Tuscany in Bloom: when and where to see the flowers

Last updated: October 2026

I was sure I’d written about this before. Apparently not. So here it is, the post I should have written years ago.

When I lived in the hills above Pescia, from 2009 to 2017, spring always caught me out. One week the villages were grey stone and woodsmoke. The next, every doorstep, balcony and crumbling wall had something flowering on it. Geraniums in olive oil tins. Hydrangeas the size of footballs. Wisteria dripping over doorways like someone had spilt a tin of purple paint.

Nobody does it for the tourists. They do it because they’ve always done it, and because nobody wants to be the house with the sad pot.

Purple wisteria flowers moving gently in the breeze, with the words Tuscany in Bloom — My little Tuscany in Bloom video: wisteria, April 2017

When things flower (roughly)

Nature doesn’t read calendars, and a cold spring or a hot one can shift things by a couple of weeks. But as a rough guide, this is what I saw round the hills and on the plain below.

March: camellias, blossom on the fruit trees, and the first wild flowers on the verges.
April: wisteria. This is the big one. Plus tulips in pots, and the hills turning a fresh, bright green.
May: roses, poppies in the fields and along the roadsides, and the geraniums getting into their stride. Honestly, May is when everything seems to be in flower at once.
June and July: hydrangeas in the hill villages, sunflowers, and geraniums on every balcony.
August: hot and a bit frazzled. The pots that get watered twice a day are still going strong.
September: a second wind for roses and geraniums as the heat drops.

Pink tulips planted in an old tin tub on a stone terrace in Aramo — Spring tulips in an old tin tub, Aramo

Pots on every step

The real show isn’t in a garden at all. It’s in the villages of the Svizzera Pesciatina, the Dieci Castella above Pescia. The houses are packed tight and there’s no room for a lawn, so everything goes in pots. On the steps, on the walls, on the window sills, hanging off the balcony rails.

Stone steps in Castelvecchio lined with pots of red geraniums and white flowers — Every step a flower pot, Castelvecchio

Geraniums are the favourite by a mile. Red, pink, white, and planted in anything that holds soil. Old tins, buckets, cracked terracotta, the odd wellington boot. Nothing gets thrown away up here if it can grow a geranium.

Pink geraniums spilling out of pots in a narrow stone lane in Vellano — Pink geraniums in a Vellano lane

Pink and purple flowers tumbling down a stone wall beside an archway in Medicina — Flowers by the archway, Medicina

My favourite villages for flowers were Castelvecchio, Vellano, Sorana and Fibbialla, but honestly, wander up any lane in any of the ten and you’ll find someone’s pride and joy.

Red geraniums on a balcony in Sorana with green wooded hills behind — Geraniums with a view, Sorana

Hydrangea time

Early summer is hydrangea season, and up in the hills they grow enormous. Blue, pink, white and every shade in between, depending on the soil and whatever the owner has been feeding them. Some of them have clearly been in the same pot since before I was born.

Big white hydrangeas growing in an old wooden barrel in Fibbialla — White hydrangeas in a barrel, Fibbialla

Blue and purple hydrangeas in front of terracotta rooftops in Sorana — Hydrangeas over the rooftops, Sorana

If you only do one flowery walk, make it Fibbialla on a summer morning. I wrote about mine in a wander around Fibbialla. Go early, before the sun gets fierce.

Sunflowers

Sunflowers are at their best in early summer, roughly late June into July. You’ll find whole fields of them down on the plains, but I always loved the odd ones in the villages, grown in pots against old stone walls and turning their faces to the sun like old men on a bench.

Sunflowers and geraniums in pots against an old stone wall in Pontito — Sunflowers against the stone, Pontito

Gardens and flower shows worth a trip

If you’d like something a bit more organised than my pots, there are some lovely places nearby. Dates change every year, so please check the official websites before you go.

Camellias at Pieve and Sant’Andrea di Compito (Capannori, near Lucca). The Mostra Antiche Camelie della Lucchesia runs over weekends in March, with old camellias in villa gardens and a Camellietum with more than a thousand varieties. Details at camelielucchesia.it.
VerdeMura on the walls of Lucca. A big garden and plant show held on the bastions of Lucca’s walls each spring, usually in April. Its sister show, Murabilia, is in September. Details at verdemura.it.
The Garzoni garden in Collodi. A grand Baroque garden that tumbles down the hill in staircases, with statues, pools and a maze. Spring is a lovely time to go. Check what’s open before you set off.
Pistoia’s nurseries. The plain around Pistoia is one of the biggest plant nursery areas in Europe. Drive out of town in any direction and you’ll pass field after field of trees and shrubs in neat rows. Not pretty in the chocolate box sense, but quite something.
Pescia’s flower market. Pescia has been growing flowers for generations and has a huge flower market, the Mefit. Sadly it’s wholesale only and not set up for visitors, so don’t plan your day around it. The flowers end up in shops and on balconies all over Italy instead.

A few tips from me

Go early. The light is softer, the lanes are quieter and the flowers haven’t wilted in the heat yet.
Look, don’t pick. Every pot belongs to someone, and they will notice. Trust me.
Mind the steps. Half the flowers are on people’s front steps. Don’t climb up for a better photo.
Say buongiorno. If the owner is about, tell them their flowers are beautiful (che bei fiori!). You’ll make their day, and you might get a tour.
Pair it with a walk. The old paths between the villages are at their best in spring. See my walking trails guide.
Pack the hay fever tablets. Just saying.

Tuscany in bloom at a glance

Best months: April and May for wisteria, roses and poppies. June and July for hydrangeas and sunflowers.

Best villages for flowers: Castelvecchio, Vellano, Sorana, Fibbialla, Aramo and Medicina, all in the Svizzera Pesciatina above Pescia.

Getting there: easiest by car. See my Dieci Castella driving route.

Dates: flower shows move about, so always check the official sites first.

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Photos and video by Susan Heslington.

Happy sniffing.

Susan

Tuscany Villages