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- A plot of land, usually belonging to a
- householder. It can be cultivated to produce
- food or to create pleasant surroundings.
- Pleasure gardens were common in all ancient
- civilizations. In medieval Europe gardens
- were devoted to growing medicinal plants and
- herbs but in the 16th century formal
- recreational gardens became a feature of
- larger town and country houses. The taste for
- formality continued into the 19th century,
- when a more natural look became fashionable.
- Most 18th-century rural workers had vegetable
- gardens and the practice was continued
- wherever possible in the new industrial
- towns. The miniature landscaped garden with
- lawns and flowerbeds became a feature of
- 20th-century housing estates in Europe and
- the USA.
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