New sustainable approach for historic gardens’ management, conservation and restoration in Piedmont Region (Italy): the role of the ornamental plants

For the Florence Charter on Historic Gardens (1982) historic gardens are classified as living monuments. Their management, conservation and restoration are considered international priorities. Some historic gardens are not recognizable due to the lack of knowledge, management and phytopathological problems. To valorise and restore historic parks a national project (PNRR, 2022-2025) was recently performed. By contrast, during the restoration process, different critical issues exist. In this context, identifying guidelines for historic garden’s restoration and conservation able to combine historical features with new needs is considered a scientific challenge. In Piedmont Region, the Garden of Casa Lajolo, the Park of Moncalieri Royal Castle and the Park of Miradolo Castle (Turin province), the Park of Monticello Alba Castle, (Cuneo province) and the Park of Fubine Monferrato Castle (Alessandria Province) were designed and realized between XVIII and XIX centuries. These sites investigated will be illustrated as case studies. These historic gardens are characterized by ornamental, compositional and architectural features. To define new sustainable solutions for historic garden restoration, multidisciplinary research was performed. The paper highlighted a methodological approach for restoring these sites, from the historic analysis to the knowledge of the current values, to the proposal of guidelines for restoration and conservation.