THE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY OF NEW YORK 



Two types of villas came into being, and illustrations of these 

 were shown with ground plans and detail. Those usually found 

 in Tuscany, for example, where the owner lived in his home 

 throughout the year and cultivated the farm lands which came up 

 adjacent to the villa, usually the simple rectangular plan of house 

 of modest proportions, but beautiful and planned for daily family 

 use. Nearer Rome, another type of villa was built, the lordly 

 pleasure house for the Roman nobles who took out from the city 

 large parties of guests and entertained lavishly with fetes and out- 

 door pageants. The gardens of Caprarola. Villa Lante and others 

 were examples of this period. 



The triumph of the skilful use of water was especially empha- 

 sized, the art of movement, whether in the cascades, the long water 

 ramps, or the fountains of many intricate designs. Three essen- 

 tial elements — evergreens, stone, and water — were always found in 

 the typical Italian gardens. The beds of flowers, as in England 

 or the United States, were impossible on account of the Italian 

 climate with its intense summer heat. There were many views 

 of the villas at Frascati and Tivoli, which illustrated with rare 

 beauty this use of water in Italian gardens. Of this same period 

 also were shown many of the finest fountains of Rome, whose un- 

 limited supply of water from the mountains was often a source 

 or marvel to the visitor. 



There followed in the eighteenth century the rococo style and 

 the gradual decline of Italian gardening under French and Eng- 

 lish influences. 



The speaker felt that each country had its own special treatment 

 for country estates, which should be preserved, and that it was a 

 mistake to attempt to transfer to another country those elements 

 of beauty which had been assembled with reference to an entirely 

 different climate; thus English gardens with the long, wide 

 stretches of turf and flowers for England, and Italian gardens 

 under the intense blue of the Italian skies. 



Among the many beautiful views shown, mention may be made 

 of avenues of stately Cypress trees at various villas, the ancient 

 ones at Villa d'Este and those at Rome said to have been planted 

 by Michael Angelo ; the Boboli Gardens and their cool, refreshing 

 shade vmder interlacing trees as one enters from the heat of the 



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