Brief summary about the history of garden in India

1. AGR325:
LANDSCAPING AND ORNAMENTAL
HORTICULTURE
Dr. Saikhom Herojit Singh
Assistant professor
Department of Horticulture
School of Agriculture
LPU

2. Origin and Evolution of Gardens
The origin of the garden is rooted in the human desire to be surrounded by plants.
The first few gardens in recorded history were those of the ancient cultures of Egypt and
China
It was in these cultures that the two-opposing tradition in gardens originated, namely
formalism and naturalism.

3. Formalism
The Egyptian gardens developed at the edge of the deserts where the natural vegetation
was sparse, represented the development of an artificial oasis.
The Egyptian garden, copied their basic design everywhere though changed according to
the local variation in land, plants and climate, spread to Syria, Persia, India and
ultimately to Rome.
The grounds design became the important concept, whereas the plant was treated
as merely an architectural material. The plant was pruned, clipped and trained to
conform to the plan. The resultant noble symmetry included courtyards, terraces,
staircases and fountains.

4. Formalism reached its peak in the age of Louis XIV.
The master architectural gardens and Andre Le Notre still remain unsurpassed examples
of formalism design predominant over nature.

5. Naturalism
Naturalism as a concept in garden can be interpreted as an attempt to live with nature
rather than to dominate it
Th concept of naturalism has been traced to China, but it has reached its highest
development in Japan.

6. Fusion of Naturalism and Formalism
The fusion of Eastern naturalism and Western formalism took place in eighteenth
century England.

7. Cottage Garden were primarily utilitarian gardens, with fruit, vegetables, herbs,
flowers and shrubs, crowded in a very small area.
Woodland Garden is a peaceful sheltered place based on natural grouping of trees and
with appropriate underplanting of the shrubs, herbaceous plants and bulbs.
The first botanical garden was started at Padua, near Venice (Italy) in 1543.

9. Historical Development of Gardens and Gardening in India
Ancient India (Vedic Period)
The history of systematic gardening
in India is as old as civilization of
Indus of Harappan which existed
between 2500 B.C and 1750 B.C.
Harappan pots were generally decorated with the design of trees. In every
village, trees including Ficus religiosa (pipal) and F. bengalensis (banyan)
were planted for worship as well as for shade.

10. Aryan’s contribution in Indian gardening
The history of civilization which prospered in Punjab, Sind, Rajasthan and Gujarat dates
back to 2500 B.C. before the Aryans civilizations of about 1600 B.C.
The Aryans of the Vedic period were great lovers of trees and flowers. They were
literary people and brought with them the four Vedas viz., Rig Veda, Artharva Veda,
Yuzur Veda and Sam Veda and the Puranas.
The first evidence of Asvatha tree, the Pipal (Ficus religiosa), comes from a seal from
Mohen-jo-daro, of the third millennium B.C.
Another seal from Harappa of the same period depicts a weeping willow (Salix
babylonica).

12. The lotus has been mentioned frequently in the Sanskrit scriptures of Vedic times.
The epics of the Aryans, the Ramayana and the Mahabharata, also mentioned about
gardens, trees and flowers.
The Asokavana where Sita was held captivity by Ravana, was composed mostly of
Asoka (Saraca indica) trees.
In both the Ramayana and the Mahabharata trees and creepers namely Ficus religiosa,
Saraca indica, Terminalia arjuna, Mesua ferrea, Cassia fistula, Shorea robusta, Butea
menosperma are mentioned.

14. The tree Kadamba (Anthocephalus cadamba) as it was closely associated with the life of
Lord Krishna.
The Lotus was a popular flower and regarded by both the Hindus and Buddhists as a
symbol of purity.
During the later Aryan period the Aryans developed some wishful thinking in the form of
Kalpavriksha, the wish granting tree, the Kalpalata, a similar creeper.

15. Gardening in Buddhist India
The association of different trees with the life of Lord Buddha is well known. Buddha
was born in 563 B.C. His birth is believed to have taken place under the Asoka tree
(Saraca indica). Further, Buddha attained his enlightenment under a Pipal tree, spread his
new teachings under shady banyan and mango trees and breathed his last in a Sal (Shorea
robusta) grove.

16. The great Emperor Asoka (264-227 B.C.) adopted arboriculture as one
of his state policies. He encouraged the planting of avenue trees. His son
Prince Mahendra took a sapling of the Bodhi tree (Ficus religiosa)
from India and planted it at Anuradhapur in Sri Lanka (250 B.C.).
Kanishka and Gupta era
The golden age of Hindu culture is considered to be period between
100 and 600 A.D. during the rulers of Kanishka and the Gupta kings

17. Kalidasa during the rule of Chandragupta II mention several flowering trees including
the Asoka tree (Saraca asoka), Kadamba (Anthocephalus cadamba), Arjuna (Terminalia
arjuna), Butea monosperma, Parijatham (Nyctanthes arbortristis), Bauhinia variegata,
Mimusops elengi, Albizzia lebbek and screwpine.
Vatsayana (300-400 A.D.) in his book ‘Kamasutra’ gives a glimpse of the joyful civic life of that
period. He narrates four kinds of gardens:
1. Pramododyan meant for the enjoyment of the royal couples
2. Udyan where the kings played chess, enjoyed the dances of the maids and jokes of the court
jesters
3. Brikshavatika the garden where high-placed persons in the king’s court enjoyed life with
courtesans
4. Nandavana which was dedicated to Lord Krishna.

18. Mughal Period of Indian Gardening
Before the Mughals came to India, Firoz Tughlaq had developed about
twelve hundred gardens around Delhi and more elsewhere.
Among the Mughal emperors, Babur had high aesthetic sense and was fond
of gardens and he made gardens at Panipat and Agra.
Aram Bagh at Agra is still being well maintained by the Archeological Department.
Mughal gardens are synonymous with formal style of gardening. The square or
rectangular flower beds are special features of Mughal gardens. Another important
contribution was the introduction of exotic plants like cypress, rose, carnation,
narcissus, daffodils, lilies, tulips, etc.,

20. Babur introduce the Persian rose in India.
Akbar built a new capital at Fatehpur Sikri, complete with gardens, trees and flowers.
He was the first Mughal to enter Kashmir and establish a garden, Nasim Bagh, close to
the Dal lake.
The tomb garden of Akbar at Sikandra is an example of gardening art during that
period.

22. Jahangir and his wife Nur-Jahan were great admirer of
garden and flower. The gardens at Shalimar, Achhabal and
Verinag in Kashmir were created by him. The tomb garden
at Itimad-ud-Daulah in Agra, in memory of his father-in-
law, was also his creation.
Shah Jahan built the Red fort in Delhi which has a
beautiful garden. The gardens around Taj Mahal in Agra, in
memory of his beloved queen Mumtaz Mahal, was also his
creation. The small but pretty garden at Chashma Shahi in
Kashmir was laid by one of his governors.

24. The best garden created by Shah Jahan was Shalimar garden in Lahore
Sher Shah Suri who ruled for a short period after defeating Babur, constructed the
famous Grand Trunk Road and planted avenue trees on both sides.
Among the Nawabs of Oudh, the last Nawab Wajid Ali Shah, established
Sikandar bagh now the National Botanical Research Institute, Lucknow.

26. Gardening in the Era of Rajputs Kings
The garden at Amber Fort near Jaipur was started by Man Singh and completed by Jai
Singh II. This beautiful garden has three terraces and a lake.
The Mandor garden near Jodhpur was built by Raja Abhai Singh. The city of Jaipur was
founded by Jai Singh II, who built a palace in the heart of the city with beautiful
gardens
The garden palace at Deeg, Rajasthan was founded by Suraj Mal. With fountains,
water courses and other features, it is one of the most beautiful gardens ever created
by any Rajput king.

28. Gardening during Britishers Period
The arrival of the British in India changed the whole pattern of gardening.
The Mughal gardens in India were laid out in formal (symmetrical) patterns, but the
English changed the style into informal patterns by laying out parks and gardens.
Indians gardens had only scented trees and shrubs, climbers and bulbs, but had no
flowering annuals
The Britishers brought with them beautiful annuals and biennials such as Phlox,
Carnation, Verbena, Dahlia, Lakhspur etc and idea of flower arrangements for interior
decoration, which was taught by them

30. Botanical gardens developed by Britishers in India:
1. Horticulture Research Institute, Saharanpur in 1750.
2. Indian Botanical Garden, Sibpur, Kolkata in 1787.
3. Govt. Botanical Garden, Ootacamund in 1848.
4. Agri-horticultural Society Garden, Kolkata in 1872.
5. Sim’s Park Conoor, Tamil Nadu in 1874 by J.D. Sim.
6. Llyod Botanical, Garden Darjeeling in 1878.
7. Botanical Garden Coimbatore, 1908.
8. Bryant Park, Kodaikonal, Tamil nadu in 1909
9. Rashtrapati Bhavan Garden, New Delhi was designed by Sir
Edwin Lutyen in 1929 on advicse of Lady hardinge.
10.Forest Research Institute, Dehradun in 1934
The greatest contribution by the
Britishers was the establishment
of Botanical gardens starting
from the one established near
Calcutta.

31. Post-Independence Period-
Several radical changes Remarkable achievements like
a) Conscious planning for improvement of total environment
b) Commercial floriculture
c) Teaching and research of Ornamental Horticulture at graduate and post graduate level.
Several important gardens in different cities and passive recreational facilities. Important gardens are Buddha
Jayanti Garden, Delhi; Rose Graden, Chandigarh and Ludhiana.

32. For successful flower growing scientific research is must. For this Indian Council of Agricultural Research is playing
important role. Nine Research centers in different agro-climatic zones are set up. Other than this-
Indian Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhi
Indian Institute of Horticultural Research, Banglore
National Botanical Research Institute, Lucknow
Bhaba Atomic Research Centre, Bombay
Agricultural Universities like-
Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana;
University of Agricultural Sciences, Banglore;
Dr.Y.S.Parmar University of Horticulture and Forestry, Solan;
Bidhan Chandra Krishi Vishwavidalaya, Kalyani
are the places where scientific research of floriculture is being conducted. Availability of technical trained persons is
must.