It was a prestigious opening for what has become an international attraction and a benchmark in the field of botanics for its landscape value, so much so that in 2010 it became part of the prestigious circle of the International Camellia Society’s Gardens of Excellence. At the time of its opening, the park was home to approximately 500 camellias that – thanks to the relationships forged at the congress and the exchanging of unusual varieties with growers from Italy, Germany, Belgium, USA and China – have now become almost 1,000!
In the summer, the sun, which struggles to climb over the mountains on this side of the lake during winter, floods the area, bathing in light the hill that is home to the Gambarogno Botanical Park, which covers a total area of 20,000m2. Here the gardener Otto Eisenhut has created a park that today contains 950 varieties of camellia and more than 450 varieties of magnolia, alongside azaleas, rhododendrons, pines, junipers, ivy, exotic firs and varieties that are rare in Europe. Thanks to this vast range of plants, during the flowering period the park becomes a riot of incredible colours, fragrances and sensations. It is a daydream, dreamt by a man and pursued over the years with love and dedication.
In spring, the region is tinged with a thousand colours brought even more to life by the reflection of the sun on the water, and the towns are set off by a floral frame that gets them ready for summer. The lakeside gardens in Locarno and the Monte Verità park in Ascona, to name only a few of the region’s many options, become a spectacle that can’t help but catch the eye. Capture your spring with a single image and share it on social media with the hashtag #myasconalocarno. Don’t forget to tag us!
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