Valderia Botanical Garden

Botanical garden since the nineteenth century

The Valderia Botanical Garden of the Alpi Marittime Park is located in Terme di Valdieri and is a jewel of multicoloured nature where step by step you can "browse" the large catalogue of botanical species of this corner of the Alps.
A catalogue of common, rare and in some cases endemic plants such as the Valdieri violet (Viola valderia) which gives its name to the garden. This small flower was found for the first time among the stony banks of the Gesso in 1780 by Carlo Allioni, an illustrious Piedmontese botanist. The place is particularly scenic also due to the paths dating back to the nineteenth century, a period in which the English Garden was built for the guests of the nearby spa to walk in.
After more than two centuries on the site of its discovery, in 1990, the Park set up Valderia. Moreover, Valderia is the only alpine botanical garden that can boast of hosting the locus classicus of a species, as botanists call the spot where a plant was first found.
Today the park offers more, thanks to the presence of a nature trail (one kilometre long with a height gain of 60 metres) that allows you to better appreciate the environment and biodiversity present.

A walk of discovery

The nature trail in its initial stretch connects the Park's visitor and information centre with the entrance to the botanical garden along the wooden walkway, set up to allow the disabled to use the upper part of the Terme area.
Once you reach the ticket office, the path enters the botanical garden and climbs through the charming mixed forest of silver fir that characterizes the low slopes of Rocca di San Giovanni.
The total length of the route is 1 kilometre and has an elevation gain of 60 metres while the walk takes about an hour.
Along the way, a series of information panels have been put up at observation points to better interpret the peculiarities of the surrounding environment and the rich biodiversity that characterizes these places.

The limestone rocks are home to calciphilous plants that vegetate on the sedimentary rocks of the lower Gesso Valley and the Ligurian Alps.

The riverbed is colonized by herbaceous plants, which are adapted to stony and unstable soils; the larch forest also has a strong pioneering aptitude, it mainly covers the dry, sunny slopes between 1200 and 2500 metres.

The "megaforbieto" is an association of tall broad leaved plants found in moist, cool areas.

In the meadow there are species that benefit from manuring and periodic mowing; These plant associations, dominated by forage species, are found at the entrance to the valleys, at lower altitudes.

The spring is home to species typical of water outcrops, in particular mosses and ferns.

In the undergrowth the beech forest there are mainly plants that need abundant humus and that bloom before the trees are in full leaf.

Among the rocks and debris of the siliceous rock we find many of the exclusive endemic species of the Maritime Alps. Beyond the tree line, you can observe the typical species of alpine grassland.

In the peat bog, a depression in the ground where spring water or snow melt water collects, there are plants that live with the root system in contact with water. This is also a typical environment on shallow lake edges. The soil, rich in peat, favors the growth of sedges, rushes and eriophores.

The shrubbery is made up of woody plants that grow as bushes.

In the Maritime Alps, gias (from the Latin iacere) refers to an animal pen, an area where cattle were usually kept to rest. The few species present are those able to withstand the high concentrations of nitrogen due to the accumulation of animal manure.

Along the banks of the stream, plants grow in wetlands characterized by the flow of surface water.

In mixed fir, the prevailing species is the silver fir, that prefers a soil rich in nutrients and high atmospheric humidity. Along with silver fir, spruce and larch are found.
The vegetation of the undergrowth is scarce, due to the acidification produced by the needles of the conifers that accumulate on the ground.

Nature and inclusion

In order not to deprive anyone of the beauty of the gardens, in 2021, Valderia Agil was created, a route designed for those with mobility difficulties and which makes a part of Valderia accessible via a wooden walkway. The work was part of a collaboration with the Lions Club, the 'L Caprissi club and the Marta Bassino Fan club and connects to another looping route (about 400 metres) for wheelchairs equipped with panels on nature, landscape and culture of the area.