Castello di San Pelagio

The imprint given in 1700 by a forefather Roberto Zaborra is still legible. He introduced surprising and bizarre natural elements in a search for harmony. The show garden, or proprietor's garden, with 200 rose varieties, about 1000 plants, is the fruit of thirty years of resolute hunting amongst nurseries throughout Europe. Among them, the 'Aviateur Blériot' rose, named after the 1909 cross Channel pilot. Bushes of yucca and groups of 'Hana Kisoi' tree peonies as well as a profusion of English roses are planted around the central basin with waterlilies.

The Secret Garden offer a rich collection of trees and shrubs: cypresses, yews, ancient limes, an aged lagerstroemia, a lanky old persimmon bearing a huge quantity of fruit, viburnums, hibiscus, oleanders, lemon verbena, clematis, jasmines, lavenders, passion fruit and more roses. An avenue of ancient hornbeams, pruned to form a tunnel, leads from the show garden. From the top there is a view over the antique fish pond and the field from which D'Annunzio and the Venetian squadron left for their famous flight over Vienna on the morning of August 9th 1918. There are two planted mazes: “Minotaur Maze” recalling the myth of Icarus and therefore the history of flight, the theme of the museum; the “Maybe yes and maybe no” maze recalling the name of the famous story by D'Annunzio. In March 2013 a third Labyrinth has been inaugurated, dedicated to Africa. Nowadays the Villa is an Aviation Museum and there is also a “Heroes' Avenue” in the gardens with “aeronautical plants” such as the laurel dedicated to D'Annunzio in memory of his great poetic work and an ash dedicated to the Count from Schio who used its wood to construct his airships.