Spring has sprung, and gardens are in bloom everywhere in Tuscany. Five gardens, in particular, offer visitors the opportunity to admire and pick tulips. Wander and Pick 2024 is a volunteer initiative started seven years ago by the association “Le Tribù della Terra” to rejuvenate green areas close to cities through floriculture, creating widespread gardens using sustainable and organic cultivation techniques.
Visitors can freely access the gardens every day from 3 pm to 7 pm on weekday and from 10:30 am to 7 pm and donate to the organization if they wish to take flowers and bulbs home. This year, Wander and Pick added a new location for everyone to enjoy. The first garden to open was the new location in Calenzano, located in via del Molino, boasting 30,000 flowering tulip bulbs and daffodils of 60 different varieties. Events and workshops will also take place in Calenzano.
Lastra a Signa joined the organization as the third edition. The flowers are usually located in the green area near the historic walls, but this year the River Park was chosen, where 15,000 tulip bulbs were planted. Another location is Sesto Fiorentino, with tulips blooming in the Bardo garden, via Gramsci.
The original location that sparked the idea, Scandicci, opened in the first week of April. A total of 120 thousand flowers were planted to recreate figures inspired by the Etruscan vortices and the drawings of landscape architect Pietro Porcinai. This garden is located in the Temporary Park of the former Cnr, via Galileo Galilei. The last location is the tulip field of Campi Bisenzio, located at via Torricella 111. Another location is located in Piombino, south of Livorno, offering guests to walk through the widespread garden of Rivellino, which runs along the walkways of Leonardo’s walls. There are 30,000 flowers of 60 varieties including tulips, hyacinths and daffodils.
As tulips bloom across Tuscany, Wander and Pick 2024 stands as a testament to community-driven initiatives aimed at enhancing green spaces. Through their dedication to sustainable practices and the beauty of floriculture, they invite visitors to immerse themselves in the vibrant colors and fragrances of these gardens. (Sophia Koch)
