Acclimatisation of exotic plants on the French Riviera

In the second half of the 18^th century, and even more so in the 19^th century, landscape and garden design on the French Riviera underwent major changes. Indeed, it was during this period that tourism flourished across the region, becoming increasingly accessible and witnessing a large influx of exotic plants in both private and public gardens. This development occurred in the context of a European society deeply fascinated about plants and horticulture. As a result, the phenomenon of acclimatising exotic plants, in other words ensuring their ability to survive permanently in a given environment without any specific assistance, which interested a small number of enthusiasts in the late 18^th century, experienced huge growth during the 19^th century and radically altered the landscape of the area. Although the acclimatisation of thousands of exotic plants, and even the naturalisation of some of them, was possible to a certain degree, the potential for welcoming such plants to the region was largely overestimated up until the 20th century.

The European trend of acclimatising exotic plants in the 19^th century particularly concerned the French Riviera and the future Côte d’Azur, the climate of which was well suited to this type of experiment. The area’s so-called “orange tree” climate zone is defined by an average annual temperature of between 15 and 16° C, with very little thermal variations, mild winters with few frosts, intense sunshine and little summer rain and abundant rainfall in the autumn (Lacroix, Bracq, 2006, p. 115). Winter holidaymakers, the number of which increased steadily throughout the 19^th century, played a major role in the acclimatisation of exotic plants in the area. This movement led to a profound change in the appearance of a predominantly agricultural area in favour of public and private landscape creations which encouraged even further the process of the “tropicalisation of its plant landscape”. (Gade, 1987).

However, this phenomenon of acclimatising exotic plants, which was met by a great deal of criticism by the “neo-Italian” or “neo-regionalism” movement (Hérault, 2017, p.74) at the end of the 19^th century, contributed to “a semiotic system expressing a tourism-oriented economy” (Gade, 1987, p. 24). One of the most glaring examples of this process is the emergence of the toponym “Hyères-les-Palmiers”, a result of the ornamental dynamic linked to the large-scale cultivation and export of palm trees in the 19^th century.

Palm trees, and in particular date palms (Phœnix dactylifera), had been grown on the Riviera since the Middle Ages in the Bordighera and San Remo area. Originally used for Jewish and Christian religious festivals, they gradually spread throughout the entire region of the Riviera in the 19^th century, becoming one of the main symbols of the area’s imagined landscape (Carassale, Castellana, 2013). Other exotic plants, such as agaves and aloes, ubiquitous in iconographic depictions of the region, also became emblems of the Riviera’s landscapes (Hérault, 2021).

From the useful to the pleasurable, the development of exoticism in gardens.

Gardens played an essential role in the Riviera’s tourism boom, especially in Nice, from the late 18^th century onwards (Hérault, 2021). In the early decades of the 19^th century, they were primarily used for agriculture. Their simple and regular layouts delighted winter visitors from overseas who particularly enjoyed walking in the citrus gardens.

The useful gardens of the Nice actively contributed to the region’s tourism success because their appearance and variety inspired admiration in foreign visitors, who, like Tobias Smollett in 1764, were amazed by the sight of the Nice “countryside” and shared it in their literary and pictorial works:

“When I stand on the rampart and look around I can scarce help thinking myself enchanted. The small extent of country which I see, is all cultivated like a garden. Indeed, the plain presents nothing but gardens, full of green trees, loaded with oranges, lemons, citrons, and bergamots, which make a delightful appearance. If you examine them more nearly, you will find plantations of green pease ready to gather; all sorts of sallading, and pot-herbs, in perfection; and plats of roses, carnations, ranunculas, anemonies, and daffodils, blowing in full glory, with such beauty, vigour, and perfume, as no flower in England ever exhibited (…)”

(Smollett, 1992, p. 35-36, letter of 15 January 1764)

A Vue de Nice published in 1776 offers a beautiful view of the area described by Tobias Smollett, where a multitude of plots of farmland can be seen stretching out around the old town.

It was not until the middle of the 19^th century that, as landscape architect Octave Godard pointed out, “ornamental gardens are taking precedence over functional gardens due to the influx of winter visitors and the craze for acclimatising exotic plants” (Godard, 1927, p.6). This phenomenon particularly impacted the developing seaside resorts of the Riviera, transforming the landscape of a predominantly agricultural territory with crops that were “mainly food-based (olives, figs, vines, carob trees, cereals), well-suited to the climate or irrigated (citrus fruit, vegetables)” and densely planted, in favour of public and private landscape creations contributing to the “tropicalisation” process of the future Côte d’Azur, driven largely by winter holidaymakers (Gade, 1987, p.20). These new, “primarily decorative” plants became “an important feature of the coastal landscape”, initiating “the formation of an artificial and exotic plant landscape” (ibid.).

From the first timid steps to a true fashion trend

In 1756, the painter and engraver Joseph Vernet depicted palm trees on his painting of the bay of Antibes. In this case, these are probably Phoenix dactylifera, since Phoenix canariensis seems to have been introduced for the first time in Nice in 1867, in Baron Vigier’s garden (Maumené, 1909, p. 106).

Furthermore, it seems that interest in exotic plants and the first attempts at acclimatisation on the Riviera date back to the 17^th century. In his book Voyage aux Alpes-Maritimes published in 1821, the doctor François-Emmanuel Fodéré noted the rarity of such initiatives up until the end of the 18^th century. In a footnote, Fodéré indicated that in 1640, “Arène, a citizen of the town of Hyères, introduced about twenty species of orange trees and thirty-one species of lemon trees, as well as palm trees, sugar cane and a large number of previously unknown exotic plants” (Fodéré, 1821, vol. 2, p. 123).

Furthermore, the Jardin de la Marine in Toulon was already “cultivating over three thousand exotic species” in the 18^th century (Gade, 1987, p. 20). And, in 1794, Jean-François Bermond back home from the island of Saint-Domingue, acclimatised many exotic plants such as sugar cane, Ethiopia arum, taro, banana, papyrus, guava, indigo, etc., in his garden in the Fuon Cauda neighbourhood of Nice (Giuglaris, 1940, cited in Lacroix, Bracq, 2006, p. 115-116). The Reybaud family in Nice and the Basset family in Menton were also among the few enthusiasts engaging in experiments to acclimatise exotic plants on the Riviera during the revolutionary period (Bracq, 2009, p. 23-24).

The phenomenon of acclimatising exotic plants on the Riviera subsequently experienced significant growth thanks to the patronage of an illustrious figure, Empress Joséphine de Beauharnais (1763-1814) who, in 1840, promoted travel and the exchange of plants between the collections of Malmaison castle and the botanical garden of the Ecole Centrale de Nice. Furthermore, seeds of Australian plants brought back to France from the Baudin expedition (1800-1804) were introduced to the botanical garden of the Ecole Centrale de Nice via the botanical garden of Toulon, thus favouring a permanent increase in the town’s floral diversity. (Boissière, 2023).

In the first half of the 19^th century, the importation and acclimatisation of exotic plants continued in private gardens, as illustrated by Victor Tiranty’s purchase of “fifty young palm trees in Bordighera for his property in the Longchamp area of Nice” in July 1812 (Lacroix, Bracq, 2006, p.115-118). In 1844, Joseph-Antoine Risso mentioned in his Guide des étrangers à Nice the estates of Count de Cessole, “where pineapples reach perfection in his greenhouses”, then the estate of Mr Burnet, “where a multitude of exotic plants are grown outdoors with great care”, and also the Avigdor garden, “where banana trees bear fruit every year in barns without artificial heat”, and finally the garden of Count de Pierlas, “where foreign plants display their full beauty” (Risso, 1844, p.117-118).

But it was especially from the second half of the 19th century that the movement to acclimatise exotic plants on the Riviera gained ground, driven by the democratisation of natural history and the proliferation of learned societies at the time. Purchases and exchanges of seeds and plants increased and amazing plant collections were amassed, mainly within private properties, but also in public gardens and parks and along the avenues where they were planted.

As a result palm trees, agaves, aloes, birds of paradise, hibiscus, yuccas, cycads, etc. spread exponentially around the area. Ficus elastica, Albizia julibrissin, Jacaranda ovalifolia and Schinus molle were commonly used as trees along avenues and on squares (Lacaille d’Esse, 2009, p. 17). The success of acclimatising exotic plants was such that at the beginning of the 20^th century, the number of foreign species cultivated outdoors in the area, including on the Italian Riviera, was estimated at six thousand (Lacroix, Bracq, 2006, p.119). The “tropicalisation” process in the area, linked to the tourism growth of the region, also led to the establishment of many nurseries on the coast between 1850 and 1880 (Gade, 1987, p.22).

Winter visitors – mainly English – increasingly present on the Riviera, especially in Nice, were actively involved in the promotion and development of this movement, creating numerous gardens welcoming the rarest and most exotic species. Indeed, these wealthy holidaymakers and foreign landowners found a favourable place on the Riviera for the acclimatisation of many species which are “as lush as they are colourful, that were growing in the regions of their colonial empire”, such as parts of South Africa or southwest Australia, at the time under English sovereignty and also part of the Mediterranean biome (Parguel, 2009, p.5).

Amazing botanical collections were established within prestigious estates, including several key ones such as Hanbury (La Mortola), Serre de la Madone (Menton), Les Cèdres (Cap Ferrat), Thuret (Antibes) (Ducatillion, Blanc-Chabaud, 2010), etc. which serve as veritable showcases for the phenomenon of plant acclimatisation in the area (Hérault, 2021). We should also mention the former holiday estate of Rayol in the Var, acquired by the Conservatoire du Littoral in 1989, where the landscape architect Gilles Clément reinvented the gardens. These evoke the plant associations of the Mediterranean biome around the world (Central Chile, Southern Australia, etc.) in reference to the idea of a Planetary Garden – a political project of “humanistic ecology” that emphasises the responsibility of every citizen with regard to the entire biosphere.

Acclimatisation and naturalisation: ambitious undertakings

“The acclimatisation” of plant species is understood as their ability to survive permanently in a given environment without any specific assistance. Acclimatisation, however, does not include spontaneous reproduction, which constitutes an additional state of adaptation to the environment in question. This is known as the “naturalization” of the species.

In 1950, the horticulturist Roger de Vilmorin compiled a very long list of the main exotic plants acclimatised on the French Riviera. However, he distinguishes these acclimatised species from those that are truly “naturalized, listed in a second, much shorter list. This second list includes, among other things, Opuntia Ficus-indica (L.) Mill, better known as the prickly pear (De Vilmorin, 1950).

The specialists Auguste-Louis Giuglaris and Paul Ozenda mention the very ancient naturalisations of the wild olive, cypress, and carob, imported from the Eastern Mediterranean during the Phocean colonisation of the Western Mediterranean. However, this naturalisation is “so ancient and so perfect” that these foreign plants “now appear to be native” (Giuglaris, Ozenda, 1950, p. 129). Even from the 8^th century, the citron, bitter orange, and lemon trees were introduced to the area by Arabs, with sweet orange introduced by the Portuguese at the end of the Middle Ages (Lacaille d’Esse, 2009, p. 17).

The 19^th century, as rich as it was with its extensive input of exotic plants (acclimatised and/or naturalised) was not the only significant stage in the transformation of the Riviera’s landscapes.

Roger de Vilmorin refers to the multiple acclimatisation experiments with exotic plants from tropical regions, which he considers to be overly optimistic (De Vilmorin, 1950, p. 81). Indeed, while the Riviera has a real potential to host exotic plants, especially those from Mediterranean biome regions, its climate remains relatively unsuitable for tropical species. In fact, “less than 30% of introduced plants were recognised as suitable for planting in the region” (Gade, 1987, p. 21).

Ultimately, the Riviera was a privileged place for acclimatising exotic plants, especially from the 19^th century onwards when tourism and the development of transport gained momentum. The area was seized by an exotic fever, fuelled by winter visitors from overseas, particularly the English, who greatly appreciated this dreamlike setting reminiscent of the landscapes of their distant colonies. The phenomenon of acclimatisation of exotic plants on the Riviera, favoured by the mild climate, especially in winter, has its limits, a fact which the scientific community has widely acknowledged since the 20^th century. The botanist Paul Ozenda specifically identifies a very thin coastal strip of land which is very warm and sheltered from winds, between Nice and Mention, as the most favourable for such experiments. The exotic gardens of Monaco (1933) and Eze (after 1945), located in particular in this area, deserve a special mention for their exceptional collections of succulent plants. Lastly, the area aptly nicknamed “Petite Afrique”, which hosts numerous exotic plants in Beaulieu-sur-Mer, is also located there.

Marie HÉRAULT

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