The students of 2^ media sec D I.C. Fratelli Bandiera - Roma

The town of Ninfa takes its name from a little temple dedicated to the nymphs during the Roman period built near the river Nymphaeus. Of the abandoned medieval town there remain today an imposing double wall and the ruins of a castle, churches, municipal buildings. As in the past, water is still the key to Ninfa's survival. A water dam, seen to this day at Ninfa, is an example of advanced engineering from early times. The resulting lake enabled waterpower to be used to turn rudimentary machinery such as mills, olive presses, bellows and hammers for the working of metal - making a fortune for the little settlement

Ninfa was at various times destroyed and rebuilt before passing to the Caetani family in Gelasio Caetani, in the early 1920s, set out to restore Ninfa by means of a well-planned programme of research, excavation and restoration of the ruins, laying out the foundations for a garden today counted among the most beautiful in the world.

Ninfa draws together history, architecture and nature. Over time the Garden of Ninfa has developed a truly international plant collection. It is widely known for being both a protected monument and a nature conservation area. The Garden contains at least 19 varieties of deciduous Magnolia, along with birch, aquatic Iris and a sensational variety of Japanese maples.

Many rose varieties grow along the avenues, festooning trees and ruins, bordering the river and its watercourses There are many shrubs, planted not just for their beauty but also for their value to birds and insects - for example buddleia, loved by butterflies; and cotoneaster with its wonderful berries. The presence of birds is notable, with over 100 species.

I thought it was a nymph’s paradise: there were small waterfalls and beautiful plants of all kinds, including exotic plants. Bengie

The microorganisms living in the ground, supplied by the swamp and the favourable climate, support plant growth. Francesco The garden of Ninfa rose up on an area wich was once a swamp; it was dedicated to the Nymphs of Water Matteo

The great thing is that there are plant bigger than me and my sister Rania e Sara

This area was originally a swamp which has made its soil fertile through years of inactivity and nutrition. The vines cover the crumbling towers and the houses which still have some few walls intact that are also supports for bushes and natural flowerbeds. Martina

Ninfa is a garden with many plants. Some of the plants are very rare. Between the plants that I remember there are: pink, red and white Japanese maples, birches, cypresses, giant roses, lavender, white and yellow irises, orchids, papyrus, camellias, eucalyptus and bamboo that grows approximately 1 centimeter per day. Gabriele

There was a river surrounded by flowers Eleonora

The particularly mild climate, the presence of waterfalls and ponds and the fact that the land has never been cultivated for centuries are the factors that granted a quick growth to the plants. Eleonora

The Garden of Ninfa today, with its paths spreading like sinews, is spontaneous and informal, in the form of a garden conceived in a typical Anglo-Saxon style.