More Than Just a Garden

AL: Yesterday we visited the Boboli Gardens in Florence. They span over 100 acres. It was a beautiful garden with breathtaking views. It was exciting to visit the gardens because we have been learning about different types of gardens the past few days in horticulture class.  Today in class Professor Lombardini was discussing the amount of work that goes into creating a garden. I had never thought about how each plant was planted for a specific purpose in a garden. We talked about the color wheel and how gardeners choose certain colors to portray certain feelings in the garden. For instance to make a dramatic effect you could use blue and yellow together. We also learned how many gardens use a technique called parterre, which is Italian for on the ground. With this technique you can create a more subtle change in color. For instance one of the pictures we looked out instead of going straight from a green plant to a red plant there was gravel in between to diversify the colors and allow your eyes to adjust. We also learned how many gardens try to create a pattern to lead your eye to the focal point. I was able to see this at the Boboli gardens. They used a large fountain as a focal point to the surrounding greenery. I enjoy being able apply the information we learn from class into our sight visits.