Pollen and allergies — Venezia
Venice stands in its lagoon, where green space in the historic centre is limited to gardens and courtyards, but the city is not isolated: Mestre, Marghera and the Venetian mainland form a continuous urban and agricultural belt from which pollen arrives with land winds. The sea breeze can instead sweep the air over the islands on sunny days, while the lagoon's humidity marks the whole year.
Periods and allergens to watch
- Late winter and spring: alder and birch open the tree-pollen calendar, with flowering starting in the mainland parks.
- Spring and summer: grasses thrive in meadows, along drainage canals and in the fields of the Venetian plain.
- Summer: heat and the lagoon's evaporation keep the air heavy; the sea breeze can reduce pollen in the historic centre.
- Late summer: mugwort and ragweed grow on disturbed ground and along railways and cultivated edges of the mainland.
Venice uses CAMS through Open-Meteo. Concentrations are modeled, not locally measured by this service, at approximately 11 km resolution. The forecast displays alder, birch, grasses, mugwort, olive and ragweed; it does not automatically cover cypress, parietaria or every regional species.
The model does not distinguish the islands from the mainland: a morning in Mestre can weigh more than a walk along the lagoon. On days with steady scirocco or sea breeze, pollen from the plain decreases in the historic centre, while with land winds it can return within hours. Watch the trend and consider where you are, not only the figure for the area.