I’m one of a group of international horticulture journalists ushered into Padova Hall, the indoor venue of Flormart Green Italy 2024. For the three days of this prestigious event, the space has been transformed into a lush green oasis comprising 125 exhibitor stalls.
Inside, the very air looks green. With ten copies of our latest Horticulture & Sustainability Connected, I head for the area showcasing horticulture magazines from Italy and Europe. I’m invited to arrange our magazines in a cardboard bookcase – one of many different pieces of corrugated cardboard furniture that I see at the exhibition.
I’m struck by the sturdy, multi-layered cardboard construction of four-seater tables – pushed together in the publications area to form a large meeting desk – and the strong cardboard chairs that surround it. In the media lounge, there are high round cardboard bar tables and bar stools, robust to sit at and sit on.
Research reveals that cardboard furniture is resource-saving and climate-friendly, causing only a fraction of CO₂ emissions in its manufacture compared to conventional furniture.
Out in the main hall, various exhibits spark my interest, including Georgio Tesi Group’s gorgeous oak, peach and orange bonsai trees; but what I’m most keen to find are the stalls with a sustainability focus.
ECO INNOVATION
I’m distracted by a large sign saying ‘URBAN WEED’. Wafts of marihuana smoke in Dublin city spring to mind. But this Urban Weed is a non-herbicide weed control product, created by an Italian company called Endofruit. It’s advertised as ‘100% ecologico’, which Google translates as ‘environmentally friendly’.
Another Endofruit product is IDROGEA, an innovative granular water-retaining polymer aimed at reducing water consumption, regulating water supply and oxygenating the soil to support agricultural crops as well as flowers, herbaceous and arboreal plants, and lawns.
I pick up the various-sized polymer microgranules on display at the stand and rub them between my fingers. They’re designed to be mixed with soil in planters; and to be distributed in the rooting area of the clod for the planting of new ornamental or fruit plants, in the seedbed for grassy surfaces, and in the furrow during the sowing of crops such as corn and tomato.
Because of its absorption capacity, the polymer can retain irrigation or rainwater, as well as humidity from the air, alongside dissolved nutrients. Absorbing and retaining water up to 300 times its own weight, it gradually releases the water to the plant, reducing the need for watering to a minimum.
According to its promo leaflet, IDROGEA is completely biodegradable after five or six years, with no toxic substance release.
Moving on, another poster catches my eye. It shows a thick clump of caterpillars swarming all over each other in the twigs of a tree. They’re the larvae of the processionary moth, a species native to southern Europe and a major forest pest, defoliating and dehydrating the trees it attacks.
An innovative Italian company, GEA, is at the cutting-edge of preventing and treating processionary moth and other serious pest infestations, using manual injections into tree trunks of ‘phyto-drugs’ – medicines derived from plants and herbs.
Although Ireland is the last EU member state to be technically ‘free’ from oak processionary moth, their caterpillars have, unfortunately, made it here on two occasions in the last four years, most likely via imported trees. In June 2023, processionary caterpillars were found on four oak trees in a Dublin housing estate. Their nests and the four trees were destroyed.
As well as attacking trees, the processionary moth is a risk to human and animal health. The body of the caterpillar is covered in copious amounts of irritating hairs. Contact with the hairs can provoke skin rashes, conjunctivitis, and respiratory problems such as pharyngitis and asthma.
Teagasc warns that health problems can occur even if the larvae are not handled, as the hairs break off readily and are dispersed in air currents. Abandoned nests contain shed skins, pupal cases and vast numbers of detached hairs, and should be treated with extreme caution.
Let’s hope that in Ireland we won’t have to call in the Italian anti-processionary guns (but at least we know where to find them).
ANCIENT BOTANICAL BEAUTY
We’re treated with an offsite trip to The Botanical Garden of the University of Padua. Here an enthusiastic guide tells us the story of this ancient place, established in 1545 for the cultivation of medicinal plants, and for centuries the epicentre of a dense network of international research. Since its inception, the garden has been continually enriched by plants from all around the world.
According to UNESCO – who designated the garden as a World Heritage Centre in 1997 – Padua “is the origin of all botanical gardens in the world, and represents the cradle of science, scientific exchanges and understanding of the relationships between nature and culture. It has contributed greatly to the progress of many modern scientific disciplines, in particular botany, medicine, chemistry, ecology and pharmacy.”
The original garden is beautifully preserved. Its symmetry bestows a sense of peace and balance, following principles of what’s often called ‘sacred geometry’. The design comprises a large circular shape containing a square, in turn divided into four smaller squares by two perpendicular avenues. The four quarters were divided into flowerbeds, and arranged to form elegant geometric designs, each different from the other.
The geometry was influenced by scientific and philosophical concepts of the time, and, according to our guide, included a range of geographical, astrological and even esoteric meanings.
When the garden was founded, there was still uncertainty about the identification of medicinal plants; plus it was common for fraudsters to make healing claims for potentially dangerous plants. This confusion caused major problems, given that up until the 18th century, herbalism was the chief form of medicine in Europe. Even famous doctors of antiquity could make mistakes, with dire consequences.
To rectify this, the Padua Botanic Garden was established specifically for the study and identification of medicinal, aromatic and poisonous plants (some of which, paradoxically, can be medicinal in the correct dosage). The degree of poison danger is indicated on the poisonous plants’ labels: one cross for slightly toxic plants, two for more toxic ones, three for those that can be fatal.
A gorgeous but strangely ethereal patch of pink, crocus-like flowers catch my eye in the poison section. The sign names the plant Colchicum autumnale and gives it three crosses.
In 1552, a high circular enclosure was built around the garden, to protect it from nighttime thieving of its rare and pricey medicinal plants. Down the centuries many other additions have been made around the original garden – classrooms, greenhouses, balustrades, fountains and busts of famous scholars.
The modern Garden of Biodiversity, housed within a solar active building designed to reduce environmental impact, is a collection of more than 1,300 plant species, living in their own simulated native humidity and temperature climatic conditions. Here many of the planet’s various biomes are represented, from tropical areas to sub-humid zones, temperate zones to arid zones.
In a 19th century glasshouse, we visit the garden’s collection of carnivorous plants. We learn that the Venus flytrap is so sensitive, it will die if touched by human hands, or if watered with tap water (it only wants rain).
Back outside, our guide points out several magnificent ancient trees, including the oldest plant in the garden, a Mediterranean palm planted in 1585, housed since 1935 in its own octagonal greenhouse. The tree has been known as Goethe’s Palm since the German poet, after encountering it in 1786, described it in his “Essay on the Metamorphosis of Plants”, published in 1790.
It’s heartening to hear our guide proudly describe the garden’s policy of avoiding insecticides, and relying on biological and integrated pest management instead. This involves the use of natural enemies – other insects and mites that search for, capture and kill harmful organisms by acting as predators or parasitoids.
Predators and parasitoids are naturally present in natural environments; but for its greenhouses, to ensure prompt control of infestations, the garden purchases specific predators and parasitoids bred in specialised biofactories, releasing them as required.
Other sustainable strategies used for the control of harmful insects include capture tools – such as yellow or blue coloured sticky traps, which attract insects – as well food and sexual attractants as entrapments.
AT THE CLOSE OF THE DAY
I’m back at Flormart in the late afternoon, for a final sustainability inspiration trawl of the exhibits.
At Rama’s large feature, I’m reminded that I’m in a country with an ancient imperial past. This old family business specialises in the sale of reclaimed ancient materials and objects, including roofing and stone floors.
I walk amongst the beautiful items on display, all specifically chosen for use in gardens – ancient masonry, including columns and statues; fountains, troughs and bathtubs; terracotta jars, pots and basins; forged iron gates, garden furniture, vases and outdoor lamps. Photos of Rama’s headquarters show that they also do a line in reclaimed antique gazebos and artisan greenhouses.
I go from ancient reclamation to ultra-modern environmental sustainability at the stand of Harpo verdepensile, a Trieste-based company of innovators, manufacturers and advocates of green roof systems. The company develops and designs nature-based solutions specifically for the Mediterranean climate, offering consultancy as well as products.
Harpo’s exhibition features large colourful photos of urban roof gardens, and high-rise apartments that burst with greenery from every storey. Unsurprisingly, careful water management is a core concern.
Harpo’s RIC controlled water system was designed to increase the resistance and resilience of green roofs, whilst ensuring careful water management for both rainwater and irrigation. The system ensures water saving. It also encourages plants to be efficient in their use of water resources, and to develop strategies for stress resistance.
My final stop-off at Flormart is a less technical, but no less sophisticated, water feature, contained within a raised wooden crate construction: the Italian Association of Landscape Architects and Designers’ ‘Biodiversity Garden’.
The water garden has been designed as an example of a wetland ecosystem typically found around Alpine lakes, and to promote a way to uphold the new European Nature Restoration Law. This European Commission directive sets the goal of restoring at least 20 per cent of degraded land and marine areas in Europe by 2030, 60 per cent by 2040, and 90 per cent by 2050.
The biodiversity garden can be adapted for small urban environments and private gardens. It supports bees, butterflies and other pollinators, as well as amphibians such as frogs, newts and salamanders – excellent predators of mosquitoes, snails and other invertebrates. Native plant species were selected, including riparian aquatic plants, submerged aquatic plants, and floating plants, all of which are well-suited to urban settings.
The biodiversity garden offers a tranquil spot for reflection, at the end of a packed day of horticulture and sustainability, Italian style.
Adrienne Murphy edits Horticulture & Sustainability Connected. She was an environmental investigative journalist and music journalist with Hot Press magazine for many years, and the founding editor of the innovative turn-of-the-millennium magazine, Source: Ireland’s Social, Environmental & Holistic Magazine. Adrienne also edits books, and is a freelance contributor to The Irish Times.
