Countess Park

The large park was created as a private asset annexed to the Dentice di Frasso Castle, between 1906 and 1930. Countess Elisabetta Schlippenbach and her husband, Count Alfredo Dentice di Frasso, wanted to embellish their home with a park for their leisure, for the recreation of the guests, for horse or carriage rides; the project was elaborated by the Leccese botanist Francesco Ingrosso. The design idea is clear and responds to the wishes of the clients: a park designed in the 'Italian' way, which recalls, on a small scale, the games of symmetry and proportion typical of the sumptuous European residences of Versailles, Caserta, Schönbrunn; structured as an integral part of the castle, through pedestrian paths distributed according to a design that can still be read from above. An experimental botanical garden is organized in the upstream area, where research is carried out on ornamental plants with tall and low trunks and on native fruit trees; excellent production results are achieved in the cultivation of the Roman artichoke and a particular variety of cherry. The historic residence and its park are frequented by illustrious personalities, such as Guglielmo Marconi, a frequent guest of the Dentice di Frassos, after whom Countess Elisabetta named the main avenue. The Park stands on land characterized by the widespread presence of Mediterranean scrub and secular olive trees, still surviving elements. Conceived as an appendix to the manor, the project takes advantage of the natural orographic slope to create spectacular panoramic perspectives. Originally (around 1920), a long central axis perpendicular to the castle divided the whole area affected by the intervention into two symmetrical parts with an irregular trapezoidal shape. Other secondary paths are arranged perpendicular to the first, distinguishing themselves hierarchically by a smaller section.