The Exotic Garden

Yesterday was a magnificent sunny day in Bordighera and the exotic garden was a pleasant surprise as well as an original visit. The 6 euros for the visit are well spent and the visit lasts about an hour; you park in the few spaces right at the garden entrance and the visit is self-guided. At the entrance there is a small shop selling succulents, including the beautiful little potted mignon varieties, strange and colourful. I went in at 14:00 because the garden was unusually open during the lunch break, which doesn't always happen during the year. The route is quite well designed; a staircase climbs up the hill and here and there there are terraces and greenhouses to visit, small green spaces and terraces of cacti and succulents such as Aloe Vera. The variety of succulents present is vast and the shapes of the plants are truly curious.

Every now and then you find a bench for a rest, and inside there are no bars or other refreshments. The garden began as a private collection; from the classic cacti we then find others from Mexico, Texas, Argentina, Peru, Bolivia and many others, strange, tall, large, rounded, with flowers, very spiny, and some covered in a strange white fuzz. Besides the cacti there are palms, a few flowering plants that add a touch of colour, prickly pears and the beautiful potted mignon varieties, in the strangest colours and in a greenhouse at 40 degrees. Inside there is a studio where the architect and Dr Pallanca do landscape design work for garden compositions and embellishments; the structure is in harmony with the surrounding environment and the visit is accompanied by the pleasant view of the sea at Bordighera.

From the hill high above the sea you enjoy a beautiful view and some of the terraces are perfect for photographs with bright blue backgrounds. The garden is extraordinarily well kept, cared for, tidy and clean despite being a melting pot of plants and flowers; a dwelling inside is probably the owner's, who lives immersed in this world of succulents under the Ligurian sun, a stone's throw from France. An exotic botanical garden different from the usual and very beautiful, which I recommend especially on a nice sunny day like the one I was lucky enough to have. Bordighera borders Ospedaletti and is near San Remo, on the border with France. At the entrance you will be given a descriptive coupon with explanations of the garden's history and the plants present. There are about 3000 plants, some of them very old; each plant is numbered and its origin and Latin name are indicated.

The various oases found in the garden have strange names, among them: the south walk, the exotic flowerbed, columnar plants, the solitaries, the acclimatisation greenhouse, the compass, and other pleasant spots. The garden is listed among the national sites of artistic and landscape interest, has received awards and honours, and today is the seat of a botanical association. Absolutely worth seeing.

The Giardino Esotico Pallanca is a private botanical garden. With its collection of specimens and the assortment of varieties it is considered the most important exotic park in Italy. For these reasons the Garden has been included by the Ministry for Cultural and Artistic Heritage among the national sites of artistic and landscape interest. The collection of cacti and exotic plants of the Giardino Esotico Pallanca spreads over a sandstone rock slope, the extreme southern slope of the ancient Monte Nero volcano. Terraces have been created with typical Ligurian dry-stone walls. There are about 3000 species making up the collection along a themed route on the slopes. The studio of the Giardino Esotico Pallanca also designs and creates parks, gardens and flowerbeds.

At the garden entrance, collector's and gift specimens of particular little plants produced in the garden are available for sale. Opening hours: in autumn and winter from 9 to 17; in spring and summer from 9 to 12.30 and from 14.30 to 19.00. Closed on Monday morning. Address: Via Madonna della Ruota, 1 18012 Bordighera Telephone: +390(184)266347 Fax: +390(184)261638