Book excerpt: Gardens, an important part of Italy’s great artistic heritage, are only too often little known or hard to find. Thanks to this guide, they can now be fully explored, appreciated and admired A complete guide, abundantly illustrated, to all of the gardens, public and private, now open to visitors, gardens that enrich still further the vast cultural heritage of a city and a region beloved by Italy and the whole world. Maps, drawings and botanical descriptions make this guide very helpful to tourists, as well as highly interesting to garden-lovers and experts in the field. The description of each garden is accompanied by historical information on the architects, gardeners, artists and clients who created it, as well as itineraries for enjoying it to the fullest, and all the information needed to plan a visit.