Popular with tourists, both Italian and foreign, Lake Garda is famous for its landscapes and historic villages.

Among the most fascinating ones, it is impossible not to mention Sirmione, which lies on a narrow 4 km peninsula on the southern shore of Italy's largest body of water. Its history is long, as witnessed by the archaeological complex of the Grotte di Catullo (1st century BC); considered the most beautiful Roman domus in northern Italy, it is located at the tip of the peninsula. In a town so rich in artistic beauty, there is no shortage of fine trees. The most remarkable is an incredible black poplar (Populus nigra), which stands tall in the small park called 'Belvedere Sandro Pertini'.

Grown a few metres from the shore of Lake Garda, in the area of the accommodation facilities preceding the historic centre, it impresses with a trunk that reaches a circumference of 7.5 metres (diameter 240 cm) and a height of 25 metres. Healthy and lush, its vast foliage provides pleasant shade to the lake-view benches below. Truly a perfect place to relax and enjoy the scenery. A few minutes' walk takes you to the 14th-century Castello Scaligero, whose crenellated towers provide a scenic entrance to the oldest part of the village.

A green monument that is accessible to the public.

(Ph: Luca Pernechele)