Gardens of Villa Taranto
Among the places of interest of Lago Maggiore not to be missed are definitely the Gardens of Villa Taranto, known throughout the world for their beauty and the richness of the floral species they host.
The Gardens of Villa Taranto are located in Verbania, in the north-eastern part of the Castagnola promontory, on the Piedmontese shore of Lago Maggiore, between the towns of Pallanza and Intra.
The particularity of this place is not given by the Villa itself, today not open as the seat of the Prefecture of the new Province, but just by the adjoining gardens that harmoniously cover an area of about 16 hectares, able to host botanical essences even among the rarest in the world that give visitors endless shades of color from the most intoxicating perfumes. A unique floral paradise in the world: eucalyptus, azaleas, rhododendrons, magnolias, maples, camellias, dahlias, tulips, lotus flowers, heathers, dwarf stars, Oertensis, numerous tropical plants and many more. There is something for everyone!
The present appearance of the Gardens of Villa Taranto is not the result of spontaneous nature, but is the result of a laborious study undertaken by Captain Mc Eacharn.
Of Scottish origins, the Captain arrived in Italy still young, ready to cultivate his great interest in botany. From 1928 he started looking for land that lent themselves to the realization of a large garden and bought from the Marquise of Sant'Elia the property called "La Crocetta" located in Pallanza on the promontory of Castagnola. So he began to realize his dream, respecting aesthetic and botanical requirements that allowed him to create a real jewel of botany and natural beauty. He collected plants and seeds from every corner of the earth, thus creating very rare collections.
Among the most important works that are due to Captain Mc Eacharn remember: the "Valletta", built after massive excavation; the irrigation system, whose water is pumped directly from the lake into a large reservoir and then be irradiated throughout the property; the "Terraced gardens", with their waterfalls, pools, pools for water lilies and lotus flowers; the "Winter Garden" and the "Marsh Garden". There are ornamental fountains with water features that give surreal emotions. The Captain saw his garden grow, which he named Villa Taranto, in memory of his ancestor, Marshal Mcdonald, appointed Duke of Taranto by Napoleon. In 1939 Captain Mc Eacharn, having no direct heirs, decided to donate the entire property to the Italian state, in exchange for obtaining permission to be buried in the mausoleum located in the center of the park.
Today the botanical heritage of the Gardens of Villa Taranto includes about 1,000 non-native plants and about 20,000 varieties and species of particular botanical value.
Since 1952 the Gardens are open to the public generally from April to October. The visit is free along an itinerary indicated by progressive numbers in which all the plants are catalogued and named. For a complete and quiet visit to the Gardens of Villa Taranto calculate a couple of hours.
In the dahlias season, which runs from July to October, you will be enchanted in the "Labyrinth of the Dahlias", where over 1700 flowering plants offer a game of colors, sizes and shapes that has no comparison.
We also remind you of the tulip season, which falls about in the month of April: for the occasion the garden is lit with a thousand colors of over 80,000 bulbs in bloom, among which the undisputed protagonist is the tulip. In the "Labyrinth of the tulips" are planted over 65 varieties with 20.000 corollas in flower among which it is possible to admire the much sought after black tulip "Queen of night" and the imposing "Big Chief", with a diameter of the corolla of almost 10 cm.
The influx of visitors now exceeds 150,000 people per year: come from all over the world and it is not only tourists or curious but also scholars and lovers of botany attracted by the interesting variety of plants and flowers or perhaps eager to study more closely rare specimens such as the "Dicksonia Antarctica" and the "Davidia Involucrata" which due to the peculiar white flowering is called "tissue tree". Another much sought after species is the "Victoria Cruziana", queen of the aquatic plants native to the areas of the great river basins of South America (Paraguay and Argentina), which since 1956 has found its natural habitat in the "Serra dei Giardini Botanici" of Villa Taranto.
