GIARDINO BOTANICO REA

The Rea Botanical Garden is located in Val Sangone, in the Commune of Trana (TO), about 30 km west of Turin, on an area of about 10,000 square metres and at an altitude of 450 m a.s.l. About 2000 species, varieties and cultivars of plants from Piedmont, Italy and all over the world are cultivated. The Piedmontese species are included in Biotopes, which represent small reconstructed environments: mixed deciduous forest, aquatic environment, limestone and serpentine rock. Two greenhouses with different climates house tropical and succulent plants respectively, while a third greenhouse is dedicated to the collection of carnivorous species and, during the winter, houses delicate species, citrus, fuchsias and pelargoniums. There is an arboretum with rustic ornamental species. Main collections concern the genus Iris, which includes both botanical species, Iris perrieri, Iris sibirica, Iris graminea, etc., and ornamental cultivars, in particular Iris barbate alte. This collection holds historical irises created by Giuseppe G. Bellia himself. Bellia himself and the 'Iris Ladies' (Nita Stross Radicati, Gina Sgaravatti, Mary Senni, Flaminia Specht), in the 1960s, and modern hybridisers, both Italian and foreign. Another collection of ornamental species concerns the genus Fuchsia, with about 20 botanical species and 50 cultivars. Collections of medicinal, aromatic and food species are housed in three flowerbeds and an area is dedicated to the recovery of ancient and historical cereals. An area has been created with plants suitable for attracting and feeding butterflies and useful pollinating insects. In addition, an educational beehive and pollinator insect hotels have been set up to raise visitors' awareness of this important issue.The activities are aimed at the dissemination and study of botany, both for adults and visiting school groups.