The Giardino di Flora Appenninica (10 hectares) is a botanical garden

Botanical garden

A botanical garden The terms botanic and botanical, and garden or gardens are used more-or-less interchangeably, although the word botanic is generally reserved for the earlier, more traditional gardens. is a well-tended area displaying a wide range of plants labelled with their botanical names...

 of alpine flowers located at 1,550 meters altitude at the base of Monte Campo

Monte Campo

Monte Campo is a Portuguese brand of outdoor equipment, mainly, small bags, rucksacks, tents and other outdoor accessories....

, along the main road towards Prato Gentile in Capracotta

Capracotta

Capracotta is a comune in the Province of Isernia in the Italian region Molise, located about 45 km northwest of Campobasso and about 25 km north of Isernia...

, Province of Isernia

Province of Isernia

The Province of Isernia is a province in the Molise region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Isernia....

, Molise

Molise

Molise is a region of Southern Italy, the second smallest of the regions. It was formerly part of the region of Abruzzi e Molise and now a separate entity...

, Italy

Italy

Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...

. It is open daily in the warmer months.

The garden was established in 1963 for plant trials, abandoned for almost two decades, and reopened in 1997 as a collaboration between the municipality of Capracotta and the University of Molise

University of Molise

The University of Molise , also known as UNIMOL, is a public state university of Italy. It was founded in 1982 by the Law n.590 according to the plan for development and institution of new universities; the campuses of this university are all set in the region of Molise and they are: in Campobasso...

. Although the garden contains some flower beds, it is primarily a natural area.

The garden currently contains about 300 endemic species

Species

In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. While in many cases this definition is adequate, more precise or differing measures are...

 in habitats including beech forest, rocks and cliffs, scrub, and wetlands. It also contains about 200 species introduced from elsewhere in the south-central Apennine Mountains

Apennine mountains

The Apennines or Apennine Mountains or Greek oros but just as often used alone as a noun. The ancient Greeks and Romans typically but not always used "mountain" in the singular to mean one or a range; thus, "the Apennine mountain" refers to the entire chain and is translated "the Apennine...

. The garden's flowering plants include Allium ursinum, Anemone apennina, Corydalis cava, Dianthus sylvestris, Galanthus nivalis

Galanthus nivalis

Often referred to as the common snowdrop, Galanthus nivalis is the best-known and most widespread representative of a small genus of about 20 species...

, Lonicera alpigena

Lonicera alpigena

Alpine Honeysuckle is a species of honeysuckle native to mountain forests of Central and Southern Europe. It is sometimes cultivated as an ornamental plant outside its native range. It is a deciduous shrub up to 2 m high, and in late summer, bears conspicuous brilliant red inedible fruits...

, Minuarta graminifolia, Sorbus aucuparia

Sorbus aucuparia

Sorbus aucuparia , is a species of the genus Sorbus, native to most of Europe except for the far south, and northern Asia...

, and Viola reichenbachiana

Viola reichenbachiana

Viola reichenbachiana, the Early Dog-violet, is a violet.This species hybridises with Common Dog-violet to produce Viola × bavarica.-References:...

. Trees include Acer pseudoplatanus, Fagus sylvatica, and Ilex aquifolium, with shrubs including Euonymus latifolius, Lonicera alpigena

Lonicera alpigena

Alpine Honeysuckle is a species of honeysuckle native to mountain forests of Central and Southern Europe. It is sometimes cultivated as an ornamental plant outside its native range. It is a deciduous shrub up to 2 m high, and in late summer, bears conspicuous brilliant red inedible fruits...

, Rhamnus alpinus, Sambucus nigra

Sambucus nigra

Sambucus nigra is a species complex of elder native to most of Europe.It is most commonly called Elder, Elderberry, Black Elder, European Elder, European Elderberry, European Black Elderberry, Common Elder, or Elder Bush when distinction from other species of Sambucus is needed...

, and Viburnum lantana

Viburnum lantana

Viburnum lantana is a species of Viburnum, native to central, southern and western Europe , northwest Africa, and southwestern Asia. The vigorous deciduous european treelike shrub is common along waysides. It is a deciduous shrub or small tree growing to 4-5 m tall...

.