentation  create the cavelike dwelling in a corner of the garden. The design and sculptural elements are Mannerist in style.

Shepherds would take refuge in the grotto to keep from the wild animals roaming the countryside, so the cave grotto served both form and function.

See the grey door to the left, that is the entrance to The Vasari Corridor.
 Giorgio Vasari designed a 'secret' passageway for the Medici that would take them from the Pitti Palace across the top of the Ponte Vecchio and on to the Palazzo Vecchio therefore never having to walk amongst the public.
 But, that my friends, is another complete story.


It is time for the four of us to go over to The Golden View for a Aperol Spritz. after all, we've earned it!

Sunday Lunch and Garden Visit in Umbria

It was a hot spring day in Umbria but in the shade of the stone walled porch of the villa at the house of our hostess Daniela it was very comfortable. James and I had a invitation, along with our friends Elida and Gunter, for Sunday lunch and a garden tour at
the home of Daniela Fe d'Ostiani, a renowned gardener and rosarian.

We were greeted by Daniela and followed her along a path to a garden in the shade of her villa and a few large trees where bottles of chilled process were uncorked. As we have discovered , and happily so, many Italian festas begin with glasses of prosecco and exchanges of "Salute"!
Sunday lunch is Italy is a big deal. Daniela had prepared a feast that began with a pasta course of asparagus lasagna followed by a roast pork with a side of incredibly good beans from her garden. The next course was  a salad of greens and vegetables from the garden. She had been up early harvesting in order to present such a delicious meal. Elida brought a creme caramel for dessert that was a sweet  treat and perfect ending to lunch...oh, and I cannot forget the cookies, an American favorite, chocolate chip cookies! And throughout the meal a local wine was served.

A couple of hours had passed with a great lunch and conversations in both English and Italian between the eleven of us at the table.

Time for the tour of the garden..........

Daniela is a powerhouse, full of wild energy! She is a rosarian and a plant collector and her garden is not like the typical Italian garden most of us imagine. her garden is like her personality, a little wild, energetic and lovely all wrapped into one. Pushing the garden envelope!

The garden is sited on a hillside in Casalini ( outside of Panicale) with views of Lake Trasimeno.
The views of the lake are revealed in a few of the gardens, other gardens are reached by paths in near jungle like setting with roses stretching and climbing into tree tops!

The textures are of great importance here and are stunning.

This apricot rose spiraled its way up through this tree, using the tree as a trellis showing off it's buds and flowers proudly. It is with great abandon that these roses grow, not at all formal in design.

The selection of foliage is remarkable with surprises around every corner. A gate leads into a garden of dahlias ( not in bloom) and another path takes us to a vegetable garden, where much of our lunch was grown.

There is one 'garden room' that is defined by a hedge, making it more formal in feel. The backdrop is a view of Lake Trasimeno and Isola Polvese.

The trees frame the view of Isola Polvese.

There is much to see here, but it is the roses that I was so interested in.  There are roses everywhere, never in a straight neat row, you must look for them and stay close to Daniela so she can point them out. She knows each and every rose in her garden.

This rose is a beauty.....well, I guess it is fair to say they all are.
A very good Sunday.
Grazie Mille Daniela!
( and Elida & Gunter for the introduction)

A Walk Through the Gardens of La Foce.......Wisteria in Bloom ( Tuscany)

In the last blog post I mentioned the wisteria at the gardens of La Foce, so here it is. This photo was taken  in early May on a previous visit  to the garden.

Of course, I was smitten and wanted to have a pergola with wisteria in our garden.

So now, a quiet walk through the garden of La Foce with wisteria in full bloom.

Truly Magnificant!

Here's a tip.....

Before going to La Foce, plan a visit to Monticchiello, a medieval  Tuscan hill town, and have lunch at La Porta.

A delicious Tuscan lunch and a  grand garden, now that's a good day!

La Foce ..... a pilgrimage to the gardens (Tuscany)

The garden and villa of La Foce are  the legacy of two quite amazing, if not heroic individuals, Iris and Antonio Origo.
  Together, with esteemed architect and garden designer, Cecil Pinsent, a masterpiece was created.

In 1924, Iris and Antonio purchased the run down  Tuscan villa and with their vision created the wonderous place that is La Foce.
La Foce means" a meeting place", in this case it refers to the place where two valleys meet,
 the Val d'Orcia and the Val di Chiana,  one of the most magical places James and I have visited.
To visit La Foce is more a pilgrimage than a garden tour.

The Pinsent designed Limonaia that houses the lemon trees during the winter months.

James and I made our most recent visit to La Foce in late May so the lemon trees had taken their places in the garden.

We have visited La Foce often, usually in early spring when the wisteria is in full bloom. Our visit this past spring was later, after wisteria but with the lemon trees out of the limonaia and in the garden, along with the roses coming into bloom.

The garden is the centerpiece of a visit here , but beyond is the incredible story of Iris and Antonio Origo and the history of La Foce.
 In 1924 when they purchased the villa, the surrounding landscape, known as 'crete senesi' was that of hardened clay.
It was barren. Some call in a "moonscape".
Iris and Antonio dedicated their efforts into creating a land that could be farmed to produce  food and income for the impoverished families of the Val'd Orcia.

 Work began to improve  the condition of the land and bring farming to the Val'd Orcia, meanwhile, architect Cecil Pinsent was hired to work on the villa and create a garden at La Foce.
Iris hired Pinsent,  for the garden design because she herself imagined a garden like those she knew from her home, Villa Medici in Florence, geometrical and of formal order.

Standing atop the staircase that descends to the lower garden, you can see
 the landscape of the Val d' Orcia centered on Mount Amiata. This is an important idea, the viewer sees the lush ordered green of the garden and then beyond to the beautiful vista of the ordered landscape of Tuscany and  farther yet, Mt. Amiata.

This formal staircase with grotto, designed by Pinsent, takes one from the upper garden into the lower garden with it's geometrical plan of boxwood, meant to create ever changing shadows and patterns as the sun moves across the sky.

The lower garden is framed with cypress, Pinsent's interest was in creating garden rooms. To create garden  rooms at La Foce he guides us along pathways through arches and stone walls, boxwood, cypress, and a pergola with wisteria. 

With  time, money and hard work Iris and Antonio, brought irrigation, wells, and ideas like crop rotation to area farmers and that lead to the  planting of wheat, grapes and olives trees.
An economy was started for this impoverished area.

 When the wisteria is in bloom, a walk down this path is better than any red carpet laid out for royalty. The air is perfumed and the violet blossoms cascading down are all together too magical in the dappled sun.

But, this visit we are here to see the roses, and a few lingering wisteria.

I have read that Iris had a real love for flowers, she would have been pleased by these roses .
Pinsent on the other had was less charmed by flowers, but did add wisteria and lavender to his design.
The roses and other flowers were for Iris.

Well, back to Iris and Antonio...
They were very committed to this place, La Foce and the Val d'Orcia, not only to improving the land and farming but also to the health and education of the people living here.
Both Iris and Antonio came from wealthy backgrounds, so they could have easily looked after themselves and lived a life of ease and comfort, but they chose a different path.

 World War II changed everything in Italy.
The Origos stayed at La Foce with their family. They could have readily escaped Europe and returned to Iris' family in the United States, but their hearts were at La Foce where they remained.
During the war years they took  wounded soldiers to their infirmary, and hid partisans.
Refuge children were welcomed by Iris to La Foce and a small school was built for them.

1943-44  brought the war to Val'd' Orcia and La Foce.
The villa had to be evacuated and the children led by Iris (along with her own children) had to walk  to Montepulciano. Along the way they had to avoid mined roads  and other dangers of war.
 German troops moved in and occupied La Foce.

After the war the Origo family moved back to La Foce , restored the war damaged  villa and garden and continued on their mission.
Their daughters continue to live there to this day.

 Post war, Cecil Pinsent returned to assist in the rebuilding of the gardens.

 This is a stunning view. Once again the garden and the landscape beyond become as one.

During a visit here I always see the beauty of the villa, garden and landscape but in my heart or soul, I don't know which, there is a feeling that this place the Val d'Orcia, has survived  the miseries  of drought, Medieval feudal lords misuse of land and population,  small wars and great wars and yet today survives as a place of beauty. So does La Foce.
It takes your breath away.

La Foce: www.lafoce.com
Chianciano, Tuscany
Italy
Open  to the public Wednesday afternoons .


Related Reading

The War in Val d' Orcia, by Iris Origo
Images and Shadows, by Iris Origo

La Foce, A Garden and Landscape in Tuscany, by Benedetta Origo, Morna Livingston, Laurie Olin & John Dixon Hunt

An Infinity of Graces, Cecil Ross Pinsent, An English Architect in the Italian Landscape, by Ethne Clark

A Postcard From Tuscany ( La Foce)

Each time we visit Italy James and I make a pilgrimage to the gardens at La Foce.

Last we we went with a group of friends for a visit. 

This is the first time the lemon trees have been out of the limonaia and in the garden.

That was a treat to see.

Each time we visit there is always something new to see, and  somehow the gardens continue to surpass the previous visit.

Buongiornata!