The Aqua Augusta, an aqueduct built by Octavian (63 BC–AD 14; later known as Augustus, the first emperor of the Roman Empire), was completed in the late first century BC and provided an uninterrupted supply of pressurized water to eight towns around the bay, including Pompeii. The arrival of a constant source of running water in these cities allowed residents to design and grow more elaborate gardens. Gardeners were able to accentuate their landscape designs with springs, water courses, pools, and fountains modeled after Greek statuary. Residents also cultivated crops, and some large gardens included orchards. Pomegranates, figs, chestnuts, and pears were commonly grown, as were violets, roses, and hyacinths. Other plants and flowers common.
