page created 21st September 2007
As the town notice proudly proclaims, this is 'The Village of the Citruses'. It even has a street called 'Alley of the Orange trees'!
Although Tuscany is generally considered too cold in winter to grow any citrus outside, the micro-climate of this south-facing hillside village allows them to thrive - and they have done so since at least the fifteenth century, and probably much earlier.
Alley of the Orange Trees.
  Melarance from the latin malum aurantium meaning golden apples
I visited Buggiano Castello in September 2007. Although I missed the public opening of the so-called 'secret gardens', I still managed to see plenty of citrus trees through the gates, over the walls, and in many public places. Even the war memorial was shaded by fruiting orange trees.
To locate the village see my interactive map of Tuscany.
See also the official website at http://www.borgodegliagrumi.it
War Memorial with orange tree
A fruiting grapefruit tree
huge citron
espaliered citrus along the walls of an olive grove
Oranges amongst the terraced plants
espaliered lemons in pots
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