22 Ott
Foliage in Italy: here’s where to see the most spectacular in Milan
It is time for foliage, the leaves are the undisputed protagonists of autumn and with their shades from yellow to bright red, they invite you to go out and walk to notice the changes in the streets.
Being in the midst of nature is good for the body and spirit. Walking in a park or in a forest helps to oxygenate our cells and helps the mind to relax.
Even in Milan, which has an arboreal heritage of about 260 thousand specimens, it is possible to benefit from the shirin-yoku, literally “bath in the forest“, an immersion in the woods that involves all five senses. Taking a nice walk in the park on a lunch break or at the weekend is, therefore, a panacea and a feast for the eyes.
There is no such synthetic and evocative term in Italian for the spectacle of the change in colour of the leaves of the trees in autumn. The term foliage derives from the French feuillage, but even before from our dear Latin “folium”!
The English foliage version, however, prevailed in the common language. The literal translation into Italian would be “fogliame”, a word which, however, has not taken on an equally synthetic and evocative value compared to its English counterpart.
The technicians call it ‘autumn chromatism’, for everyone it is simply ‘when the leaves change colour’ in autumn. Foliage, therefore, means that spontaneous phenomenon that especially characterizes some species of trees whose leaves change colour gradually passing from green, to yellow, to orange, to red to brown before falling to the ground.
The best places to admire Fall foliage in Milan
Brera Botanical Garden
A green island in the heart of Milan, behind the Pinacoteca: a historic garden and a real open-air museum, a place for the protection of biodiversity and rare species.
Admission is free for everyone, an opportunity to also experience a lunch break in a magical place, among flower beds, exotic species and ancient trees.
Sempione Park
Parco Sempione is the green heart of the city, which extends from the Castello Sforzesco to the Arco della Pace. There are many species to admire that create a kaleidoscope of colours. Walking along the streets from the Civic Aquarium to the pond, you will notice different species and their peculiar shades.
Indro Montanelli Gardens
At the intersection of via Palestro and Corso Venezia are the English gardens where you can discover small botanical and architectural jewels. It is the first public park in Milan, commissioned by the Austrians in 1700.
Here you can admire the spectacle of centuries-old trees, such as a monumental metasequoia, or from oaks, cedars, rows of horse chestnuts. But also the groves alternating with clearings, streams and lakes populated by different species of ducks and mallards.
Garden of the Villa Belgiojoso Bonaparte
Opposite the Indro Montanelli public gardens to complete the Villa Reale, there is the first romantic style garden in the city of Milan. Here it is possible to walk along a botanical path made up of paths that flank a pond, cross bridges and lap caves.
Park of the Basilicas
So-called because it connects the basilica of San Lorenzo and the basilica of Sant’Eustorgio. The large green corridor allows you to take an “archaeological walk” along the Cerchia dei Navigli.
Maples, elms and plane trees are the protagonists of the foliage in this park in the historic centre of Milan.
Monumental Cemetery
In the open-air museum designed by architect Carlo Maciachini as a garden in which to stroll, you can discover the history of Milan through its famous people, but also rediscover nature. The avenues in autumn are tinged with a thousand shades of colour.