File:LED landscape symbol kia jpg2.jpg

Iran (Persia) is one of the most important countries in the Middle East. It has a very long tradition of garden-making, though no one can be sure quite how long. Because it bestrides the cross-roads between the Middle East and Asia, Iran has had a turbulent history. Zoroastrianism was a religion of settlers, as opposed to nomads, and the early Zoroastrians undoubtedly had vegetable gardens. It is probable that they also made aesthetic gardens but little is known about Zoroastrian art. The earliest surviving Persian layouts are the palace estates of Passargadae and Persepolis. After the conquest of Persia by Islam, the paradise garden became established and the Islamic gardens east of Persia, in Samarkand, Afganistan and India were largely the work of Persian garden designers and craftsmen