Italy is an open-air museum and everywhere you look, it is full of little gems, many of which are almost completely unknown. As the Villa Trecci Park, three hectares of park in one of the most beautiful areas of Italy, Montepulciano, in the province of Siena, which became part of the Great Italian Gardens circuit in July 2020.
A garden, that of Villa Trecci, with a tourist route that passes through a forest, a rose garden, a lake, a swamp, a lemon tree, for a total of about 400 different and wonderful plant species.
It is the realization of a dream for the owners, Cinzia and Adelmo Barlesi, who have decided to open the doors of their park to the public, who will be able to admire its incredible beauty, which has nothing to envy of an elegant French garden.
The park is divided into several environments and follows an almost obligatory route. It is divided into two parts by a large bed of grass that, with its sinuous shape like the course of a river, descends towards the aquatic plant lake. Mediterranean essences are grown around this swampy area.
The backbone of the Villa Trecci Park is represented by the centenary olive trees that remind the visitor that they are in Tuscany and not in the garden of a castle in France.
A splendid old brick building, built according to the canons of lemon trees that have always existed in Tuscan villas, protects the lemon greenhouse. It is surrounded by a beautiful garden full of sources where it is pleasant to walk and where, in good weather, various events, concerts and dances are held. In this garden it will be like taking a step back in time.
Above the main cistern that collects rainwater, the only source of water in the park, stands a small house-studio of the landscaping owner, there is a small green library.
“It is a very positive sign,” commented Judith Wade, CEO and founder of Grandi Giardini Italiani, “that this year we have new garden owners who want to be part of the network: precisely now there is strength in numbers. "This month, Italians have shown real interest in visiting gardens, as they regain their freedom of movement outdoors after the period of isolation."
The park is one of the unmissable destinations for those visiting Montepulciano, a pearl of the 16th century, beautiful for its squares, its ancient buildings such as the Palazzo San Donato, the Palazzo Neri-Orselli and the Palazzo Comunale, and its churches. Not far from Montepulciano you can easily reach other famous Tuscan places, such as Pienza, the ideal city of the Renaissance, commissioned by Pope Pius II, declared a World Heritage Site sinceUnesco, which represents a sublime example of how artistic genius can be expressed in the architecture of churches and palaces. He is also known for one of his gastronomic specialties: pecorino.
Continuing the journey through the wonders of the Val d'Orcia, we arrive at San Quirico d'Orcia, a destination that contains some of the most poetic glimpses of Tuscany. It is known for the charming Chapel of the Madonna di Vitaleta, located in a rural area on the outskirts of the town, immortalized in numerous photographs that have become a symbol of the Val d'Orcia. If you loved the garden at Villa Trecci, it is worth taking a walk through. Horti Leonini, an Italian garden designed in the 16th century, whose sacred character is represented by the composition of the hedges and the arrangement of the sculptures.
At the end of the Val d'Orcia lies the village of Montalcino, situated on a hill northwest of Monte Amiata. The town is famous for Brunello, DOCG red wine made exclusively with Sangiovese grapes only in this area. In this town, which still preserves the walls, 13 towers and six entrance gates to the city, it is essential to visit the Rocca, which also houses a wine shop.
In short, if you love this corner of Tuscany, which is located a short distance from destinations that have inspired hundreds of artists over the centuries and that represent the uniqueness of Val di Chiana and Val d'Orcia, there is now a reason. more to visit it.
