Only in the Vesuvian area it has been possible to determine what plants were used, how they were grown and what function they served. Medicinal plants, flowers used to make wreaths for banquets, and fruit trees co-existed with hedges of geometric design created by masters of the ars topiaria (the garden art).
We can hardly imagine a beautiful garden without water. And in fact, fragments of valves, water cocks and branch boxes bear witness to the presence of complex hydraulic systems that kept the plants flourishing.
From the very special case of Pompeii, we know how gardens were furnished: sculptures in bronze or marble used as fountains and basins for collecting water attest to the encounter between nature and technology.
