The Caneva Gardens are special because they are not just a simple park, but a experimental and immersive botanical garden Born from the passion of botanist and landscape designer Enrico Caneva, they are located near the historic center of Sarzana, within a historic area of ancient vegetable gardens.
The most peculiar things are:
- A very large botanical collection: they host approximately 15.000 plants of 2500 species coming from different parts of the world, with a particular focus on biodiversity and less common species.
- Thematic itineraries dedicated to continents and ecosystems, for example Australian, South African, Chilean, Patagonian, Himalayan, Japanese and Asian flora, as well as sections dedicated to prehistoric plants.
- The “Scented Path”, one of the most original parts: it collects around 800 species linked to natural perfumery, including many ancient French perfume roses from the 19th century.
- A more natural than ornamental approach: the plants are left to grow with limited intervention, enhancing their shapes, scents and natural cycles instead of creating a garden that is too “domesticated”.
- An experience closer to a botanical trip than a traditional visit: the itineraries also tell stories of exploration, the history of the gardens, colors, scents, and the relationship between man and nature.
But probably the most special thing to see is the Podocarpus collection, a collection dedicated to a group of prehistoric conifers belonging to the genus Podocarpus (Podocarpaceae family).
Podocarpus are very interesting plants because:
- They are “living fossils” from an evolutionary point of view: their group has very ancient origins and many Podocarpaceae were already present when the continents and climates were very different from the current ones.
- They come mainly from the Southern Hemisphere: Podocarpus species grow in areas such as South America, southern Africa, Australia, New Zealand, and southeast Asia.
- They look different from classic conifers: they often have narrow, flat leaves, more similar to those of some broadleaf trees, and produce fleshy, colorful reproductive structures (often called “false fruits”).
- They are important for the study of plant evolution: in the Caneva Gardens they are placed alongside other ancient gymnosperms such as Ginkgo, Araucaria and other conifers to tell the story of vegetation on Earth.
The collection is therefore special not so much for the spectacular nature of its flowers (Podocarpus do not bloom like roses or ornamental plants), but because it allows us to witness firsthand a branch of plant evolution that dates back to distant geological eras. In the Caneva Gardens, the gymnosperm section includes numerous conifer species and is part of a project to reconstruct the flora of eras such as the Carboniferous, Jurassic, and Cretaceous.
To visit the Caneva Gardens, find out the opening days and times, and have an overview of everything you can see, consult this site.
Image source: Caneva Gardens/Facebook
Read also:
- The greenest cities in the world
- The 10 most beautiful gardens in Italy
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