Around the World in 80 Gardens

Last updated

Around the World in 80 Gardens
Genre Documentary
Adventure travel
Starring Monty Don
No. of episodes10
Production
Producer BBC
Running time10 × 1 hour
Original release
Network BBC Two
Release27 January (2008-01-27) 
30 March 2008 (2008-03-30)

Around the World in 80 Gardens is a television series of 10 programmes in which British gardener and broadcaster Monty Don visits 80 of the world's most celebrated gardens. The series was filmed over a period of 18 months and was first broadcast on BBC Two at 9pm on successive Sundays from 27 January to 30 March 2008. A book based on the series was also published.

Contents

The title of the series was a reference to Jules Verne's novel Around the World in Eighty Days .

Mexico & Cuba

#CountryGardenNotes
1. Flag of Mexico.svg Mexico The Floating Gardens, Xochimilco, Mexico City The chinampas of Lake Xochimilco, floating vegetable gardens dating back before Aztec times.
2. Flag of Mexico.svg Mexico The Gardens of Luis Barragán: Casa de Luis Barragán, Casa Prieto López and Casa Antonio Gálvez Gardens created by leading Mexican architect, Luis Barragán, in Mexico City. Website of the Barragan Foundation
3. Flag of Mexico.svg Mexico The Ethno-Botanical Garden, Oaxaca A new botanic garden containing the region's many species of cactus, built alongside the Santo Domingo Cultural Center, formerly a monastery, on a site originally slated for development as a hotel. Website
4. Flag of Mexico.svg Mexico Las Pozas, Xilitla A surreal collection of jungle plants and concrete follies created in a former coffee plantation by Englishman Edward James in the Sierra Madre Oriental. Website
5. Flag of Cuba.svg Cuba Alberto's Huerto, Havana An urban vegetable garden in the space left by a collapsed building.
6. Flag of Cuba.svg Cuba Vivero Organopónico Alamar, Havana A large urban collective organic market garden ( Organopónico )
7. Flag of Cuba.svg Cuba Maria's Garden, Havana A small urban flower garden.

Australia & New Zealand

Starting with Botany Bay...

#CountryGardenNotes
8. Flag of Australia (converted).svg Australia The Royal Botanic Gardens, Sydney Botanic gardens around Farm Cove at the centre of Sydney, on the site of a grain farm established by the first European settlers in 1788. Website
9. Flag of Australia (converted).svg Australia Kennerton Green, Mittagong, New South Wales A colonial-style garden with European planting in the hills near Sydney.
10. Flag of Australia (converted).svg Australia The Sitta Garden, Sydney A modern garden designed by Vladimir Sitta, including native plants and large slabs of red rock from central Australia.
11. Flag of Australia (converted).svg Australia Alice Springs Desert Park, Northern Territory A park near Alice Springs recreating the habitats for desert plants across central Australia. Website
12. Flag of Australia (converted).svg Australia Cruden Farm, Langwarrin, Melbourne Gardened continuously by Dame Elisabeth Murdoch since the 1920s. [1]
13. Flag of Australia (converted).svg Australia The Garden Vineyard, Moorooduc, Melbourne A European-style garden on the Mornington Peninsula, replacing European planting with Australian natives. Website
14. Flag of New Zealand.svg New Zealand Ayrlies Garden, Auckland A 12-acre (49,000 m2) country garden created since 1964 in a paddock east of Auckland by Beverley McConnell. Website
15. Flag of New Zealand.svg New Zealand Te Kainga Marire, New Plymouth A domestic city garden of native New Zealand plants. Its name is Māori for "the peaceful encampment". Website

India

#CountryGardenNotes
16. Flag of India.svg India Taj Mahal and the Mehtab Bagh, Agra Website, Garden Visit review. [p]
17. Flag of India.svg India Akbar's Tomb, Sikandra
18. Flag of India.svg India The Monsoon Garden, Deeg Gardens of the Deeg Palace. Garden Visit review
19. Flag of India.svg India Jal Mahal, Jaipur
20. Flag of India.svg India Hindu Temple Shrine Garden, Jaipur
21. Flag of India.svg India Mr Abraham's Spice Garden, Thekkady, Kerala An organic spice garden. Website
22. Flag of India.svg India The Old Railway Garden, Munnar, Kerala The garden is maintained by the Kanan Devan Hill Plantations Company. The company is South India's biggest Tea producer and exporter and is also the first ever employee owned plantation company in India. Tea Purchase Website Company Website
23. Flag of India.svg India The Rock Garden, Chandigarh A sculpture garden created illegally by transport official Nek Chand who started the garden secretly in his spare time in 1957. Today it is spread over an area of forty-acres (160,000 m2), it is completely built of industrial & home waste and thrown-away items. Website Archived 15 June 2011 at the Wayback Machine

In addition to the Old Railway Garden, Don also featured the surrounding "tea gardens" (tea plantations). He expressly did not count it as one out of the eighty, however.

South America

#CountryGardenNotes
24. Flag of Brazil.svg Brazil Burle Marx's Copacabana Promenade, Rio de Janeiro
25. Flag of Brazil.svg Brazil Garden of the Sítio Roberto Burle Marx, Rio de Janeiro
26. Flag of Brazil.svg Brazil The Floating Gardens, The Amazon River The locals live in floating houses on the river, and they grow vegetables and medicinal plants in small barges attached to their houses
27. Flag of Brazil.svg Brazil Bacu's Forest Garden, The Amazon
28. Flag of Argentina.svg Argentina Carlos Thays's garden at Estancia Dos Talas, Dolores, Buenos Aires, in The Pampas In the middle of the limitless pampas a grand French-style mansion with gardens in 1500 hectares of lands and the infinite pampas beyond. Website
29. Flag of Chile.svg Chile The private garden of Chilean landscape architect Juan Grimm at Bahia Azul, Los Vilos

United States of America

#CountryGardenNotes
30. Flag of the United States.svg United States LongHouse Reserve, East Hampton, New York The Long Island gardens housing Jack Lenor Larsen's sculpture collection. Website
Flag of the United States.svg United States Central Park, New York
31. Flag of the United States.svg United States Gantry Plaza State Park, New York A garden at Hunters Point in Queens, beside historic ship-loading gantries on the East River. Designed by Thomas Balsley. Website
32. Flag of the United States.svg United States Liz Christy Garden, Manhattan, New York The first community garden in New York City, founded in 1973 by local resident Liz Christy on a vacant lot on the corner of Bowery and Houston Street. Website
33. Flag of the United States.svg United States James Van Sweden's garden at Ferry Cove, Chesapeake Bay, Maryland A modern garden of grasses, melting into the surrounding landscape.
34. Flag of the United States.svg United States Monticello, Charlottesville, Virginia The garden of the author of the US Declaration of Independence and third President of the United States, Thomas Jefferson. Website [a]
Flag of the United States.svg United States Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve, Kansas
35. Flag of the United States.svg United States The Huntington Botanic Garden, San Marino, California A 120-acre (0.49 km2) botanic garden around the Huntington Library, laid out in the early 20th century. Website
36. Flag of the United States.svg United States Lotusland, Montecito, Santa Barbara, California The gardens of opera singer Madame Ganna Walska. Website [a]
37. Flag of the United States.svg United States Roland Emmerich's Garden, Hollywood, California An instant mature garden for the Hollywood director and producer, with tall palm trees installed to provide privacy.
38. Flag of the United States.svg United States The Greenberg Garden, Brentwood, Los AngelesDesigned by Mia Lehrer.

China & Japan

#CountryGardenNotes
39. Flag of the People's Republic of China.svg China The Humble Administrator's Garden, Suzhou 16th-century garden, with many pavilions, island, pools and bridges.
40. Flag of the People's Republic of China.svg China The Lion Grove, Suzhou
41. Flag of the People's Republic of China.svg China The Imperial Summer Palace, Beijing Complex of palaces and gardens northwest of Beijing, covering 3.5 km2, looted and destroyed by the British and French in 1860.
42. Flag of Japan.svg Japan Ryoan-ji Temple, Kyoto Famous karesansui (dry landscape) rock garden. Part of the World Heritage Site. Website
43. Flag of Japan.svg Japan Issidan, Ryogen-in Temple, Kyoto Large Japanese rock garden.
44. Flag of Japan.svg Japan Totekiko, Ryogen-in Temple, Kyoto Small Japanese rock garden.
45. Flag of Japan.svg Japan Urasenke Tea Garden, Kyoto Tea room built by Sen Sōtan. Website
46. Flag of Japan.svg Japan Tofuku-ji Temple Garden, Kyoto Designed by Mirei Shigemori in the 1930s, including a moss garden and Japanese maples. Website

The Mediterranean

#CountryGardenNotes
47. Flag of Italy.svg Italy Villa d'Este, Tivoli A spectacular Renaissance garden with many fountains. Website Archived 22 July 2011 at the Wayback Machine [i]
48. Flag of Italy.svg Italy Villa Adriana, Tivoli The remains of the garden set out for Roman Emperor Hadrian around his palace. [i]
49. Flag of Italy.svg Italy Elio's vineyard, Tivoli A private fruit and vegetable garden.
50. Flag of Italy.svg Italy Villa Lante, Bagnaia A 16th-century Mannerist gardens of surprises.
51. Flag of Morocco.svg Morocco The Aguedal, Marrakech Royal vegetable gardens dating to the 12th century, irrigated with water from the Ourika valley, with water stored in large central cisterns. Garden Visit review [p]
52. Flag of Morocco.svg Morocco The Majorelle, Marrakech The botanical garden created by French artist Jacques Majorelle in 1924, and restored by Yves Saint Laurent and Pierre Bergé in the 1980s. Website
53. Flag of Spain.svg Spain The Alhambra and Generalife, Granada The gardens of the Moorish palace in Andalusia. Website [p]
54. Flag of Spain.svg Spain The Patios of Córdoba Private courtyard gardens, opened to the public in May each year, in the annual Courtyards Festival of Cordoba  [ es ]. Website Tourism Information
55. Flag of Spain.svg Spain Casa Caruncho, Madrid The private garden of Spanish landscape gardener, Fernando Caruncho. Website

South Africa

#CountryGardenNotes
56. Flag of South Africa.svg South Africa Kirstenbosch National Botanical Garden, Cape Town A botanic garden on the eastern slopes of Table Mountain. Website
57. Flag of South Africa.svg South Africa Henk Scholtz's garden, Franschhoek near Cape Town
58. Flag of South Africa.svg South Africa The Company's Garden, Cape Town Originally created to provide fresh food to passing ships, using water from natural springs; now a city park.
59. Flag of South Africa.svg South Africa Stellenberg, Kenilworth, Cape Town
60. Flag of South Africa.svg South Africa Donovan's L'il Eden, Hout Bay, Cape Town A garden in a Cape squatter camp.
61. Flag of South Africa.svg South Africa Kirklington, Ficksburg, Free State A garden established in the first half of the 20th century by English expatriate Edward Tudor Boddam-Whetham and his wife Ruby Newberry, daughter of Charles Newberry. It makes careful management of scarce water resources, and is named after Edward's ancestral home, Kirklington Hall in Nottinghamshire. Photos
62. Flag of South Africa.svg South Africa The Savanna Rock Garden, Magaliesberg, Johannesburg A rock garden created by a married couple (one a sculptor, the other an artist).
63. Flag of South Africa.svg South Africa Brenthurst Gardens, Parktown, Johannesburg The garden of Strilli Oppenheimer, wife of Nicky Oppenheimer. Website
64. Flag of South Africa.svg South Africa Thuthuka School Garden, Tembisa Township near Johannesburg A garden in a township school.

Northern Europe

#CountryGardenNotes
65. Flag of the United Kingdom.svg UK Rousham Park, Oxfordshire Perhaps the first English landscape garden, created by William Kent in the early 18th century. Website
66. Flag of the United Kingdom.svg UK Sissinghurst Castle, Kent Influential English garden created in the 1930s by Vita Sackville-West and her husband Harold Nicolson; owned by the National Trust since 1967. Website
67. Flag of France.svg France Chateau Villandry, The Loire ValleyAcres of parterre and box hedge, recreated in the 20th century. Website
68. Flag of France.svg France Claude Monet's Garden, Giverny Obsessively painted by Monet; now receiving over half a million visitors each year. Website
69. Flag of Belgium (civil).svg Belgium Jacques Wirtz's Garden, Schoten, Antwerp The private garden of Belgian landscape artist Jacques Wirtz, including his trademark "cloud" box hedges. Website
70. Flag of the Netherlands.svg Netherlands Het Loo Palace, Apeldoorn The Baroque Dutch garden of William III and Mary II, originally designed by Claude Desgotz in the 1680s but replaced by an English landscape garden in the 18th century; restored from 1970 to 1984 to its appearance in 1700. Website
71. Flag of the Netherlands.svg Netherlands The Boon Family Garden, Oostzaan, Amsterdam An example of a small modern domestic garden, designed by Piet Oudolf for Dutch architect Piet Boon.
72. Flag of Norway.svg Norway The Arctic Alpine Botanic Gardens, Tromsø The northernmost botanic garden in the world, 200 miles (320 km) inside the Arctic Circle. Website

South East Asia

#CountryGardenNotes
73. Flag of Thailand.svg Thailand Jim Thompson's Garden, Bangkok A jungle garden created by American Office of Strategic Services agent and silk merchant, Jim Thompson. Website
74. Flag of Thailand.svg Thailand The Grand Palace, Bangkok Official residence of the King of Thailand. Website (Monty Don also visited the agricultural research fields at the Chitlada Palace.)
75. Flag of Thailand.svg Thailand The Klong Gardens, Bangkok Don visits one of the private gardens that line the canals of Bangkok, accompanied by actress Patravadi Mejudhon.
76. Flag of Singapore.svg Singapore The City in a Garden The landscaping fulfilling the vision of former Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew, to soften the harshness of urban life by clothing Singapore in green. Singapore National Parks website
77. Flag of Singapore.svg Singapore Wilson Wong's Community GardenAn urban vegetable garden created as a community project.
78. Flag of Indonesia.svg Indonesia Pura Taman Ayun, Mengwi, Bali A 17th-century Hindu temple ("Taman Ayun" is Balinese for "beautiful garden"). Don also visited the Denpasar night Market.
79. Flag of Indonesia.svg Indonesia Traditional Home Compound, Ubud, Bali A typical Balinese private household. Don also visited Villa Batujimbar, luxury resort visited by Mick Jagger and Jerry Hall
80. Flag of Indonesia.svg Indonesia Villa Bebek, Sanur, Bali A modern Balinese garden, designed by Australian Made Wijaya (Michael White). Website

References and Notes

a. a1 a2 Revisited in Monty Don's American Gardens
i. i1 i2 Revisited in Monty Don's Italian Gardens
p. p1 p2 p3 Revisited in Monty Don's Paradise Gardens
  1. "Gardening Australia – Fact Sheet: Dame Elisabeth Murdoch". Australian Broadcasting Corporation . Archived from the original on 25 January 2008. Retrieved 6 April 2008.

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