It has already become a good tradition for the annual opening of a colorful corner of nature called Giardino di Ninfa (Garden of the Nymph). A natural monument this year awaits its guests in the vicinity of Lazio in the last days of March.
Since 2000, the Nymph Garden has attracted thousands of wildlife lovers to its "green" embrace. It is easy to guess that the name of the natural oasis owes its name to the ancient Roman deities - the virgins of the Naiad, who, according to legend, are the patrons of nature and springs. Besides an impressive list of plants growing here, the Cisterna di Latina area, where the Garden is located, is famous for its rich history. According to sources, it was this blooming territory that was presented as a gift to Pope Zechariah by Emperor Constantine in the eighth century.
Later, the Ninfa fortress was built here, which after a couple of centuries turned into a real city, ruled by the famous families of that time - Tuscolo, Frangipani and Caetani. In the 14th century, the fortress was destroyed, and the remains of its ramparts remained part of the local landscape, forever drowning in dense ivy thickets.
So these lands would have been forever forgotten by man, if at one fine moment Cardinal Nicholas III Caetani, who was famous for his weakness for botany, had not become interested in them. It was according to his idea that the first garden was created here, which, after a long oblivion, was revived again only in the 19th century. At the initiative of the noble Ada Wilbraham Bootle, trees uncharacteristic for this area were planted here, new varieties of plants were introduced, and some destroyed buildings were restored.
Today, the Nymph Garden is a real oasis, in which thousands of fruit trees, flowers, rose bushes bloom every spring. Tourists can walk in the shade of exquisite tropical plants (avocado, gunner, banana tree grow here), which were brought from South America. More than 100 species of birds and other representatives of the animal world live here.
Since a visit to the Garden is available on limited days of the year, a tourist is recommended to book a visit in advance by filling out an application on a special website.
