Just in front of Piazza San Marco, scarcely veiled by a couple of mighty pines, the so-called Giardinetti Reali, the green heart of Venice is located. If we consider the Piazza “the heart of Venice”, the Giardinetti, reopened in winter 2019, represent its green add-on, or rather, a pleasant and relaxing spot where to spend an hour enjoying the greens and perhaps plan your visit of the Piazza, seated on one of the inviting benches, or at the coffeehouse located in the corner. And in the last week of October, the gardens, whose careful restoration took five years, looked like this.

With the exception of All Saints Day, the last days of October were relatively mild, as you can make out in the image above. Lilies act as borders to the gravel paths criss-crossing the gardens. And there are archways covered with climbing plants, mostly wisteria and pink bignonia. Under the archways, the shade-loving hydrangeas have found a favorite spot. And there are many wooden benches inviting visitors to stay for a while and take in the lush environment.

The garden architect Paolo Pejrone, who supervised the botanical restoration of the Giardinetti, introduced 22 tall trees, 832 shrubs, 6560 herbaceous plants, 3150 bulbs and 68 vines, adding to the existing shrubbery.

An intervention which required “courage, and a mix of conservation and renewal, choosing plants carefully in view of the delicate ecosystem of the city. Just imagine that the plants must be hardy to survive occasional high tides, in particular, in early autumn. The choice therefore fell on plants that do not need irrigation during summer, characterized by “robust and strong” roots.

A view of the new coffee house in the corner, inside a neoclassical structure, which also re-opened on 23 December 2019. In the image on the right below, you can see it in the corner.

Discover more views and stories of Venetian gardens in our upcoming Garden in Venice Book!

Iris Loredana