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Winspeare Castle is in the hamlet of Depressa. Dating back to 1300, it was rebuilt at the end of the 1400s and remodelled several times: it still retains its square towers of 1500, the loggia and the access staircase to the rectangular courtyard and the portico added in the XIX century: that was the time when the first member of the Winspeares to arrive in Puglia – Antonio, Duke of Salve – transformed it into a noble residence. It still belongs to that very family.

The garden

The English style garden was created by the first owners and finalized by their descendants; it includes many Chinese roses (Rosa x odorata), a colonnade for vines decorated with lavender (Lavandula spp.), rosemary (Rosmarinus spp.) and jasmine (Jasminium spp.); there’s also a citrus grove, some benches in the corners, and a few stone tables.

Today, there is a great variety of plants growing freely in the garden with very little human help, including almond trees (Prunus dulcis), Peruvian pepper (Schinus molle), Ligustrum spp., agaves, age-old maritime pines (Pinus pinaster), a Libocedrus decurrens surmounted by an impressive wisteria (Wisteria sinensis ), some fruit trees, and a specimen of California laurel (Umbellaria californica).