Forestiere Underground Gardens
features sunken gardens and underground rooms from ten to 22 feet below
the land's surface. And it was all the work of one man, with just a
pick, shovel, and wheelbarrow! Baldasare Forestiere immigrated to
America in 1901 and bought 80 acres near Fresno, California. The land
turned out not to be great for farming, so he started digging -and kept
digging for 40 years to create his personal Shangri-la.
Forestiere
built nearly 100 rooms, passageways and courtyards with circular holes
above to allow a variety of plants and fruit-bearing trees to take root
in large planters and protrude through the openings at ground level.
Over a period of 40 years, he excavated oasis spans over 10 acres (all
in his spare time).
When Forestiere died in 1946, the
gardens, which included his own underground living quarters, passed to
his descendants, and are open for tours today. See plenty
more pictures of the gardens and underground home at Messy Nessy Chic.
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