Il Giardino Clarence Bicknell, Bordighera

The Bicknell Museum Garden offers an unexpected and lush oasis of peace, but also an opportunity for knowledge, in the heart of Bordighera, close to Via Romana.

Two gigantic Ficus macrophylla, an Australian melaleuca, African palms and South American jacarandas are some of the plants that botanist and passionate naturalist Clarence Bicknell wanted to place in his museum garden following, perhaps, the dream of reviving, in Bordighera, a part of that overseas world he knew in his youth and recreating, in terms of landscaping, a garden with monumental effects.

Through a short botanical tour, supported by specific signage and illustrative totems, the Garden now offers visitors an opportunity to learn about some of the fascinating exotic plants acclimated to the Riviera. One can discover the region of origin of the different species, their scientific name, the area of origin, and inquire about their ancestral, and sometimes secret, relationships with humans.

Ficus macrophylla, also called ficus magnolioide because of the oval-elliptical shape of their leaves or Moreton Bay ficus, are majestic trees from Australia, renowned for their impressive growth and bearing, extraordinary giants of the plant world that, with their long, outstretched branches and spectacular aerial roots, build true living monuments. The first specimen one encounters, at the entrance to the garden, has developed vigorous, sprawling roots that come to meet visitors along Bicknell Street, following and adding to the perimeter wall, engulfing the once graceful gate and embracing the palms. Other adventitious roots, descending from above like lianas, have created spectacular supporting columns that give the place a striking and unique appearance.

Among the many botanical species in the garden, it also hides a centuries-old, mysterious plant that is rare for the botanical parks of the Riviera and Côte Azur. It is a specimen of Apollonias barbujana (Cav.) Bornm., better known as “Ebano delle Canarie” (Canary Island Ebony,) a tree endemic to the flora of Macaronesia, a group of several archipelagos in the North Atlantic Ocean located off the coast of Africa.

Source: http://www.museobicknell.com/il-giardino