Ferdinando learned mathematics and obtained the qualification of engineer. He studied the basin of Arno river and its devastating floods. In 1768 he drew an accurate map of the Grand Duchy of Tuscany.

In 1770 he published a treatise about country houses. He wrote which the houses had to be constructed thinking about the environmental (mountain, hill and plain) and cultural differences; the houses should have built at the center of the farm, with walls to store warmth and a good number of spacious, bright