Jardín Casa Cándido

Self-maintained garden

Con Siddartha Rodrigo

Calasanz (Aragon), 2020-Ongoing

Calasanz is an isolated village at the beginning of the foothills of the Pyrenees, with a road leading only to it and not continuing. To the north, it is surrounded by ravines that make passage difficult. The village is located on the southern slope of the highest hill in the area, offering privileged views of the Ebro valley. At the end of the village is the church and, next to it, Casa Cándido. This was the old rectory of the parish priests of Calasanz, who managed to build a terrace on the rocky hillside to have their own garden. The garden and the house had been abandoned for years and the rainwater collection system from the streets that supplied the garden had been lost. In an arid place, with gypsum soil, without water and without regular maintenance, the decision was made to treat the garden as a natural space, accepting a long process of transformation and investigating the vegetation's own responses. Ruderal and leguminous species were sown to improve soil conditions, with selective planting of native shrubs such as buckthorn, wild olive, mastic, honeysuckle, or wild rose in forest format for better adaptation, and some specific trees like service tree, gall oak, and holm oak to complement the existing pomegranates and almond trees, helping to provide more shade. To maintain the impressive views of the Ebro valley while making the garden a pleasant space to be in, especially in summer, vegetation was placed at the back and sides, keeping the centre clear. The large retaining wall that allows the views was also a significant fall hazard. To avoid installing a railing that would diminish the sensation, the sides were densely planted, and an excavation was made in the central part, a ha-ha, so that once at the edge, the wall itself acts as a parapet and simultaneously creates a seating area with a continuous bench allowing you to admire the valley.

Jardín Casa Cándido

Self-maintained garden

Con Siddartha Rodrigo

Calasanz (Aragon), 2020-Ongoing

Calasanz is an isolated village at the beginning of the foothills of the Pyrenees, with a road leading only to it and not continuing. To the north, it is surrounded by ravines that make passage difficult. The village is located on the southern slope of the highest hill in the area, offering privileged views of the Ebro valley. At the end of the village is the church and, next to it, Casa Cándido. This was the old rectory of the parish priests of Calasanz, who managed to build a terrace on the rocky hillside to have their own garden. The garden and the house had been abandoned for years and the rainwater collection system from the streets that supplied the garden had been lost. In an arid place, with gypsum soil, without water and without regular maintenance, the decision was made to treat the garden as a natural space, accepting a long process of transformation and investigating the vegetation's own responses. Ruderal and leguminous species were sown to improve soil conditions, with selective planting of native shrubs such as buckthorn, wild olive, mastic, honeysuckle, or wild rose in forest format for better adaptation, and some specific trees like service tree, gall oak, and holm oak to complement the existing pomegranates and almond trees, helping to provide more shade. To maintain the impressive views of the Ebro valley while making the garden a pleasant space to be in, especially in summer, vegetation was placed at the back and sides, keeping the centre clear. The large retaining wall that allows the views was also a significant fall hazard. To avoid installing a railing that would diminish the sensation, the sides were densely planted, and an excavation was made in the central part, a ha-ha, so that once at the edge, the wall itself acts as a parapet and simultaneously creates a seating area with a continuous bench allowing you to admire the valley.

Jardín Casa Cándido

Jardín auto-mantenido

Con Siddartha Rodrigo

Calasanz (Aragón), 2020-Continua

Calasanz es un pueblo aislado del inicio del somontano de los pirineos, su carretera le llega de propio y no continua, hacia el norte está rodeado de barrancos que dificultan el paso. El pueblo se sitúa sobre la ladera sur del tozal más alto de la zona, con unas vistas privilegiadas del valle del Ebro. Al final del pueblo se encuentra la iglesia y, a su lado, Casa Cándido, la antigua rectoría de los párrocos de Calasanz. En un lugar árido, con suelo gipsícola, sin agua y sin un mantenimiento regular se optó por recuperar el jardín abandonado como un espacio natural, aceptar un proceso largo de transformación e investigar sobre las propias respuestas de la vegetación. Se realizó una siembra de especies ruderales y leguminosas para mejorar las condiciones del suelo, plantaciones puntuales de arbustivas autóctonas como aladierno, olivilla, lentisco, madreselva o rosal silvestre en formato forestal para una mejor adaptación, y algunos árboles puntuales como serbal, quejigo y encina para complementar a los granados y almendros existentes, ayudando a aportar más sombra. Para mantener las vistas al valle del Ebro a la vez que se habilitaba el jardín como espacio para estar se planteó la vegetación como fondo, en los laterales, mientras que el centro se mantiene despejado. El muro de contención que permite las vistas también genera un peligro de caída, se optó por plantar espesamente los laterales y hacer una excavación en la parte central, un ha-ha, haciendo que el propio muro sea el parapeto y generando un espacio con un banco corrido que te permite observar el valle.

House Plant Cándido Calasanz
View of Vence cemetery
View of the Vence cemetery
Clear in the cemetery woods
Clear in the cemetery woods
Land Parcel of Vence
Land Parcel of Vence
Self-maintained garden view Ebro Valley
Self-maintained garden view Ebro Valley
View of forest cell shrub plantations
View of forest cell shrub plantations
View of Calasanz
View of Calasanz
Ha-ha
View of the Vence cemetery
Vence Land Registry
Vence Land Registry
Garden section and retaining wall
Detail native vegetation planting
Planting of native species
Planting of native species
Spring Bloom View