Aspetti teorici e problemi operativi del restauro dei giardini storici

In the first paragraph the analysis of problems connected to the conservation of conspicuous heritage of the Italian historic gardens, part of immense Italian cultural heritage, underline the difficulties to conserve them, nevertheless new ways to maintain historic gardens, specially them belonging to the private proprietors. The opportunities are the creation of regional and local network of historic gardens related to archaeological, architectonical, artistic heritage, following the principles of landscape objective of quality fixed by the European Landscape Convention. In the second paragraph is affirmed that to achieve this aims it is necessary to develop methods of analysis using various scientific contributions: catalogues at regional and national level, analysis of landscape units in which are concentrated systems of villa-garden, studies of Renaissance and of the following centuries agricultural, botanical, gardening treatises, monographers of garden designers, of historic botany, phitocronology, history of art, various typologies of gardens, etc. It is also affirmed the need of studying the modern gardens and the garden expression of local interpretation of the most important models, and the hydraulic system of the old gardens because the knowledge of them is limited. The third paragraph contains a critical examination of the evolution of historic gardens restoration at international (charter of historic garden ICOMOS-IFLA, Burra Carther, ICOMOS, etc.) and national level to define the conservation as a continuous action of maintenance and as intervention of designers which are not able to reproduce all the historic condition for the reconstruction, in the various study case different principles and ways used to restore important gardens are examined. In the fourth paragraph is affirmed that the study of the historic garden should be enlarged to analyze the relationship between the garden and the surrounding landscape which in many cases has been altered from the environmental, land uses, style of life and social asset of the communities point of view. The consideration of the gardens as places isolated and the lack of attention to the landscape unity is one of the main causes of the destruction of the Italian systems of villa-garden. The authenticity of the garden and the originality of the materials is the theme examined in the fifth paragraph, the conservation of the old species and the old techniques - if it is possible - is a tool to preserve the biodiversity and the vernacular knowledge of local communities. In the following paragraph the renewal of the vegetation is examined on the basis of “Fitocronologia d’Italia” (Maniero, 2000) for the choice of the plants related to the garden history and of different methods of renewal. In the seventh paragraph the restoration project and the management plan are analyzed considering the elements to be considered in the design phase which are depending on the management plan and the necessary activities of protection and maintenance of the old parts of the garden in the phase ofrestoration. The management plan must be organized in function of the state of conservation. The last paragraph concerns the criteria to identify the compatibility of uses and activities in the historic gardens.