The Masseria Ferragnano Garden

A rare Florentine-style Italian garden in Apulia 

The work of famous architect Giuseppe Campanella, the Giardino Masseria Ferragnano in Locorotondo, in the province of Bari, is a monumental, rectangular Italian garden. It was created in 1811, while the 16th-century manor house was being renovated, together with the current monumental staircase and the Church of San Giorgio completed in 1812. 

Surrounded on one side by a high wall and with two side entrances, the garden contains eight symmetrical flowerbeds bordered by box hedges, with a fountain at the centre. The avenues are decorated with benches, colonnades, a pair of cherubs and 34 baroque stone busts symbolising the months of the year, seasons, virtues and goddesses. The spaces are embellished with a few verses engraved on stones and marble. At the far end is a pavilion-viewpoint built in 1833, from which you can admire the surrounding countryside and church tower, covered in glistening blue tiles at the time. 

It is home to many rare Mediterranean plants, including 200-year-old cedars, one from Lebanon and one from the Atlantic, dating to the 18th century, likely the last survivors of a larger group. Many varieties of roses line the long perimeter, while lavender beds and essences complete the garden. The farmhouse currently houses the Centre for Research and Experimentation in Agriculture.