Jardin botanique exotique de Menton, Botanical garden in Menton, France
The Jardin botanique exotique de Menton, also called Val Rahmeh, covers 11,000 m² off Avenue St Jacques, 250 m from the sea. Its Italian-Provençal villa has ochre walls, a pale stone base, terracotta roof tiles, blue shutters and three arched openings; a stone basin stands before it. The garden holds about 1,500 taxa, including 400-year-old olive trees and Canary Island date palms along the main path.
A former British governor acquired the estate in 1905 and began developing it into a botanical collection of rare plants. Adjacent farmland was added over time, transforming the property into an important horticultural site on the French Riviera.
The garden's name comes from Rahmeh, the Arabic first name of Lady Radcliffe, wife of the former governor of Malta who bought the estate in 1905. May Bud Campbell, nicknamed "the lady of the daturas", later added many Solanaceae. Today gardeners lead guided tours, and the villa and grounds host temporary exhibitions.
The garden is easy to reach on foot and offers plenty of paths for walking through different plant zones. Visitors should wear comfortable shoes since the pathways are arranged on terraces with steps throughout.
The garden holds some of the last remaining specimens of Sophora toromiro, a tree species originally from Easter Island. These rare trees thrive here thanks to the mild microclimate of the region, which protects them from extreme cold.
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