April is the month exemplifying Spring; that time of the year when for the first time the cold of the Winter is left behind and one can enjoy the first warm rays of sunlight of the new season.

The Spanish Steps covered by flowers

The arrival of Spring has been celebrated in Rome for more than 60 years with a floral tribute, which will decorate the Trinità dei Monti, the Spanish Steps in the months of April and May. During the “Infiorata” the Spanish Steps will be decked with flowers, a tradition that has been renewed each year since 1951.

The Azaleas are the protagonists of this special decoration, designed as ornaments following the forms of this monument, which is one of the most representatives of Baroque art. The event is, in fact, unique and every year the exposition is enriched by new plants and new varieties of Azaleas, which the gardeners of the Rome’s nursery garden select and choose personally, tending to the smallest details in the choice of the Azaleas and their display on the Spanish Steps.

The variety of white Azaleas is actually commonly known as the “White from the Spanish Steps,” not only for its color, but for the selection that has been made over the years regarding this type of Azalea, in order to reinforce its structure and render it more resistant to the typical climate of the city.

Celebrating the Spring with the flowers is an antique rite in the capital where Proserpina (the Greek goddess Persephone), who after being abducted by Pluto and taken to Hades was forced to marry him and become therefore the queen of the Underworld. According to the legend, after her mother Ceres pleaded to Jupiter to let her return on Earth, Persephone was allowed to return only in Spring and Summer. In these seasons, the mother celebrated her return making nature burst with flowers and plants, while in the other two seasons marked by sorrow and pain, Ceres let Earth fall into cold and ice.

In the 2012 edition of the Infiorata on the Spanish Steps 500 Azalea were used, one hundred more than the previous year… who knows which surprise this Roman tradition has in stock this year!