Boboli Garden |
by Ilaria Gelichi
Today I’m
going to write a little about Florentine gardens. Florence
has a lot of green areas: some gardens are big and famous, like Boboli Garden ,
others are less known but not less charming.
Let’s start
with the well-known ones and then we will discover the “hidden” ones.
Boboli is
one of the biggest gardens in Florence
(45000 m2 )
and it is linked with Palazzo Pitti, the ancient residence of the Medici
family. The first project of Boboli was done by Niccolò Pericoli during the 16th
century, then modified during the 18th and 19th century,
becoming as we admire it today. Boboli has a lot of statues inside it and for
this reason – but also for its architecture - could be considered an open-air
museum. It is one of the best examples of Italian garden, which mixes landscape
with architecture, creating an amazing union of colours and shapes.
Price: Euro 3
Parco delle Cascine
This park
was property of the Medici family and was bought for cattle breeding and as
shooting ground. In 1786 Giuseppe Manetti started some renovation works to turn
Cascine into a big public park, enriched with architecture and decorations: Fontana delle Boccacce
for example, or the pyramid that had function of icebox.
Located on
the right bank of the river Arno, it is the biggest park in Florence ; Florentines go here during weekends
to jogging or walking.
Price: free
“Garden of
roses”, this is the meaning of the name of this garden, created by Florence municipality
between Viale delle Rampe and Via delle Croci. It has been one of the glories
of the Florentine horticultural tradition for decades and a nice detour during
a stroll on the Viale dei Colli. In
1998 it was enriched with an “international area”: a Japanese garden “Shorai”,
donated to Florence by the city of Kyoto and the Zen temple
“Kodai-Ji”. It is worth a visit, especially in May when the roses bloom.
Price: free
Giardino dell’Iris
This garden
can be reached driving on the Viale dei Colli, and the entrance is on the left
side of Piazzale Michelangelo. It can be visited during the month of May, when
the irises – the symbol of the city of Florence
– bloom. The garden is home to more than 2000 varieties of this flower, which
is widespread in the Arno valley and painted in red on the emblem of Florence . The iris (or
lily) is frequent in Florentine decorations, in the past as nowadays – it was
on the first silver coins and then on the golden fiorino.
Price: free
Giardino di Villa Bardini |
Giardino di Villa
Bardini
This garden
has been recently restored, after several years of neglect and decay. For this
reason, it is not well-known yet but it can be defined a little piece of
paradise on the hill which from Costa S. Giorgio goes down to the river Arno . From here it is possible to admire the Duomo’s
dome, Palazzo Vecchio and S. Croce church. Admiring the beauty of Florence is not the only
thing to do in this garden: there are frequent exhibitions and a restaurant
with a terrace, open for lunch and dinner.
Price: Euro 6
Giardino di Palazzo
Corsini al Prato
You would
not expect to find such an enchanting place only a couple of steps from the
crowded and congested Porta al Prato. Palazzo Corsini was designed by
Buontalenti in the 16th century, commissioned by Alessandro
Acciaiuoli - a nobleman with a passion for botany who wanted a villa with a
great park inside the city. The garden of the palace is full of lemon trees,
flowers and trees and during the visit it is possible to meet some turtles,
free to wander in the garden. It is home to 180 citrus plants and has 3 big limonaias.
Price: Euro 5
Giardino dei Semplici |
Giardino dei Semplici
This garden
was founded in 1545 by Cosimo de’ Medici and is the third more ancient
botanical garden (after the ones of Pisa
and Padova). Half of its area is occupied by “hot” and “cold” greenhouses, with
plants from all over the world (more than 6000). At open air there are trees,
vegetables and medicinal plants; the collection is enlarged every year.
Price: Euro 4