The enchantment of camellias and the first roses at Boboli

These meanwhile are also the last, unmissable days of the camellias at the Boboli Gardens. Open on weekends until 10 May, what was originally the hanging plot where the so-called flowering onions, or hyacinths, tulips and other bulbous species were grown, became an authentic and meticulous garden on the occasion of the wedding between the Grand Prince Ferdinand and Violante of Bavaria in the space that joined the private flats of Prince Mattias de Medici to the park. Past the fountain of the Artichoke sculpted by the Florentine Giovanni Francesco Susini, one finds it in a raised position on the left, concealed by an iron door. Its sinuous, curving shape is interspersed with a frescoed vaulted grotto where water features worked in the late 18th century, and camellias have formed an authentic grove in which to sneak to admire and smell the japonica varieties, in particular the sciantosa Candidissima, dating back to 1830. These are also the most perfumed days to stand in front of the roses and peonies that besiege Baccio Bandinelli's Giove assiso (Seated Jupiter), looking for the cylindrical bronze Fountains of Love by contemporary artist Hossein Golba. Then on foot you can reach the Caffè Todo Modo bookshop, opened in a former antique shop, an alternative meeting and reading place, or the Le Murate Literary Café in the courtyard of the former prison whose recovery was inspired by Renzo Piano.