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Objective: Explore the multifaceted world of gardens—their design, cultural significance, artistic inspiration, and the art of gardening itself.
Duration: This project can span over a few weeks, allowing students adequate time for research and creative processes.
Select any TWO assignments. Any one from 1 or 2, and any one from 3 or 4
(1)
- Do research and collect information on any FIVE famous gardens of India, such as Amrit Udyan, Brindavan Gardens, and many others.
- Focus on history, design elements, and cultural significance.
- Prepare a short report and make a presentation.
(2)
- Explore various art forms (painting, sculpture) inspired by gardens. Select an art piece and analyse how the garden is represented.
- Create a visual or written response inspired by the garden.
(3) Design your own garden
- Design a garden on paper or using digital tools.
- Incorporate elements and artistic inspirations learned from parts (1)/(2).
- Present your choices in design and artistic influences to the class.
(4) Interview with a Gardener or Landscaping Expert
- Approach a local gardener or a landscaping expert for an interview.
- Prepare questions focussed on understanding the practical aspects of gardening/landscaping.
- Write a summary of your experience.
View Answer
• Amrit Udyan, New Delhi — the Mughal-style garden of Rashtrapati Bhavan; geometric lawns, water channels and seasonal flower shows open to the public every spring.
• Brindavan Gardens, Mysuru — terraced garden beside the Krishnaraja Sagara dam, famous for its symmetrical design and musical dancing fountains.
• Mughal Gardens (Nishat and Shalimar), Srinagar — built by the Mughals on Dal Lake; stepped terraces, chinar trees and flowing water channels showing Persian charbagh design.
• Lalbagh Botanical Garden, Bengaluru — begun by Hyder Ali and Tipu Sultan; home to a famous Glass House and centuries-old trees; hosts grand flower shows.
• Rock Garden, Chandigarh — created by Nek Chand entirely from waste materials ; shows that a garden itself can be a work of art (just like our poem says!).
Assignment (3) — Design your own garden: Draw a plan with three flower rows in front (like the listening text!), a vegetable patch on one side, potted useful plants in the corners, a central tree circled with painted bricks, and craft items made from waste material. Label every element, name the colour shades used (crimson, jade, sky blue…), and present the design to the class explaining which famous garden inspired each choice.
A Sea of Foliage Girds Our Garden Round
A sea of foliage girds our garden round,
But not a sea of dull unvaried green,
Sharp contrasts of all colours here are seen;
The light-green graceful tamarinds abound
Amid the mango clumps of green profound,
And palms arise, like pillars gray, between;
And o’er the quiet pools the seemuls lean,
Red-red, and startling like a trumpet’s sound.
But nothing can be lovelier than the ranges
Of bamboos to the eastward, when the moon
Looks through their gaps, and the white lotus changes
Into a cup of silver. One might swoon
Drunken with beauty then, or gaze and gaze
On a primeval Eden, in amaze.
— Toru Dutt
Like Canvas of Soil , Toru Dutt’s poem too paints a garden with an artist’s eye — its “sharp contrasts of all colours” are the same living palette of greens, reds and silver that makes a garden Nature’s artwork.
