Have you ever imagined finding a restored historical heritage garden? This is the challenge that the PhenoGlad Team from the Federal University of Santa Maria (UFSM) accepted when they formed a partnership with the Castle Pedras Altas Association. The entity is responsible for the Assis Brasil Castle, where the 1923 Pact was signed, which ended that year's revolution.
The restoration and modernization of the garden began a month ago and already shows some practical results. The flower beds are filled with blooming perfect love, an annual species of winter and spring. Among the flower beds, the one in front of the building's entrance stands out, bearing the word Lydia, the name of the second wife of diplomat and writer Joaquim Francisco de Assis Brasil, the architect of the castle built at the beginning of the 20th century in the interior of the Gaucho Campaign and inspired by medieval style.
"Delivering this result already at the end of the first month of the partnership is very important for the historical preservation of the site where an important part of Rio Grande do Sul and Brazil's history took place," celebrates Professor Nereu Augusto Streck, national coordinator of the PhenoGlad Team and responsible for the technical and artistic planning of the landscaping.
The UFSM partnership with the Association offers students in the Agricultural Engineering Postgraduate Program the opportunity to get to know a medieval-style garden, as well as contribute to historical rescue and apply professional high-performance landscaping techniques. "The castle is a laboratory of centenarian botanical species from various parts of the planet and is in harmony and connected to the Pampa Biome for over a century," evaluates Nereu.
Castle in the Gaucho Pampa
Diplomat Assis Brasil designed the Pedras Altas Castle to honor his wife Lydia Pereira Felício. Built between 1908 and 1913, the pink granite fortress has 44 rooms and was inspired by medieval style.
In addition to being the site that symbolizes the end of the conflict between Ximangos and Maragatos, the castle in the interior of the Gaucho Campaign region also received distinguished visitors, such as aviator and inventor Santos Dumont.
PhotosTeam PhenoGlad/UFSM
