An amalgamation of may landscape styles, bringing in different cultures.

1. INDIAN GARDENS

2. • India is one of few nations to have a
continuous civilizations.
• The earliest information is from harappa
civilization and since then tress were
considered important and to protect
them, they were given religious values.
• It was since the time of Lord Buddha
that parks and gardens were developed
and given importance . (Since Lord
buddha was born in a park)
INTRODUCTION
• Planning was done regarding the location
• and composition of gardens.
• Various elements which were emphasized
on:
 Water and its cooling effects
 Shaded walks
 Creepers arbours
 Trees and shrubs
• In later ages, trees and plants were given
royal orders to develop gardens and parks
all over the country.

3. DESIGN OF ANCIENT GARDENS
•All gardens were landscape
gardens.
•Formal gardens were designed
both in hillside & plains.
•Trees were planted along the road
side.
•Trees were associated with
prosperity ,love &source of
inspiration.
•Dealt with the treatment of open
spaces.
•Treatment of land in form of
landscape , caves, forests ,
gardens, mountains.
•Presence of land water interface in
the form of ghats,kunds.
•Presence of sacred groves( thick
belt of trees) for meditation,moksha
etc.
•Trees considered as religious &
spiritual symbols.eg ficus species.

4. EVOLUTION OF GARDENS
•The concept of landscape (in ancient India) dealt more with aspects regarding the treatment of
open spaces which could be classified as:
•(1) The Land:
- Forests
- Gardens
- Mountains
-Caves
•(2) The Land-Water interface:
•- kunds
•- ghats
•LAND WATER INTERFACE:
KUNDS, GHATS(symbolised rebirth)
•Ghats are considered land water interface design used by Indians for ages.
•E.g.. Varanasi Ghats
•It is located on the left bank of the Ganges River and is one of the seven sacred cities of the
Hindus.
•Varanasi is one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world. Its early history is that
of the first Aryan settlement in the middle Ganges valley.
•Varanasi has the finest river frontage in India,
•With miles of ghats, or steps, for religious bathing; an array of shrines, temples, and palaces.

5. DIFFERENT TYPES OF GARDENS
•GREHA-ARAMA OR NISHKUTA- place of rest near the
house.
•ARAMA OR UPAVANA –In CITY & TOWN.
•VIRKSHACATIKA- for ministers & noblemen.
•UDYANA OR AKREEDA-public parks.
•VISWAVATIKA – king’s garden for public use also on certain
occasions.
•PRAMADAVANAM-ladies gardens.
•Planting of trees for economic,utilitarian & for aesthetic
purposes.
•Buddhists planted ornamental plants around the viharas.
•Ancient vedas are full of descricption of glory of trees.
MENTION OF TREES IN EARLY EPICS:
•KALPKA VRIKSHA-tree of life
•KUBERA Garden-Possess trees which floweres
throughout the year.
•ALAKA GARDEN. BANYAN TREE – Planted in
the EAST direction.
•UBAMBARA(FICUSA GLOMERATA) – Planted in
the south direction.
•PIPPLA TREE – Planted in west direction.
•PLAKSHA TREE – Planted in the north.

6. THE VEDIC AGE
•There are many references to forests, forest glades, and flower filled clearings in the forests in
the Puranas and the epics.
• Typically these mention flowering creepers, shading trees, singing birds, fragrant flowers, and
ponds, often associated with an ashrama or other simple dwelling. They are common in the
accounts of the exiles of the principal characters of the Ramayana and the Mahabharata.
RAMAYANA
•The city of Ayodhya is said to be on level
ground, with the houses built so close to each
other that there were no gaps visible between
them.
•It is also said to be full of parks and mango
groves.
•The account of the exile of Rama contains
several descriptions of ashramas in the forest.
•In every case there are references to lotus
pools surrounded by tall trees.
•There is also a description of the forest
retreat built by Lakshmana for the group
accompanying Rama. This includes references
to lotus pools, a river visible in the near
distance, mountains visible in the far distance,
flowering trees, and birdsong.

7. MAHABHARATA
•There are details of the construction of the new city of Indraprastha by the Pandavas, the
following details of Maya’s assembly hall can be seen; a large hall, containing a tank with fish
and tortoises.
•Other rooms also contained ponds with lotuses in them.
•Among these ponds were the one which Duryodhana mistook for a polished floor and fell into,
and the crystal one that he mistook for water.
• Carved and artificial plants were used for architectural ornament.
• Full grown trees were transplanted to ‘parks in the courtyards. Ponds were filled with fish and
flowers.
VRINDAVAN
•The most beautiful references to vrindavan
are found in the Mahabharata and The
Bhagwad Gita with accounts of krishna and
the gopikas.
•Krishna brought forward the cows and played
on His flute through the forest of Vrindavan,
which was full of flowers, vegetables and
pastures and was full of bees, flowers and
fruits. There were chirping birds and clear
water lakes with waters that could relieve one
of all fatigues. Sweet flavoured breezes blew
always, refreshing the mind and body.“

8. ANCIENT INDIAN GARDENS
•Little is known about the gardens of
india’s ancient dravidian population.
•The oldest stone buildings in india were
made at harappa in the lower indus but
it is not known whether the small
outdoor courts in their cities contained
plants.
•There is less archaeological evidence of
early gardens elsewhere in india but the
ancient hindu sacred books [eg the
ramayana] give a
remarkably detailed account of gardens
in ancient india.
•Temples were places of pilgrimage, not congregational worship, usually with water for ritual
bathing and a pilgrimage path to a shrine.
•Indian palaces were built within forts and had less outdoor space.
• A mardana pattern was used: a stone-paved courtyard (chowk) surrounded by residential
apartments.
• In time, palaces became more spacious and chowks evolved into enclosed gardens.
•Jodhpur is a stark hilltop fortress with a chowk as its central feature.
•Golconda is a fortfied hill rising 130 metres above the plain and supplied by an elaborate water
system.
•Bidar has a fortified palace and town with small paved courts within the palace.

9. BUDDHIST PERIOD
•In southern India and in Ceylon elaborate gardens existed before the birth of the Buddha.
•The Buddha himself was said to have been born beneath a tree in such a garden—containing
baths, lotus-covered pools, trees, and beds of flowers.
• Anciently worshipped by the Hindus, trees thus acquired an additional sanctity. Buddhist
temples were associated with gardens whose purpose was to promote contemplation and
whose preferred sites were therefore away from cities.
•King Ashoka (270-250 B.C.) not only loved trees and parks but gave royal orders to plant trees
and develop gardens all over his kingdom.

10. •Trees, shrubs and creepers were given preference for their fragrance, and their fruits, etc.
•While the period marked a second transition to use of brick and stone, wood was still the
material of choice. Kautilya in the Arthashastra advises the use of brick and stone for their
durability. Yet he devotes a large section to safeguards to be taken against conflagrations in
wooden buildings indicating their popularity.
•Megasthenes mentions that the capital city of Pataliputra was encircled by a massive timber-
palisade, pierced by loopholes through which archers could shoot. It had sixty-four gates and
570 towers. According to Strabo, the gilded pillars of the palace were adorned with golden
vines and silver birds. The palace stood in an extensive park studded with fish ponds. It was
furnished with a great variety of ornamental trees and shrubs. Excavations have brought to light
remains of huge wooden buildings at Bulandibagh and Kumrahar, both near Patna.
•Stupa at Sarnath
•Many stupas like those at Sanchi, Sarnath and probably Amaravati were originally built as brick
and masonry mounds during the reign of Ashoka. Unfortunately they were renovated many
times, which leaves us with hardly a clue of the original structures.
Dhamek Stupa, Sarnath
(There is also a Bodhi tree planted by Anagrika dharampala which was grown from a cutting of
the Bodhi Tree at Bodh Gaya.)
•As they were Rock Edicts , these instructions are still available. Instructions were given
regarding the location and composition of parks.
•Each park was expected to have water pools, creeper and shaded walks.
•The design was more informal than formal.
•The emphasis was on shade and the cooling effects of water.

11. RAJPUT PERIOD
•The style of their palaces and gardens
became partly Hindu and partly foreign-
influenced, their form relating to the classic
Indian townhouse and farmhouse (haveli):
rooms opening onto a courtyard (chowk) with
a wall to give protection from the outside
world
•Under Muslim influence, and with increased
prosperity, chowks developed into paradise
gardens.
•Chittor has a great fortress, on a ridge, with
roof terraces and balconies overlooking the
surrounding landscape.
•Amer palace also has landscaped garden
outside the wall of palace which is surrounded
by water.
•The interior has a small garden much
influenced by mughal garden’s concept of
paradise gardens(char-bagh).

12. ISLAMIC GARDENS
•The ‘Islamic gardens’ of India share formal
characteristics and are referred to as Chahar Bagh
gardens.
• They are usually square or rectangle, with a
central focal point such as a tomb or pond, and
they are divided into four quarters by channels of
water, representing the four rivers flowing from
the Garden of Eden as described in Genesis.
• The most spectacular gardens in India today
include several Islamic Gardens, but the Chahar
Bagh design is not limited to gardens in India.
Humayun’s Tomb Garden, New Delhi
Humayun’s Tomb Garden was the first garden-
tomb in India and set a precedent for Mughal
garden design, which reached its peak with the
Taj Mahal. With the decline of the Mughals the
upkeep of the gardens became too expensive
and with this neglect, people settled inside the
walled garden and used the rich ground to
grow vegetables. In 1860, the influence of the
British Raj altered the look of the space,
turning it into an English garden. In the early
20th century Viceroy, Lord Curzon ordered a
full-scale restoration of the garden.

13. Taj Mahal Garden, Agra
Completed 1653 and designed in the Islamic
style, the Taj Mahal Gardens are the most
perfect chahar bagh in existence. The canals
originate from a central, raised pool, and
divided the garden into sections of 16
flowerbeds, making a total of 64 beds with 400
plants in each bed at one time. Where most
Mughal gardens are rectangular with a tomb
or palace in the center, the Taj Mahal garden is
unusual because the tomb is located at the
end of the garden. However, another section
of the garden has been discovered on the
other side of the Yamuna River and current
thinking is that the river itself was
incorporated into the design of the garden,
putting the tomb in the centre again.
With the decline of the Mughal Empire the
care of the gardens also declined. Eventually
the British changed the landscaping to great
lawns, but today some replanting of the
original ideas has been completed. The
gardens are mainly lawn and trees with canals
dividing the sections.

14. COLONIAL GARDENS
•India was an untamed land that needed
the visible stamp of civilisation that
garden in their many guises could convey.
• the desire to create british garden was a
central theme of the gardening activities
of britishers in india
• this was, in part, a response to the
changing patterns of landscape and
garden design at home, but the creation
of an english garden was also important
for the psychological and physical survival
of those living a temporary existence in an
allien country and in a hostile climate
•The period 1750-1850 focuses primarily
on the ornamental gardens and
landscapes using, where possible, existing
sites in calcutta and delhi on the
edvelopment of english garden presence
in india

15. Indian Botanical Garden, Kolkata
•Colonel Kyd first developed the Indian
Botanical Garden in 1786.
•Originally designed to develop new varieties
of plants from around the world that would be
suitable to the growing conditions of the
Indian climate, it is the oldest botanical garden
in India.
•The Gardens cover 270 acres and are home to
around 12,000 living plants and over 2.5
million dried plant specimens collected from
all over the planet.
•One of the main attractions of the garden is
the oldest Banyan Tree in the World, covering
404 sq meters.