The Cagliari Botanical Garden, inaugurated in November 1866, is recognized as one of Sardinia’s seven historic gardens. The garden, whose area is about 5 hectares, stands on an archaeological area between the Roman Amphitheater, the Capuchin Garden and the so-called Villa of Tigellio.
Its founder, Patrizio Gennari, intended to create a “model garden” for the purpose of acclimatizing exotic tropical plants, an arboretum that could collect a rich plant heritage from the farthest geographic areas of the planet. Gennari’s work was continued by his successors, and today the collection numbers about 2,000 specimens, with sections collecting a wide range of exotic and local species. The plant ensemble is enhanced by an advanced Biodiversity Conservation Center that provides protection for numerous Sardinian endemics.
Gennari’s “vision” proves more relevant today than ever before. In a world where migrations, contaminations and integrations between local and exotic elements change geographies and communities through welcome, exchange and peaceful coexistence, the botanical garden constitutes a “planetary garden” capable of aggregating differences and generating life and beauty from migratory movements.
