Pistoia, the capital of green

From the moment you arrive in Pistoia , it seems as if you are in a city wrapped in a green blanket. This image is not just a modern suggestion, but is rooted in a centuries-old tradition that has made Pistoia famous for its cultivation and nursery gardening. As far back as the Middle Ages, there were gardens within Pistoia’s city walls dedicated to the cultivation of ornamental plants, so it can be said that the tradition of Pistoia’s nursery industry has its roots in ancient times. By the Renaissance, an advanced agrarian system had developed in Pistoia: the territory, properly reclaimed, was rich in agricultural villages, farms, and extensive cultivation that covered the Pistoian plain and the Valdinievole and remained the main economic activity of these lands for centuries. Pistoia was for centuries linked to its agricultural production, although it was only from the middle of the nineteenth century, however, that nursery gardening, and in particular ornamental nursery gard ening in which the territory began to invest, in fact, in the nineteenth century, when this activity began to become an element around which the entire economy of Pistoia and its surroundings was structured.

In the 1870s, nursery gardening began to develop in a more organized way, with pioneers such as Antonio Bartolini, who, according to tradition, was Pistoia’s first nurseryman: he was a gardener who decided to dedicate one of his plots of land on the road leading to Lucca to this activity, thus founding one of the first modern nurseries, in 1849. This period marked the beginning of a long success story, which had one of its climaxes in theEsposizione Pistoiese d’Orticoltura of 1851, which was able to receive the appreciation of the Grand Duke of Tuscany. The publication of the first catalog, in 1865, published in postcard form (it was a forerunner of modern plant price lists), was an important step toward promoting and marketing the industry. In the early decades of the twentieth century, nurseries expanded beyond the city walls, occupying hundreds of hectares and creating a green belt around Pistoia, the one we still see today as one approaches the city, whichever way one travels to get there. Nursery farming focused on fruit and ornamental plants, becoming a significant economic activity, the activity that we still most easily associate with the name of Pistoia today. Despite difficulties caused by events such as frosts and wars, the industry continued to grow. The 1960s, then, marked a boom for Pistoia’s nursery industry, with the expansion of cultivated territories and the establishment of Pistoia as a nursery business at the European level. Today, Pistoia is known as the “green capital,” with a district that occupies more than five thousand hectares of nurseries and an annual production of millions of plants, exported to more than fifty countries. The city is a point of reference for nurserymen, landscapers and green architects from all over the world. And Pistoia’s nursery tradition is not only a source of local pride but also a significant contribution to the Italian economy and culture.

The nearby Valdinievole, which the Montalbano mountain range divides from the Pistoia plain, is less affected by this nursery tradition, but greenery is nonetheless the element that best characterizes the landscape of this portion of the province as well as the rest of the territory. The Padule di Fucecchio, Italy’s largest inland wetland and a paradise for biodiversity, is located here. Here the streams flow amid hilly landscapes planted with olive trees and flowers, creating a relaxing environment rich in life, and convincing the eye to travel as far as the medieval villages of the “Svizzera Pesciatina”, or the Valleriana, the mountainous region north of Pescia (for centuries considered the capital of the Valdinievole) that the Swiss historian and economist Jean Charles Léonard Simone de Sismondi, who settled in Pescia itself in the early 19th century, was reminded of his native town, for the villages clinging to the mountains (there are ten, those of the Svizzera Pesciatina: Aramo, Castelvecchio, Fibbialla, Medicina, Pietrabuona, Pontito, San Quirico, Sorana, Stiappa and Vellano), for the outlines of the mountains that grip the valley, for the calm of these places. Further down, the spas of Montecatini and Monsummano are also immersed in a verdant natural setting: parks that invite regeneration, Monsummano’s Grotta Giusti that represents an underground wonder (a unique thermal karst cavity nestled in the woods), lush nature surrounding the two cities.

Every corner of the province of Pistoia seems to pulsate with a life infused with greenery that manifests itself in the parks, countryside, mountains, forests, vineyards, olive groves, and protected areas. Going up toAbetone, one finds oneself immersed in dense forests of beech and silver fir. Here, botanical gardens and nature reserves preserve rare species and offer trails through pristine mountain landscapes. Further south, toward Montalbano, the landscape changes but does not lose its green essence: rolling hills are dotted with vineyards and olive groves, while chestnut forests dominate the summits. This territory has been shaped by human beings who over the centuries have transformed it into a countryside that almost resembles a garden, a landscape in which natural beauty blends with agricultural productivity. The paths through Montalbano offer glimpses of Pistoia and Abetone, while the ancient manor houses (above all Villa La Magia in Quarrata, a Medici residence) and ancient villages help tell the story of this land.

The greenery of Pistoia and its territory then finds a deep and layered representation in art, both ancient and modern, reflecting the importance of nature in local culture. This connection with the landscape manifests itself in different ways, from architectural decorations to figurative works to contemporary expressions. In ancient times, Pistoia and its territory were, after all, very dynamic centers: the location of the territory favored the development of a very active merchant and banking class that complemented the two main traditional activities, namelyagriculture and ironworking. The Pistoian mountains, in particular, had already become the main iron-working area of the Grand Duchy of Tuscany by the 16th century, due to the presence of valuable mineral resources. Art is thus a reflection of this economic prosperity. Pistoia’s Romanesque and Gothic churches testify to the flowering of the arts in the city in the Middle Ages: one only has to admire the church of San Giovanni Fuorcivitas, where the geometry of the white and green marble decorations becomes the protagonist, emphasizing the architectural forms, or the Baptistery of San Giovanni in Corte and and the Cathedral of San Zeno. It should also not be forgotten that, during the Middle Ages, Pistoia assumed a central role in the European artistic scene thanks to the relic of San Jacopo, which placed it among the main pilgrimage destinations. This event stimulated local artistic production, such as the magnificent Silver Altar of San Jacopo, made between the 13th and 15th centuries. In addition, artists such as Nicola Pisano and Giovanni Pisano contribute sculptural works that dialogue with their surroundings, creating a harmony between art and landscape.

At that time Pistoia was a fundamental crossroads of the arts. Pistoia’s medieval painting shows influences from great masters such as Pietro Lorenzetti and Coppo di Marcovaldo. The Renaissance and the seventeenth century, periods not without interesting episodes (such as the purchase of Raphael’s Madonna del Baldacchino by the prelate Baldassarre Turini, who brought it to the Cathedral of Pescia, where it moreover returned for some time in 2023), are the era of gardens in noble villas, such as those of Villa Garzoni in Collodi. Its monumental garden is a masterpiece that celebrates nature organized according to strict aesthetic principles, demonstrating how landscape is an integral part of the artistic experience.

More recently, in contemporary times, greenery has found new forms of expression in environmental art and street art. Pinocchio Park in Collodi, open since 1972, is not only a place suitable for children, but is an extraordinary example where art and nature come together to tell universal stories. Here 20th-century artists such as Emilio Greco and Venturino Venturi created works that celebrate the relationship between man and the environment by telling the story of history’s most famous puppet. But a leading role should be assigned to the Gori Collection at the Fattoria di Celle, which is unique in the international art scene and fits perfectly into the cultural and natural context of the Pistoia area. Located in Santomato, a hamlet of the city, this extraordinary collection of environmental art is the result of the innovative vision of Giuliano and Pina Gori, who have transformed a historic villa into an open-air museum where art and nature dialogue harmoniously.

The Fattoria di Celle, surrounded by green hills, vineyards and olive groves, is a place that celebrates the fusion of the Tuscan landscape and contemporary art. It is the first environmental art collection in Italy. Since 1982, when the collection was opened to the public (its conception, however, dates back to the 1960s), the villa’s grounds have been home to more than 80 site-specific works, conceived by the artists to integrate completely with their surroundings. These creations are not simply displayed: they are an integral part of the place, designed to interact with the green hills, English gardens and historic buildings of the estate. Internationally renowned artists such as Daniel Buren, Richard Serra, Giuseppe Penone, Michelangelo Pistoletto and Mauro Staccioli have helped transform Fattoria di Celle into a kind of interdisciplinary laboratory. Their works blend with the natural and architectural landscape: sculptures immersed among the olive trees, installations that dialogue with the historic walls of the villa, and interventions that exploit the meadows and hills as a canvas. The uniqueness of the Gori Collection lies in its ability to enhance nature and the environment through art. The works not only celebrate the beauty of the natural landscape but also reinterpret it, transforming it into an active part of the artistic experience. Environmental art here becomes a tool for exploring the relationship between man and nature, inviting visitors to experience the land in a new way.

The example of the Fattoria di Celle was followed by the Municipality of Quarrata , which in 2000, after taking possession of the aforementioned Villa La Magia, created yet another environmental art project, the contemporary art garden Genius Loci - The Spirit of Place , which houses works by artists such as Fabrizio Corneli, Anne and Patrick Poirier, Hidetoshi Nagasawa, Maurizio Nannucci, and Daniel Buren. However, it is not only the monuments and environmental art collections that are the places that most testify to this relationship between Pistoia and the green. One significant place is the Museo Naturalistico Archeologico dell’Appennino Pistoiese (MuNAP), which offers a view of the environment of thePistoian Apennines, displaying fossils, minerals, and naturalistic artifacts. Or, the Museo del Novecento e del Contemporaneo in Palazzo Fabroni houses a contemporary “signature garden” that combines art and nature, offering a modern perspective on the relationship between humans and the environment, an example of how greenery can be integrated into contemporary architecture and art.

Today, Pistoia continues to be a place where greenery is celebrated in all its forms. From the gardens of the Medici villas to the spas of Montecatini and Monsummano, the area offers a variety of natural landscapes that invite discovery. The city is also a hub for green literature and art, with events and initiatives that promote environmental awareness and nature-related wellness. A place where green is not only a natural element, but a symbol of a culture that has been able to harmoniously integrate anthropization and care for the environment. Imagining Pistoia means imagining a mosaic of green landscapes, where art, history and nature merge into a single experience. And if you find yourself walking among the olive trees of the Pistoian countryside, you can almost smell the scent of this green, the green that becomes the color of the history and future of Pistoia and its territory.

Pistoia, the capital of green

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