Orto Botanico dell'Università di Torino

About

The Orto Botanico dell'Università di Torino (2.6 hectares) is a botanical garden and arboretum operated by the Dipartimento di Biologia Vegetale of the University of Turin. It is located in the Parco del Valentino along the Po River, at Viale Pier Andrea Mattioli, Turin, Italy, and open weekends and holidays during the warmer months; an admission fee is charged. The garden's origins can be traced as far back as 1560, when collections of live plants were established at the Studio di Mondovì, which moved to the university in 1566.

Today's garden dates to 1713, when Victor Amadeus II of Sardinia established the Orto Regio. With establishment in 1729 of the university's chair in botany, held by G.B. Caccia, it legally became a part of the university.

Between 1730 and 1731 the garden was laid out in a geometric plan of flowerbeds within the Castello del Valentino's existing garden area (approximate 6800 m2), within which Caccia planted about 800 species. By 1762 some 1200 species were in cultivation. In 1796 Victor Amadeus III of Sardinia donated areas west and north of the castello, bringing the garden's area to somewhat larger than its current extent.

By 1810 the garden contained about...