Villa Balbianello Garden

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Villa Balbianello dates back to the end of the XVIII century. It was built by Cardinal Angelo Maria Durini. The villa is located at the end of a promontory overlooking Lake Como.

The garden is built on terraces and is dominated by a three-arched loggia which stands out on the highest point of the promontory; thanks to its elevated position, it’s possible to admire both views of the lake.
The peculiar morphology of the land prevented the creation of a formal Italian or romantic English park. For this reason, the terraced garden – the only solution available – stands out as a most unique and peculiar creation which perfectly integrates with the lake landscape, in a fairytale-like atmosphere forgotten by the time. Some romantic scenes of a Star Wars episode were, in fact, filmed right there.

PLANTS

Starting from the churchyard, visitors can walk to the top of the promontory along an avenue that features large candelabra-pruned plane trees alternated with statues and wisteria (Wisteria sinensis). The steep meadows are surrounded by boxwood hedges (Buxus sempervirens) and bay laurel (Laurus nobilis).

It’s absolutely worth mentioning the beautiful specimens of larches (Larix decidua), magnolias (Magnolia grandiflora), and cypresses (Cupressus sempervirens) distributed along the park, as well as important specimens of rhododendron, which bloom abundantly in the spring.

This post is also available in: Italiano (Italian)