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| The palm trees and thin conifers of Cordoba, as seen from a tower in the Alcazar castle |
The final stop of our Spanish journey takes us to Cordoba, formerly the capital of the Moorish state of Al-Andalus.
The most famous site (justly so) in Cordoba is the Mezquita, a mosque that was transformed into a cathedral hundreds of years ago when the Christians reconquered Spain from its Muslim rulers.
But Cordoba also has its own Alcazar, a castle with "delightful gardens".
To be honest, I'd say that if you find yourself in Cordoba, you should skip the Alcazar. The interior is bare (or covered in pigeon dung) and the gardens (as with the ones in Granada and Sevilla) seemed overrated to me.
But I did find a few garden-related sights of interest...
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| By and large, I found the Alcazar gardens of Cordoba just as dull as the other famous Spanish gardens we visited. As with the others, hedges were ominpresent in this garden, although here at least some were trimmed into whimsical topiary shapes. I did like the cheerful bed of French Marigolds (Tagetes patula, I presume) encircling the vase. Interestingly, despite its name, I just discovered that "French" Marigolds, as well as "African" Marigolds, are both native to Mexico and Central America! |
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| Pretty blue flowers. They looked a little like phlox, but I think this was growing on a bushy vine that covered a wall. Can phlox do that? Sadly, none of the plants in Cordoba's Alcazar garden had markers to identify them by name. |
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| My wife leaned in close to the phlox plant, and there among the foliage we spotted this very large grasshopper. |
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| This kingly statue tries to project an air of power and authority, but this pigeon is not impressed. |
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| None of the plants or landscaping here were necessarily all that special, but I wanted to include this photo from our Cordoba hotel - Hospederia Banos Arabes de Cordoba - simply because it did show the Spanish taste for courtyard gardens. In this case, the garden contains a small plunge pool and curtained sofa. Do you have a courtyard garden in your home? Or have you seen other courtyard gardens that you admired? I feel there is something very nice about having a private and enclosed garden, somewhat protected from the elements, easily accessed from many parts of a home. I wish that courtyard garden design was more prominent in U.S. housing customs. |
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The pretty blue phlox-like climber is plumbago.
ReplyDeleteMany of the old European gardens seem uninspired to us now -- we are used to the exuberance of English style flower gardens, full of blooms and color. The old gardens of Europe were mostly stone and paths and clipped hedges. Some greenery, but few flowers. A lot of statues (with and without pigeons)
Nevertheless, Spain looks interesting!
Thanks for the comment, Laurrie.
DeleteSpain was very interesting in other ways - the tapas bars, the flamenco dancers in Seville, the Prado art museum and the Goya Chapel in Madrid, etc.
But yes, I think you've hit the nail on the head - the gardens of Spain seemed very uninspired to me.
(I think my expectations were high because I once visited the botanical gardens in the city of Valencia, Spain and remember being very impressed with the collection, especially some enormous agave type plants. But that was long before I became a gardener, so unfortunately I did not take careful note of which plants I saw there. But you've inspired me to try to see if I can find those Valencia botanical garden photos in my digital archive...)
PS - I didn't know plumbago could climb! I have hardy blue plumbago (http://www.missouribotanicalgarden.org/gardens-gardening/your-garden/plant-finder/plant-details/kc/b960/ceratostigma-plumbaginoides.aspx) but I presume that's quite a different plant, since mine does not seem at all inclined to climb! ;)
DeleteI think it is plumbago auriculata which you see all over Hawaii and in warmer semi tropics.
Deletehttp://www.missouribotanicalgarden.org/gardens-gardening/your-garden/plant-finder/plant-details/kc/a542/plumbago-auriculata.aspx
I grow it as a rambler trained up a pyramid, but it can be kept shrubbier. It's not hardy (only to zone 8), so I have to treat it as an annual (or dig it up and bring it inside each winter). But I do that each year because it it a beautiful plant!
Fascinating. Thanks for the info, Laurrie. How large can plumbago auriculata grow in a single year if grown as an annual? Is it hard to overwinter indoors? (I don't have much experience in that department.)
DeleteThe first year they grew to about 5 feet on bamboo teepees, but I had planted them as starts already a foot high from the nursery. The first photo in this post is what they looked like in fall: http://laurries.blogspot.com/2011/10/look.html
DeleteI dug them up and overwintered them on an unheated porch (not inside the heated house) and they did not survive. Bought new ones again the next year. I also dug those up and am overwintering them in pots on the porch and we'll have to see if they make it this time! I may just have to keep buying them each year as an annual.
Here's another post on them: http://laurries.blogspot.com/2012/04/on-whim.html
It is too bad we don't have more courtyard gardens in the US although I see them frequently in the SW US...here in the NE they just don't seem practical with nature.
ReplyDeleteI hear you, Donna.
DeleteAlthough one might think that a sheltered and sunny courtyard garden in the NE might actually help a gardener push his/her limits by a zone or two...
I love the courtyard garden! And I love clipped hedges and statuary, so I would probably have liked this garden. But I think it all has to do with expectation.
ReplyDeleteIf you love clipped hedges and statuary, get thee to Spain!
Delete(Although I have to tell you I never saw such odd hedge-trimming as I did in Spain. Maybe it's the economic situation there or maybe the gardeners have their own iconoclastic way of doing things, but a lot of times I would see tall hedges/evergreen trees pruned only half-way or two-thirds to the top. So the sides would be narrow and smooth, and the tops would be bushy and wild. The overall effect was rather (unintentionally?) comical!
Laurie is right; this is Plumbago. I grow it every year, but I have to take mine into the greenhouse to overwinter. I've had a white variety, too, but the blue is by far the prettiest. I usually buy the plants, but Chiltern Seeds in England sells the seeds. I'm sure other places do, too, but I happen to have their catalog handly. I've enjoyed your series of Spanish gardens.
ReplyDeleteThanks Dottie. Based on all the positive comments, I'll certainly consider growing this climbing plumbago someday. Happy to hear you enjoy this blog-based tour of Spanish gardens!
DeleteI agree on the plumbago ID. It's a plant that should grow easily for you and should be easy to locate. Courtyards are more common on the west coast. Cold and windy here so I wish I were in Spain on vacation instead! :o)
ReplyDeleteI hear ya. Not a huge fan of the cold myself. At least the sun has *finally* returned here today after an interminable period (OK, maybe a week) of gloom. Even if it's in the 30s, the sun makes it feel cheerful and warm inside!
DeleteI'm so happy to have popped over here! I spent a month in Spain, back in 2001. Driving all the backroads and seeing some amazing sights. It's an incredible country. Really enjoyed these photos! Happy New Year!
ReplyDeleteThanks Kate. We traveled around Spain by train. I'm sure you saw some amazing and authentic sights on those backroads...
DeleteEveryone is right; its plumbago auriculata. I have a bush in my garden and it flowers year round. So you are the observant guy who is very handy around zips :)
ReplyDeleteObservant? I try to be :)
DeleteHandy around zips? Hm...