So, you would think that being the most densely populated country in the world as well as being built on rocky cliffs would mean few trees and little greenery, right? WRONG!
First off, having a fantastically mild Mediterranean climate means that all sorts of plants will grow, given space. One just needs to find that space - and the people of Monaco seem to be fantastic at it!
If you look closely at the picture above, you will see that many of the buildings have rooftop gardens. I was blown away at some of the roof gardens I saw - some of them were garden courtyards complete with good sized trees!
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| Yep, this is a roof garden! |
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| Can you spot the trees on top of the high rise on the left? |
They didn't even stop at rooftops in Monaco. Many apartment balconies had planters, and some windowless places even had living, green walls.
Even the rocky cliffs were pretty green, with plants growing in nooks and crannies.
It was rather funny to see the familiar Dusty Miller growing like weeds in cliff crevices. (No wonder that plant grows so well for me - it's really a weed in disguise!)
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| Dusty miller and a pretty yellow wildflower growing on the side of a cliff |
Monaco also dedicates several areas to gardens and public green areas. Many of the paths along the edge of the cliff are surrounded by public park areas.
No, this picture is not crooked - in this sloped area all of the trees are leaning... Some trees are leaning so much they need support.
I love how this country really takes care of its gardens and strives to add greenery in such a populated area. There must be many devoted gardeners in Monaco - plants seem to be squeezed in wherever possible.
And the next post will focus on some of the exquisite public gardens in Monaco!
They have really used ever square inch of space to make it green! I love all the roof top gardens and living walls.
ReplyDeleteFantastic! It's hard to imagine how those rooftop trees have enough space for roots. What a magical place!
ReplyDeleteWOW! So beautiful, I will have to put this on my bucket list, lol!
ReplyDeleteSo many people in our country have large yards and acreage but in Europe gardening space can be limited. It is truly amazing to find the gardens people have created in that limited space...some are so beautiful.
ReplyDeleteI love how they plant gardens on top of everything! Trees even!! The rooftops must be very, very strong. I wonder if the building code automatically accounts for that.
ReplyDeleteI love that tunnel!
ReplyDeleteI wonder if we had the shortage of space, then we'd find more ways to have gardens like those? I still like my long walks, but those rooftop and wall gardens are nice. I'll bet it is like most beautiful things, you'd have to be there to really see the intricate beauty of it all.
ReplyDeleteOh groan ....holiday snaps...groan...BUT WAIT! These are fab. Amazing to see gardening in other places, we should all learn lessons from the people of Monaco xx
ReplyDeleteI so envy tour trip. You took some amazing shots of Monaco. Love that they value the greenscape.
ReplyDeleteThe plant covered tunnel makes me wish our municipalities would get more creative in greening public spaces. It is bleak here in winter, some evergreens would cheer the place up no end.
ReplyDeleteIndia!
ReplyDeleteI am happy that I met you.
I'm so glad.
Lucia