The top of old trees reveals the presence of a garden beyond an anonymous gate not far from Piazza Vecchia, the Old Square in Bergamo Alta, a medieval
town perched on a hill some 40 km northeast of Milan. Works to build the underground garage, a convenient solution
in a town whose narrow cobbled streets seem more suitable to knights and horses than vans and small cars, compromised many of the existing trees and prompted the idea of a new garden.Today, the secluded and shady atmosphere of the mature wood has given way to a sunny terrace, developed on two levels, with green and floral masses, ripe tomatoes, strawberries and unexpected views of roofs just beyond the balustrade. The garden is an elegant and ordered composition, a sequence of themed areas divided by walls and hedges, linked by soft green lawn and crunchy gravel paths. The old surviving trees are incorporated in the new formal frame made of boxwood and hornbeam hedges, whose height and shape enclose and control the different spaces of the garden without closing them completely.
It is a flower garden. From the shady garden at the entrance to the flower borders, namely, two parallel rectangular borders in the main terrace and a row of three square-shaped borders in the smaller upper terrace, each space is richly planted from spring to autumn. Combinations of roses, different varieties of hydrangea, ornamental grasses and perennials in a cool palette are arranged with particular attention to shapes and textures. Autumn has patches of tall white anemone japonica opposed to the greenish white globes of hydrangeas and shiny boxwoods in the shady garden. In the flower borders, arching plumes of pennisetums, airy lavender flowers of the verbena bonariensis, different varieties of starry asters and clusters of sedum are arranged behind the woolly leaves of stachys lanata. 
Two wooden benches invite to rest at the end of the terrace, a secret corner where water flows in a stone basin and young grape vines climb a simple pergola, a promise of future grapes, shade and privacy.
Here, a row of round boxwoods of decreasing sizes line the balustrade like living sculptures, echoed in the traditional globe finials of the staircase to the upper terrace.
There are no vases of regal geranium on its steps. Garden ornaments are essential, elegant and rustic, practical and beautiful at the
same time, such as the intertwined branches used in different part of the garden or the warm colour and rough surface of the stone walls.It is a horizontal scene quiet and relaxing, suspended, closer to the sky than to the busy valley beyond the balustrade, anchored to the steep hill by the firm roots of the old trees.
I visited this garden in September and loved its balance between old and new, formal and natural. I asked Lucia Nusiner,
the landscape designer of the Studio GPT in Bergamo who designed it,
some questions and she kindly answered me.Travel in a Garden: The garden you designed has been thought after the long works to create the underground garage that compromised the existing wood. Which are the main difficulties met in its implementation?
Lucia Nusiner: At the beginning, it was difficult to overcome the customer's bad memories, sometimes exacerbated by the construction works and by the ill-treatment of her beloved trees, trying, at the same time, to create private areas on several fronts among different neighbours. It was also difficult trying to eliminate some of the pointless trees, such as the larch that still exists. Then, it took long time to transport materials to this garden located in a narrow street in the Città Alta (Upper Town).
Travel in a Garden: The decision to include lawn, topiary and hedges of hornbeam, far from the prevailing models of naturalistic gardens, was born from the customer's specific requirements, the atmosphere of the ancient town, or other practical needs and personal preferences?
Lucia Nusiner: The customer clearly asked for an English style garden. She is very fond of it, especially of the gardens seen during a trip to the Cotswolds. I love English style too, and, I thought that this garden could be an interesting place to harmonize it. Besides, I created more rooms in the garden with hornbeam and boxwood.
Travel in a Garden: The curbs of twigs have an antique flavor (chestnut or hazel?) and are useful and decorative, perfect for the raised beds of the vegetable garden that have a prominent position along the terrace. Is their use related to local traditions or to the vegetable garden that already existed in the property?
Lucia Nusiner: The curbs are made of hazel, more durable than willow, less than chestnut but more subtle and elegant of the latter. I proposed the vegetable garden where it was, but with raised beds, using willow, easier and more designed.
Lucia Nusiner: I always ask the customers about the colours and flowers they like and dislike. In this case, the answer, which I share, was pastel shades: purple, pink, fuchsia, lilac, white, cool tones and not warm colours.
Travel in a Garden: Have you planned any changes in the flower beds after the experience of this first year? Which are the plans for the garden in the near future?
Lucia Nusiner: I love to go back to the gardens to see how they grow and change. I take photographs and advice the customer and gardener about improvements and changes if necessary. At the moment, the garden is young and we wait for it to grow. Missing a small round table on the corner of the greenhouse, which I definitely must remember to tell the customer.
(translation TravelinaGarden) TravelinaGarden, Bergamo, September 2014.
Notes:
Private garden visited during the 'Photography Workshop with Marianne Majerus' held in Bergamo during the 'International Meeting of the Landscape and Garden I Maestri del Paesaggio', 6-21 September 2014, Bergamo, Italy.
http://www.studiogpt.it/i-maestri-del-paesaggio_en.htmlLinks:
Lucia Nusiner - Studio GPT giardini paesaggio territorio, Bergamo, Italy.
http://www.studiogpt.it/index_en.html
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