The ‘Angelo Rambelli’ Botanical Garden, inaugurated on March 24, 1991, covers an area of approximately 6 hectares west of Viterbo. Situated about 300 meters above sea level on the right slope of the Urcionio stream, it lies near the Bulicame spring, whose fame—linked to its thermal waters—dates back to the Roman era and likely even earlier to Etruscan times.
The area is characterized by significant annual temperature fluctuations (min -10°C, max 40°C) and soil of a highly calcareous nature. Numerous hot groundwater layers rich in mineral salts flow underground at depths varying from 4 to 8 meters; these salts, primarily carbonates, have deposited over millennia to form whitish concretions. Water historically flowed from the main Bulicame spring through characteristic raised channels into pools where hemp was once placed to steep (macerate). These channels and pools have now been transformed into streams and small ponds that traverse the entire facility, hosting aquatic ecosystems often enriched by spontaneous herbaceous vegetation.
The idea of creating a Botanical Garden in Viterbo came from the first Rector of the University of Tuscia, Prof. Gian Tommaso Scarascia Mugnozza. Although the area was chemically and physically the least suitable for plant development due to the soil characteristics, the challenge was accepted by Prof. Angelo Rambelli, the founder and first director of the Botanical Garden, which is now named after him. It is thanks to his commitment and tenacity, as well as that of numerous collaborators and subsequent directors, that the Botanical Garden is today a beautiful reality and a source of cultural richness for the entire scientific community and the city of Viterbo.
Today, the Garden is part of the Bulicame Park, a complex extending over approximately 15 hectares divided between the Botanical Garden (in the lower, more hospitable section) and the sulfurous hot spring of Bulicame above. It works in close collaboration with the Tuscia Herbarium Museum (UTV), founded by A. Scoppola in 1996, and the Germplasm Bank, established in 2005. These three structures are now integrated into the University Museum System (SMA).
The ‘Angelo Rambelli’ Botanical Garden plays a fundamental role in the collection and dissemination of scientific knowledge and research. It hosts thousands of visitors annually, many of whom are students from schools of all levels and universities, and it organizes and conducts exercises, internships, training courses, and events.
Currently, as an Interdepartmental Center of the University of Tuscia (COB), the Botanical Garden of Viterbo is central to scientific outreach. It serves several departments: the Department of Environmental Sciences (DISA) of the Faculty of Mathematical, Physical and Natural Sciences; and the Department of Agrobiology and Agrochemistry (DABAC), the Department of Forest Environment Sciences and Resources (DISAFRI), the Department of Crop Production (DIPROV), and the Department of Plant Protection (DIPROP) of the Faculty of Agriculture.
The Garden welcomes thousands of students of all grades annually for visits, while also conducting educational activities primarily aimed at university students. Indeed, practical exercises for various Botany and related courses are held at the Botanical Garden. In recent years, numerous degree theses and internships have been completed there. Furthermore, it collaborates on a 2nd Level Master’s degree for “Curator of Parks, Gardens, and Botanical Gardens,” as well as courses on Mediterranean gardening and training courses for people with disabilities.
The Botanical Garden of the University of Tuscia is a founding member of the Italian Network of Germplasm Banks for the Ex Situ Conservation of Italian Wild Flora (RIBES) and has joined the Working Group for Botanical Gardens of the Italian Botanical Society. This is a small but qualified group of members involved in various capacities in the management or use of these structures, which currently includes over 200 members and more than 50 Botanical Gardens belonging to universities, local authorities, Alpine Gardens, Forest Botanical Gardens, and Arboretums.