In her latest book, acclaimed Australian photographer, Claire Takacs beautifully explores gardens and landscape design in the face of climate change. This Spanish garden is one of eighty featured.
ÁVILA GARDEN
DESIGNERS: Renate Kastner and Miguel Urquijo (Urquijo-Kastner Studio)
LOCATION: Ávila, Spain
A fifteen-minute drive from the medieval walled town of Ávila, Madrid-based landscape designers Renate Kastner and Miguel Urquijo have created one of their largest gardens, a beautiful sanctuary and a design masterpiece.
A private Mediterranean garden, Dehesa de Yonte sits above a large reservoir on rocky terrain surrounded by native holm oaks (Quercus ilex). Climate is defined by dry summers and occasional harsh winters with temperatures as low as −20 °C (–4 °F).
Urquijo-Kastner Studio used local stones leftover from the house construction and former quarries within the estate to create terraces with deep, free-draining soil to accommodate olive trees lifted from olive plantations in High Aragon, northeast Spain (where climatic conditions are more like Ávila’s) to ensure a better chance of survival. Trees were selected with trunks to resemble the Q.ilex in the neighbouring fields.
Cupressus sempervirens, with their elongated forms, contrast beautifully with the olive trees. Plants including Osmanthus heterophyllus, Arbutus unedo, Phillyrea angustifolia and P. latifolia, were tested for hardiness and proved to be more robust than expected. Planting in the early stages of growth is dominated by colour, scent and movement, but as the garden matures, the form and structure of woody plants become more prominent as they grow and fill the space.
This project pushes the boundaries of plant choices in cooler climates by trying new species outside their typical planting range. Urquijo-Kastner had no reference garden for learning and inspiration, so took risks, pioneering the use of atypical plants.
For the Madrid studio, ‘A garden is a natural space; it is where nature is contained and controlled but nonetheless natural.’
At heart is the designers’ love of nature, nurtured and respectfully maintained by Ávila’s owners who equally love their garden.
In thinking about the future, Miguel and Renate believe gardens will be designed ‘to be more respectful of the patterns, modes and elements that make up the landscape, and to continue to give pleasure and shelter by favouring our innate tendency to contemplate life and to heal our spirit.
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About the book
This is an edited extract from Visionary: Gardens and Landscapes for our Future by Claire Takacs, published by Hardie Grant Books. Available in stores nationally, RRP $70.00. Photography by Claire Takacs.
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