ITALIAN GARDENS OF THE RENAISSANCE 



ing, and showed her skill, not only in laying out the 

 grounds at Porto but in the cultivation of rare plants 

 and exotic trees. She sent her head gardener fre- 

 quently to Murano to visit the gardens of her friends, 

 Andrea Navagero and Trifone Gabriele, and occasion- 

 ally, as a great favour, allowed him to give advice to 

 others. When the distinguished humanist, Gian- 

 giorgio Trissino, built a villa at Cricoli, near Vicenza, 

 and laid out a formal garden in front of his palace, 

 he begged the Marchesa to take pity on his ignorance 

 and allow her gardener to show him the best way of 

 trimming box trees. 



" I am just now living at Cricoli," he wrote to her 

 in April 1537, "at a little place of mine not further 

 from Vicenza than Porto is from Mantua, and have 

 had a garden planted with various kinds of trees, 

 among others some box trees, which were arranged in 

 symmetrical order, but which, owing to the neglect 

 or ignorance of my gardeners, have been allowed to 

 run wild. And since I know that Your Excellency's 

 gardener at Porto is an expert in these matters, I 

 venture to ask very humbly if you will give him 

 leave to come here for a few days and see my garden, 

 and show me how the box trees should be trimmed, 

 and whatever else my garden requires. So I am 

 sending my servant to beg Your Excellency with all 

 humility if it be possible to allow your gardener to 

 come back with him for two days, and shall remain 

 eternally obliged for this favour, and count it chief 

 60 



