THE STARTING POINT

Before the area around Trauttmansdorff Castle was transformed into botanical gardens, the site was agricultural land. The slopes were planted with grapevines or overgrown with black locust trees; extensive orchards covered the valley floor.

Partially abandoned agricultural land was incorporated into the garden design. The natural downy oak forest through which walking trails now wind became part of Landscapes of South Tyrol. This incorporation of the existing natural landscape helped to integrate the complex landscaping of the Gardens into the surrounding area.

PLANT ACQUISITIONS

In order to exhibit mature botanical gardens immediately, the Garden team used fully-grown plants. For the natural landscapes, the Gardens used botanical species – rather than cultivated varieties – which are normally not available commercially. The Gardens were able to purchase some trees and shrubs out of collections held by some enthusiastic gardeners in Europe who had been collecting and raising rare plants from around the world for generations.

The planting of the steep terrain on the site with trees up to 12 metres tall necessitated the use of special machinery such as cranes and helicopters. Key plants of up to five tons were delivered using special transport.

The collection of plants has been continually expanded and updated since the Gardens opened in June 2001.

PLANT AND SEED EXCHANGE

Several German botanical gardens made rare trees available to the Gardens of Trauttmansdorff Castle that had become too large for their greenhouses but couldn’t be planted outdoors. After receiving approval from the Province’s Forestry Department, the trees were planted in Landscapes of South Tyrol. Likewise, many of the Mediterranean plants in the Sun Gardens come from the Ente Foresta in Sardinia.

The Gardens have permanent seed exchange programs with several botanical gardens in Europe and throughout the world.

GARDENING

A significant percentage of the Gardens’ surface area is on a grade. This not only limits the use of machinery, but also creates a unique challenge for the Garden team. Where the conditions are extreme – such as on nearly vertical Flowering Clay Wall – the Garden staff must work from a hanging position, as if they are on a climbing wall.

Plants are cultivated for the Gardens at the Laimburg Research Centre for Agriculture and Forestry Nursery in order to ensure consistent quality of the plant material and cost-effective operations over the long term.

WINTERING

At the Gardens of Trauttmansdorff Castle, plants are – for the most part – kept outdoors throughout the year. Two notable exceptions are the succulents and the lemon trees in the Limonaia, which both need effective frost protection; these garden areas are thus completely covered in winter. Frost-sensitive potted plants are wintered in the Nursery greenhouse; other sensitive plants are kept in areas that are well protected from the cold.

ENERGY AND WATER CONSERVATION

The Gardens of Trauttmansdorff Castle is an innovative insitution that looks towards the future: as such it places great emphasis on the responsible use of energy resources and maintaining plants in a way that has virtually no adverse effect on the environment.

An environmentally friendly wood-burning furnace (85kW) and gas plant (900kW) heat the entire Gardens complex including the castle, restaurant and visitors’ center. A new administrative building was recently built according to Klimahaus B standards. The approximately 700-metre-long stream and the three ponds, which total about 15,000 cubic metres of water, are in a closed circuit system. The upper water areas and drip irrigation system draw water from deep wells.

PLANT HEALTH

Trauttmansdorff’s motto for plant protection is “healthy plants in harmony with nature”; sustainability is of the utmost importance. As early as when a plant is being put into the ground, every attempt is made to limit factors that may stress it. The pH-value of the soil, its nutritive elements and the plant’s light requirements are taken carefully into account. In the event that a plant disease strikes, the Garden team addresses it with natural strategies such as beneficial insects or methods of soil improvement such as the use of selected microorganisms and algae extracts. Much emphasis is also places on helping the plant develop resistance to diseases. Fertilisation is mainly done organically, if and when it is necessary.