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Tag: olives

  • La Scapigliata farm

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    Going north on the Via Aurelia, we turned right when we were approaching the village of Talamone, then we passed the hamlet of Fonteblanda and going to the top of a small hill, we came to a group of buildings,. Having passed them, we were met by the owners of the La Scapigliata farm, Aurelia and her husband, who received us warmly. The name of the farm, meaning dishevelled, is derived from the former owner, who called the hair of his daughter scapigliata due to the ever-present wind.

    Obviously, the owners of this farm love their work, which besides running the farm, has included restoring farm buildings dating from the 1900s in a skillful and original way. This work has been run by the owner Aurelia, who is an architect. It is striking how the huge building, which houses the restaurant and the spacious kitchen, was originally used for storing forage and hay, agricultural machines together with various products required to run a large cattle farm. She has also overseen the restoration of the barn, which was used to house cattle, The big trusses supporting the wooden roof are clearly visible, thw walls are covered with plaster and painted white, wooden boards cover the floor, all done with exquisite workmanship. Else, the troughs from which the cattle were eating, inclined floors with chutes made by red ceramic tiles and robust pillars supporting the trusses complemented our impression.

    Moreover, there is an exhibition of Etruscan jewellery made by two local goldsmiths who tried to make exact copies of originals residing in museums, using only the techniques and tools, which were available to the Etruscans more than 2000 years ago. This prevented the goldsmiths from using any kind of magnifiers and not exceeding a temperature of 400°C, far below the melting point of gold.

    Next, we entered the huge building, housing the restaurant and the adjacent, open kitchen where the husband of Aurelia had already started preparing our meal. During the preparation, we were free to follow and even photograph his activities. After some time, lunch was ready and we had the following menu:

    • bruschetta with olive oil and garlic
    • starter based on sheep’s cheese stored in pomace  of Morellino together with various products from the farm
    • soup with fresh vegetables and legumes
    • pasta with tomatoes and basil
    • beef stew
    • peach pie
    • digestive – Amaro Etrusco

    In the tourist season from May to September, guests can also eat outside, weather permitting. In addition, jazz bands perform outside some weekends, making the experience of the guests even better.

    We could also visit the following:

    • the olive grove which had been harvested as early as September in order to avoid the olive fruit fly , which deposits eggs inside the olives in October. The olive grove consists of various types of olive trees whose olives mature at different times, leading to various degrees of maturation at harvest time.
    • the vineyard, which was planted three years ago and has only given a tiny amount of wine for private consumption so far.
    • A garden with solanales, legumes, strawberries, vegetables, cucurbita and aromatic herbs. Naturally, some of the produce from the garden is used in the kitchen as ingredients for meals for visitors.

    Moreover, black pigs are raised at this farm (a cross between the race Large Black pig, Nero dei Nebrodi from Sicily  and the local Nero Amiatino. About 50 adults and about 20 piglets which have been weaned are kept inside separate fences, while the smallest ones are staying with their mothers. The pigs are slaughtered when they are about 2 years old and weighing about 150 kilogrammes.

    We also visited a group of adult pigs, which could roam freely inside a wide fence, but they had to stay inside an enclosure from dusk to dawn. Upon arrival, the pigs were hardly visible, but a worker called them, making them approach us after a short time. Mostly, they kept their snouts close to the ground, always searching for food.

    It was a great pleasure to visit this farm.

  • Tupei farm and guesthouse

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    We are on the island of Sant’Antioco connected to Sardinia by means of a bridge, near the town of Calasetta, situated along a slope in the north-west of the island and partially encircled by white beaches and the sea. The ancient name of Calasetta, Cala di Seta, meaning Bay of Silk derives its name from production of sea silk, a marine type of silk which is extracted from a bivalve mollusc called Pinna nobilis.

    The Tupei farm and guesthouse is located in the hillside above Calasetta, about 2 km from the town and about 1200 m from the sea. It was bought by Michele and Silvana Puxeddu in the 1990s, both of who weren’t working as farmers in advance. He was setting up dropped ceilings  and wall decors, while she was working with graphics for advertising. Having decided to change their lifestyles completely, they left their jobs and selected a life following age-old traditions and offering hospitality to their guests.

    Having parked at the entrance of the Tupei property, we first passed a group of horses looking at us expectantly before meeting Silvana, Michele and their dog Aprile. In addition to horses, they also raise goats, almost all them very curious when we visited them. They also had a few chickens which were free to go wherever they wanted. Besides, they are cultivating olives, vines, vegetables and fruits organically, all of which are served in the guesthouse.

    Being very conscious and attentive, Silvana and Michele had decided before our arrival to join a project intending to let farmers themselves control their own seeds. Instead, the international development tends towards multinational companies selling the same types of seeds to farmers, minimising diversity, and requiring pesticides made by other multinational companies.

    Luckily, at the same time as our short visit to the island of Sant’Antioco, a group of courageous women from a local agency called Laore, which occupies itself with rural development and an organisation called Domusamigas arrived shortly after us, bringing many types of seeds in their car in order to start the project. On our walk to a nearby field, they explained that Michele and Silvana had decided to take part in a genetic and evolutionary improvement of seeds developed and selected by the renowned professor Salvatore Ceccarelli with the objective to turn control of seeds to farmers, safeguarding local seeds and increasing biodiversity.

    Having arrived at the field, which was already prepared by Michele, he set out to divide it into 40 equally sized rectangles being helped by the women from Laore and Domusamigas together with my guide. Using a masonry chisel and a mallet, he hammered the chisel into the ground near one corner of the field, then using a tape measure, he located the second corner of the plots. Next, he started making a line perpendicular to the first line. In order to verify that the lines were perpendicular, he and one of his helpers used the Pythagorean theorem. Actually, it was a pleasure to see this theorem applied to a real problem for the first time in my life. Having ascertained the angles and the dimensions, the women poured chalk along each line. Unfortunately, the planting of the seeds would take place another day, meaning that we couldn’t be present. All in all, 17 types of seeds should be planted, two of them local and two hybrids, some of them new, some of them old. All in all, three farms in Sardinia participate in this project and it will be done for several years.

    The objectives of the project in which Silvana and Michele participate are the following:

    • rediscover the evolutionary capability of local seeds.
    • hand back production and selection of seeds to farmers.
    • learn new techniques in order to increase biodiversity without using artificial fertilisers.
    • promote and facilitate collaboration between research institutes and farmers.
    • identify which seeds are most adapted to this land and environment.
    • reproduce and improve ancient seed varieties leading to increased biodiversity, autonomy and better health for farmers due to not using pesticides.
    • let the plants create new varieties by cross-breeding like what has happened since agriculture began.

    Professor Ceccarelli is known for his programmes of genetic improvement in which farmers are selecting and planting seeds together with scientists. The work of professor Ceccarelli together with other scientists, the International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA), has led to greater biodiversity and larger yields of crops in dry areas

    According to him we have to learn that “the seed is the foundation of life, food, and agriculture. However, farmers, who have been safeguarding and improving seeds since agriculture began, have been excluded from the production of seeds in the space of a few years. This exclusion has harmed everyone: farmers, agricultural research, our diets and the earth’s biodiversity. We have to make farmers cultivate various types of seeds for biodiversity, for themselves, for a secure food supply, and for the future”.

    We are grateful to Silvana and Michele Puxeddu for their hospitality and generosity and for letting us be present at such an important moment in their lives.

  • S’Arxola farm and guesthouse

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    Having passed through the town of Teulada and going eastwards, we turn left at a crossroads a couple of kilometres outside the town and follow a gravel road for about a kilometre in a lovely and apparently fertile landscape. Then, we arrive at S’Arxola, an educational farm and guesthouse where we meet Fulvio outside the small house he has built for his family on the top of a small hill.

    Just a short distance from their house, another house in neutral colours is located between an olive grove and climbing Mediterranean scrub. Inside the house, there are small, but airy apartments for lucky guests who choose to spend their vacations in this tranquil place located a short distance from the sea and surrounded by Mediterranean fragrances and colours.

    The property is located in a hilly terrain surrounded by forests, olive groves and small bushes, while it also has grassy fields on which numerous ducks and hens are free to roam. 

    By common agreement, Fulvio and his wife Emma decided to change their life and stay in contact with nature. It started when his wife from Bologna was doing her PhD on forest sciences in Florence, while he, who is born and raised in Sardinia, was studying architecture in the same city, gradually started thinking about living in the countryside. They dreamed about creating an organic farm with a guesthouse and make a living with minimum impact on nature based on harvesting edibles from the surrounding vegetation. Reflecting on it and doing thorough searches, about 10 years ago they came to this place, which was in keeping with their wishes, and they decided to buy it. It is called S’Arxola ’e Sirboni, meaning “place frequented by wild boar” in Sardinian. Indeed, as Fulvio says: “the hill on which the farm is located and the surrounding hills were covered with dense oak forests (cork oak and holm oak whose berries are eaten by wild boar), which were destroyed during the last century and are being restored by himself and his wife.

    The farm is equipped with solar cells in order to be self-sufficient with electrical energy. Since the solar cells produce more energy than is required on sunny days, the excess energy is stored in batteries. This farm is off grid such that Fulvio, his wife, their two daughters and their guests have to adapt their consumption of electrical energy in accordance with daily and seasonal changes of the sun.

    A major activity of Fulvio and his wife is to restore the native vegetation whether it has been degraded or even totally removed. The aim is to both harvest fruits and berries, but also to extract essential oils, all of which has to be done according to the biological and seasonal characteristics of each plant. A description of using essential oils for aromatherapy can be found here.

    In order to reduce the residents’ impact on the local environment and live in harmony with nature as far as possible, a field of common reeds is used as an artificial wetland to clean greywater. A list of other plants that can be used for the same purpose is given here.

    Fulvio explains that the area, which is now covered by reeds, was first excavated in order to create a pit to receive greywater. Then, it was made impermeable by covering the pit with a layer of clay before filling it with fine gravel which works as a foundation on which has been planted a dense field of common reeds. The reeds perform several beneficial functions, but the most important one is to create oxygen-rich micro-zones along its roots where aerobic bacteria are able to decompose organic matter. This seemingly simple process is actually quite complex and those who want to know more can look here and here. The purified water can be used for irrigation or released to natural watercourses.

    During our walk around the farm, Fulvio shows us various myrtle shrubs, but he plans to plant many more of them in order to produce myrtle liqueur. He also shows us numerous mastic bushes and trees. He’s following the growth of these plants closely because he wants to extract vegetable oil from the berries.

    This humble brush, present along the coast of all the Mediterranean, was spread by man at least since the era of the Romans because it was used as a medicine, to flavour various kinds of food, as chewing gum, etc. In the past, vegetable oil extracted from mastic berries was known as poor people’s oil because they didn’t possess olive groves. Nowadays, mastic resin is still used as a flavouring, while essential oils are used for cosmetics and medicines.

    Having been shown around the farm, Fulvio invites us inside his family’s kitchen, offering us home-made coffee, which we willingly accept. While we are enjoying the coffee, he tells us that he is also keeping bees, extracting honey in autumn, but leaving some amount such that the bees can survive the winter. He’s also telling how the farm is being run in a sustainable way, but there is always room for improvements. He’s working full time at the farm, while his wife is managing forests. Time passes quickly, it’s hot outside, songbirds are singing, else everything is quiet and it’s difficult to leave.

  • Rubiu olive oil mill

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    The Rubiu oil mill was founded in the 1950s by the father of the present owner, Nicoletta Rubiu. Already from the foundation, this oil mill used the the best available machinery making it the centre of olive oil production in the region of Sulcis-Iglisiente. The lowlands on which this oil mill is located are surrounded by gently, rolling hills and is ideal for growing olive trees and vines. Various olive cultivars are used in the production of olive oil, with Bosana the most commonly used. Another cultivar called “tonda di Cagliari” or “nera di Gonnos” is also grown together with “Pizz’ e Carroga” which are put whole in brine.

    Having entered the oil mill, we also enter an atmosphere filled with a slightly bitter fragrance of olives which have been crushed and where small groups of women and men are waiting patiently for their olives to be turned into olive oil, chatting amicably, but impossible to perceive anything because of the noisy machinery. It’s the same atmosphere and the same sensations like in the past although we don’t any longer find the imposing granite millstone, which has been conserved with the care deserved for a historic monument. The bull, which made the millstone turn around while the olives were crushed, is gone. Likewise, all the locals who came to watch the yellow olive oil flowing out of the mill. However, Mediterranean fragrances are still produced like in the past, while only the owners of the olives are watching contentedly all the phases the olives have to pass through in order to be turned into the golden liquid, which serves as an indispensable ingredient for any dish on their tables from toasted bread topped with olive oil and chopped tomatoes to various salads, from sauces to stews.

    The olives from each owner are first placed in square boxes waiting to be placed in a flippable trolley. Having filled the trolley with olives, it is flipped such that all the olives fall into a container with a funnel at its base. When the time is right, the funnel is opened such that the olives fall down on a conveyor belt with parallel tracks which prevent the olives from falling down. Instead, the conveyor belt brings them upwards until they fall down into a machine, which removes foreign bodies like leaves and branches, which inevitably follow the olives from the harvest. Then, the olives are cleaned by means of running water in order to remove any remaining impurities before entering the olive-press where they are crushed, turning them into a mix of oily and fragrant mush together with hard fragments from the stones inside the olives. This mix is transferred to adjacent containers where rotating blades make it more uniform before it enters a centrifuge where solid and liquid parts are separated. The wooden residues from the stones, which are heavier than the liquid parts, are expelled. The liquid parts, consisting of water and oil are separated because they have different densities. After having filtered the oil, it is collected in a container, ready to be bottled and brought home by the owners. The wooden residues from the stones can be used in various ways like feed for pigs or poultry or compost for enriching soil. Alternatively, they may be separated and turned into pellets for heating.

  • L’Aglientu farm

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    At the foot of the mountain Casteddu, a granite ridge looming above the Mediterranean brushes, the farm l’ Aglientu is located. Here, the owners Antonella and Guido are cultivating fruits and vegetables in addition to running a small guesthouse. Both of them are working with the cultivation, while Antonella also looks after the guests. After having studied and worked with graphic design in Olbia, Guido has turned to full-time farming, putting into practice techniques and natural systems he learnt from an elder, local gardener.

    Receiving seeds from local, organic greenhouses between the end of April and the beginning of May because night frosts occurring quite often before this period can easily destroy the seedlings. They are mainly growing cauliflower, fennel, savoy cabbage, broccoli, and radishes. Their produce is sold to customers who want to know where their food is coming from and how it has been grown.

    About 10 days after having planted the seedlings, chicken manure is added. The soil consisting mainly of clay and dissolved sandstone is excellent for cultivating potatoes. In fact, due to heavy rains recently, soil and sand has been transported downwards to an olive grove, where Guido also has planted potatoes. A rotational system is employed such that various cultures are grown alternately in the same places at intervals of 3-4 years. There is a fruit garden located between the vegetable garden and the olive grove, where fruits like peaches, kiwi, cherries, plums, persimmons, pears are grown.

    Most of the fields are watered using water droplets, leading to a low use of water. Instead, the olive grove is watered by spreading the water around the olive trees since their roots are spreading out.

    Guido and Antonella are also planning to grow citrus trees in an area protected from cold, northern winds by high, dense trees. However, they also need a lot of sunshine.

    We were also shown an enclosure where they will raise pigs. Since they are great diggers, Guido had covered the inside base of the fence with lots of stones.

    The total area of the farm amounts to about 200 hectares and it is divided among various members of the Bonacossa family, meaning that the extension of the Aglientu farm is 43 hectares. Above the farm, there is meadows, mountains together with dense, Mediterranean brushes. Antonella followed us up to a meadow, from which we could see a flock of cows approaching. They are raising a race called Sarda Nera (known for its lean, rare meat) together with some Limousin cows. These animals are living outside all year, eating what they find together with some organically grown fodder.

    Lots of steep mountains are located nearby, making excellent homes for birds of prey.