The Chanousia garden

At the Little St Bernard Pass, at an altitude of 2,170 metres, a garden grows the flowers of the mountains. This is the Chanousia, an alpine botanical garden. It lies on the French side of the pass, in the commune of Séez, about 800 metres from the border, above La Thuile.

An amphitheatre facing Mont Blanc

The garden covers about 8,000 m² in a natural amphitheatre, with a view of Mont Blanc. Conditions are harsh: every winter between 4 and 8 metres of snow fall, and the average temperature over the year is about +1 °C. The plants have only two or three months to grow and flower.

Abbé Chanoux, founder in 1897

The garden is named after its founder, Abbé Pierre Chanoux (1828–1909). From 1860 he was rector of the hospice that the Order of Saints Maurice and Lazarus ran at the pass. He created the garden in 1897.

Lino Vaccari and the golden age of Chanousia

After the abbé’s death in 1909, the garden was run by Lino Vaccari. This naturalist of Venetian origin taught at the lycée in Aosta. He brought the Chanousia to its peak: in the 1940s more than 2,500 alpine species were grown there, including plants from other mountain ranges around the world.

War and abandonment in September 1943

In September 1943 the garden had to be abandoned in haste. The buildings were almost entirely destroyed and the scientific equipment was lost. After the peace treaty of 1947, the pass was attached to France. Without upkeep, the garden lost a large part of its collections.

The revival: Efisio Noussan and the Société de la Flore

The reconstruction was the work of Efisio Noussan and the Société de la Flore Valdôtaine, re-established in 1971. An agreement between France and Italy entrusted the management of the garden to an international association. Work began in 1976 and the garden was reborn on 4 July of the same year.

The garden today: over 800 species

More than 800 species can be seen there today. That is fewer than before the war, but the collection continues to grow: field collecting, exchanges with other alpine gardens and plants propagated in the nursery. A small museum completes the visit. The garden also keeps a historical and scientific link with the natural science museum in Saint-Pierre.

Visiting the Chanousia garden: hours and entry

The garden is open from the beginning of July to the third Sunday of September, from 9 am to 7 pm. There is an entrance charge. You reach it from La Thuile by the road over the Little St Bernard Pass, towards France. Inside the garden, the paths can only be walked on foot.