SPANISH GARDENS

Evening Star, Issue 20255, 16 August 1929, Page 2

SPANISH GARDENS

GLORIES OF ANCIENT CIVILISATION When the Spanish Christians of the 14th century made bonfires of Arab books and turned their faces to Rome they did' worse than they knew. In their zeal for saving their souls they forgot the more practical consideration that a country’s prosperity depends on its water supply j the wonderful system of irrigation which they had inherited was despised, neglected, and finally ruined, and even to-day Spain has not recovered from the blow.

Six hundred years ago landscapes which are now arid wastes blossomed like the rose .Cordova measured twenty miles across, and this great area was mainly composed of gardens. Arab historians spoke of Granada as “ a goblet full of emeralds,” and as being superior in extent and fertility to the famous “ Meadow of Damascus.” WONDERFUL FRAGMENTS.

Of these glories only fragments remain—the Alcazars at Seville and Cordova, the Alhambra and Generalife'at Granada, and a few others—but what a rich legacy they are. Some of them have remained practically unchanged lor 600 years, protected by kings who loved Arab architecture but hated Arab philosophy, and are show places today just as they were centuries ago. This is the setting, Mrs Constance Villiers-Stuart tells us in ‘ Spanish Gardens,’ which Oriental garden designers dreamed of, and which is realised in detail in the Generalife: A natural spring, a hillside terraced down to meet a river or lake mountain crags for a rugged purple background, a distant snow-capped range cutting the skyline with faint glittering peaks. A WATER STAIRWAY. And inside its ancient walls fountains play all day long into flowerrimmed pools, cypress avenues and orange groves give soothing shade, and a water stairway, completely hidden by a laurel canopy, cools the air on even the hottest days. Here is a glimpse of the Alcazar at Seville, sixteen acres in extent, and the largest Moorish garden left in Spain; “Its subtle spell . . is compounded of orange blossom scent and sunshine, with interwovep harmonies of green and apricot and gold There is the deep green of the shining magnolia leaves, their under-sides rust red; grey green 6f waving palms and smooth clipped hedges of myrtle and box, and yellow-green of the orange and lemon trees weighed down by their fruit, whose golden balls are scattered here and there over the glistening

pavement after a sudden shower of rain.” To add to the colour scheme are the tile decorations for which this garden is famous. A FOUNTAIN 115 FEET HIGH. It is almost possible, says Mrs Vil-liers-Stuart, to date a Spanish garden bv Rs fountains. The later the garden the higher its principal fountain be comes, until at La Granja fountain and fountain : et rise to the prodigious height of 115 ft. All garden lovers, and all who have been or hope to go to Spain, should read this fragrant and restful book, which is plentifully illustrated by photographs and .the authoress’s own paintings.