Take one reasonably nice but uninspired Roman terrace, with ten years of accumulated, cluttered pots and four untended olive trees.
Top terrace, before a plan
Big Terrace, before a plan
Add plants – principally geraniums and pelargoniums – from the annual Landriana garden fair.
Acquisitions from Landriana
Add Piero, his son Giampiero and his crew of gardener magicians.
Piero
Giampiero
La Passione ! La Fantasia ! La volonta’ di far qualcosa di emozionante !
Add the enthusiasm of two small children.
Putting holes in the bottom of the pots
Filling pots with lavenders
And arcadia emerges.
Herb garden and Amalfi wall, top terrace
The corridor, south end
String beans, grapes and (hanging) tomatoes
There are so many stories to tell : of a gardener who on our first day of work found a tiny self seeded fig tree among the jasmines, spent 20 minutes digging it out, and then re-planted it.
The rescue of the tiny fig tree
The Rescued Fig in a new home
Of Piero who throws his hands into any herb plant he passes — most particuarly lemon verbena — and draws the fragrance vigorously to his face, exclaiming “che meraviglia !”
The Corridor, north end
Piero is a great supporter of organic gardening and suggested the inclusion of many flowering plants that would encourage more butterflies and bees to visit our Rome Terrace Garden. Over the course of the week he would bring a small selection of plants — ideas that he had as he watched the garden evolve — for our consideration. Of course we wanted everything he proposed. Piero understood and loved the Terrace Garden just as much as we did.
- Small terrace
Honeysuckle along the Corridor
- Graham Thomas Climbing Rose
The large terrace at midday
The large terrace after a rain
- Lavenders, olives and plumbago
View from the top terrace looking down to large terrace
Entrance to the top terrace
Water spout, top terrace
Raspberries, grapes and blackberries on the top terrace
The espaliered fig on the top terrace (it made delicious fruits !)
- Beet green, tomato, black raspberry : mid-summer harvesting from the terrace garden
- The first salad from our terrace vegetable garden
Fabulously bellissimo!!!!!! Can’t wait to sit on that terrace on our next visit to Roma! Bravo!
And we to having you here !
How to unite the Eternal City with the equally eternal joy of contact with nature, genuine food, creative children, charming parents….love and joy shine through! Shall I continue? Congratulations! (P.S.: fantastic photographer, too!)