On the corner of Via Tumiati and the Via Romana, above the villas and palms, rises a crown that is hard to miss: this is Bordighera’s Canary Island pine, 40 metres tall. It was planted around 1830 in the Moreno Garden, the park that enchanted Claude Monet in 1884, and is considered the tallest Canary Island pine in Europe.
Today it stands in the private garden of Villa Schiva, one of the last fragments of the Moreno Garden. You cannot go in, but there is no need: the tree can be seen perfectly well from the street, and you only have to look up to understand why it is listed in Italy’s official register of monumental trees.
A survivor of the Moreno Garden
In the 19th century much of the hill between the sea and the old town was taken up by the Moreno Garden, the estate of the family of Francesco Moreno, an olive oil merchant and French consul. Alongside the olives and citrus trees of Ligurian tradition grew palms and exotic plants from all over the world, including Canary Island pines. Travel guides of the time described it as one of the most splendid gardens in Europe.
In 1884 Claude Monet, in Bordighera to paint the light of the Riviera, obtained permission to visit it and was spellbound: in his letters to Alice Hoschedé he called it “pure magic”. After Francesco Moreno’s death the estate was divided into lots and cut through by the extension of the Via Romana. A few fragments survive: the Giardini Monet, the park of Villa Mariani with Monet’s olive trees and the garden of Villa Schiva, where the pine has been growing for almost two centuries.
A giant from the Atlantic islands
Pinus canariensis is endemic to the western Canary Islands, where it forms forests on the slopes of the volcanoes, between 600 and 2,000 metres above sea level. It is the largest pine native to the Old World: in its natural habitat it often exceeds 30 metres.
You can recognise it by its long, flexible needles, in bundles of three and up to 30 centimetres long, which hang from the tips of the branches and give the crown a soft, bright green look. The cones, glossy and chestnut-coloured, reach 15–20 centimetres. The bark is thick and, very unusually among conifers, the tree can resprout after a fire. It does, however, fear severe cold: it is Bordighera’s mild climate that has allowed it to grow so large.
Why it is monumental
The pine is listed in the register of monumental trees for its age and size. At 40 metres tall and with a trunk circumference of 390 centimetres it exceeds, according to the Liguria Region’s record, the maximum sizes given in the botanical literature, about 30 metres and 300 centimetres. Recognised by the Region, it entered the national register with the ministerial decree of 4 November 2024, and is one of Bordighera’s seven monumental trees.
Botanical profile
- Scientific name: Pinus canariensis C. Sm.
- Common name: Canary Island pine
- Origin: Canary Islands
- Planted: around 1830, in the Moreno Garden
- Trunk circumference at 1.30 m: 390 cm
- Height: 40 m
- Monumental criteria: age and/or size
- Register code: 06/A984/IM/07
How to see it
The pine is on the corner of Via Tumiati and Via Romana, a few steps from the Giardini Monet. The garden of Villa Schiva is private and cannot be visited, but the tree can be seen clearly from outside.
Nearby
Next to the pine are the Giardini Monet, another fragment of the Moreno Garden. Along the Via Romana you will come across the Museo Bicknell with its wisteria and monumental fig trees, and the Biblioteca Civica Internazionale. To discover the painter’s places, follow the Via Romana through Monet’s eyes; for the town’s most extraordinary trees, the itinerary Gardens and monumental trees, with the araucarias of the Lungomare Argentina.
Frequently asked questions
Where is Bordighera’s Canary Island pine?
On the corner of Via Tumiati and Via Romana, in the garden of Villa Schiva, next to the Giardini Monet.
Can you visit it?
The garden is private and not open to the public, but the pine, 40 metres tall, can be seen perfectly well from the street.
How old is it?
It was planted around 1830 in the Moreno Garden: it is almost two centuries old.
Is it really the tallest in Europe?
It is considered the tallest Canary Island pine in Europe. What is certain is that its measurements, 40 metres tall and 390 centimetres in circumference, exceed those the botanical literature gives as the maximum for the species.
