Wisteria, the plant of friendship
The former residence of the Prince of Antique Dealers, a cultural setting for exhibitions and events
It is said that emperors would take small bonsai wisterias with them on their travels to use as gifts for the inhabitants of foreign lands betokening friendship and benevolence.
An Italian legend tells of a young shepherdess named Glicine (Wisteria in Italian) who, despairing of her looks, began to weep in a field. From her tears there sprang a wonderful plant with beautiful blossom and a heady perfume, the Wisteria. Immersed in the inebriating perfume, the young girl regained her self-confidence and took pride in having proven capable of creating such a wonderful plant.
One of the most beautiful and best-loved climbing plants in the world, the wisteria lives for an astonishingly long time. One of oldest wisterias in Italy is over seven hundred years old and a legend even claims that it served as a source of inspiration for Leonardo da Vinci.
In the language of flowers wisteria symbolises friendship, beauty, longevity and good health.
The Villa Bardini pergola, completed in 2005, is considered one of the finest wisterias in the region.
The main species of wisteria on the pergola are Wisteria floribunda, Japanese wisteria, in the varieties known as Black Dragon with its unique dark purple double flower, Royal Purple, Showa Beni with a pink flower and Wisteria Sinensis Prolific.
Some 70 metres long and 4.6 metres wide, it turns into a highly colourful tunnel when it flowers. From lilac and violet to mauve and pink, the spectacle of the wisteria in flower can be admired at the Giardino Bardini in spring, from April to May. For some years now, when the flowering plant attracts thousands of people from all around the world, the Fondazione has held a contest to select the finest and most representative photographs capturing this moment of splendour.
Wisteria live
Watch the blooming live