Mediterranean Garden Spain

Apple harvest is counted

2009-11-24T22:23:00.002+01:00

Local farmers have produced over 4,500 metric tons of apples, despite a difficult growing season, which should be enough for christmas stockings this year.

The Lotus of the ancients a tree for today

2009-11-22T21:11:00.005+01:00

If you are looking for a large and semi ornamental and fruiting tree to plant in your own Mediterranean Garden, then the European nettle, Celtis australis or the Hackberry as it is commonly known maybe for you. The tree is believed to have been the Lotus of the ancients and has been referred to by both Homer and Tennyson in their writing. Rocks formed during the European Miocene period (between 23.8 and 5.32 million years ago) are found to have traces of the Hackberry. This plant is a therefore a survivor. Modern Mediterranean gardeners will appreciate this plant for its drought tolerance once established. It requires a sunny position and light sandy or loamy soil which is slightly alkaline. The long lived tree produces timber which is prized by wood turners, and a yellow dye can be extracted from the trees bark. Smaller thinner branches are often selected to be walking sticks. The small flowers of the tree are self fertile (hermaphrodite) though pale yellow or green and will produce small edible purple drupes (berries) which can be eaten raw or cooked. The leaves of the Nettle tree are astringent as you may have guessed and have curative properties for stomach disorders. Autumn colour occurs as the leaves turn yellow before falling.

....The mild-eyed melancholy Lotos-eaters came.

Branches they bore of that enchanted stem,

Laden with flower and fruit, whereof they gave....

Lo! in the middle of the wood,

The folded leaf is woo'd from out the bud
With winds upon the branch, and there
Grows green and broad, and takes no care,
Sun-steep'd at noon, and in the moon
Nightly dew-fed; and turning yellow
Falls, and floats adown the air.
Lo! sweeten'd with the summer light,
The full-juiced apple, waxing over-mellow,
Drops in a silent autumn night.
All its allotted length of days
The flower ripens in its place,
Ripens and fades, and falls, and hath no toil,

Fast-rooted in the fruitful soil....

Alfred Lord Tennyson - The Lotus eaters

They went and found themselves
Among the Lotus-eaters soon, who used
No violence against their lives, but gave
Into their hands the lotus plant to taste.
Whoever tasted once of that sweet food
Wished not to see his native country more
Nor give his friends the knowledge of his fate ;
And then my messengers desired to dwell
Among the Lotus-eaters, and to feed
Upon the lotus, never to return.
Homer - The Odyssey

Humping Hackberry

2009-11-22T21:04:00.004+01:00

If you have been transplanting trees of late you will spare a thought for those tasked with transplanting a large specimen tree within the Catalan city of Barcelona (about 135km south of us).

The Lledoner tree as it is known in Catalunya is better known internationally as Celtis Austalis or the Hackberry measured 4’0” in diameter and weighed 60 metric tonnes with it’s root ball intact.

The Hackberry was transported on a gondola supported on a tree platform (see pictures)

Acorn harvest failure threatens Spanish Ham

2009-11-12T19:55:00.003+01:00

Around our Finca the holm oaks are producing their annual acorn harvest elsewhere in Spain the harvest is failing.....

Pigs bred for Jamon Belota are raised free range in the oak orchards, gorging themselves on acorns that produce the rich flavour and oily texture for which the meat is known.

Photo: REUTERS

The trees, which for generations have provided Iberian pigs with the rich acorn diet necessary to ensure the succulent texture of Jamon Iberico, are under attack from a strain of phytophthora, a fungus with its origins in Australia.

The fungus attacks the roots of the trees, choking off a water supply that has been made scarce by successive years of drought.Experts have discovered at least 500 serious outbreaks of the disease in the pastures of south-western Spain and predict that the situation will worsen unless a widespread forest management programme is introduced."The soil has been eroded, the droughts are getting longer, and air pollution is worsening - all factors contributing to the spread of the plague," explained Gerardo Moreno, a biology professor at the University of Extramadura, who led a recent study.

"The problem is compounded by the fact that the orchards have been over-exploited, leaving little room for regeneration," he told the Spanish newspaper El Pais. Producers of the Spanish product, which can fetch up to 1,500 euros (£1,380) for the very best quality leg of ham, fear their livelihood is at risk.

Pigs bred for Jamon Belota are raised free range in the oak orchards, gorging themselves on acorns that produce the rich flavour and oily texture for which the meat is known."There are huge areas of trees which have been seriously damaged," said Alejandro Hernandez Matamoros, whose family breeds 500 pigs annually in Jerez de los Caballeros near Badajoz.

"So many people rely on this industry that we have to find a solution," he said. "Without acorns, there can be no pigs."

Drought and effective fertilizer

2009-11-11T21:15:00.003+01:00

With the aim of developing effective fertilizers which can be applied even in drought conditions.

A team of researchers from the Polytechnic University of Valencia and the Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas have deciphered the structure of the receptor of a hormone that can increase the resistance of crop plants to drought. This was announced by the researcher CSIC, Pedro Rodriguez Egea, who has stated that

"the discovery would help develop more effective plant protection products with synthetic molecule that mimics the effect of the hormone abscisic acid (ABA)".

Researchers have managed to elucidate the three dimensional structure (atomic level) of one receptor, called PYR1 of the ABA. This hormone is essential for plants to tackle the drought, and researchers have succeeded in describing how the receptor interacts with the phytohormone PYR1 to trigger the plant response to water stress. The result, which is published in the online version of the revista'Nature ', encourage the development of synthetic molecules that mimics the effect of ABA, overcoming the limitations of using this phytohormone in agriculture, since it is sensitive to light and their chemical synthesis is expensive. This work lays the groundwork for identifying these molecules in the field of drought resistance.

If you go down to the woods today...

2009-09-27T23:01:00.003+02:00

The forest is full of unemployed people looking for mushrooms to sell

...this year's mushroom picking is strong seeping into a new sector of the population, the unemployed workers who see and an opportunity to make extra money.

Not surprisingly, the market vendors mushrooms

can pay their suppliers up to

18 euros for a kilo of good milk caps.

writes JOSEP SALLENT
Olvan

El Periodico

Vilabertran

2009-09-24T23:00:00.005+02:00

Señora Rosa has been helping us with our meat selection at the Intermarche supermarket for the last couple of years, I tell her what I want to cook (which is whatever Carol wants to eat basically) and she advises me on the cut of meat (labelled in Catalan) best suited for our needs. It was during one such a conference that Rosa told us of the impending Fiesta Mayor to be held at the village of Vilabertran, just outside of Figueres.

Vilerbertran is famous for its 11^th. century church -Santa Maria de Vilabertran which features a Lombardian bell tower; originally an Augustinian church, the town was founded here because of the availability of fresh water and proximity to the trade route that is the Mediterranean sea.

Fira L´Horta y Poma Relleno

2009-09-24T22:59:00.002+02:00

So it was that on the 20^th. September 2009 we visited the village and experienced the celebration of village life; which is known as Fira L´Horta y Poma Relleno ( Fair of the Farm and stuffed Apple).

This is harvest time in L´Alt Emporda and the fields are filled with young African men, many of whom were illegal immigrants, and who today form a large part of the hard working agricultural labour force.

Sìnia

2009-09-24T22:58:00.001+02:00

The Sìnia is an ancient form of well using an Archimedes screw mechanism powered by horse or donkey and was brought to the L´Alt Emporda by the Greeks who settled the area; the name L´Alt Emporda is derived from the greek for market place.

The horse powering this sìnia seemed a bit skitterish and was not easily held by the handler who explained that he was upset at drawing the short straw whilst his stable mates pulled carts around the village as they taxied the visitors to the village centre.

A few examples of the sìnia have been restored and are preserved on the old horta's of VilaBertran, hortas which are still actively farmed and produce high quality fruit & vegetable crops.

Pualanca

2009-09-24T22:56:00.002+02:00

Another Greek introduction was the Pualanca a lever mechanism with counter balance to raise water from the well.

The village people (no not them) rather the people of the village enthusiastically demonstrated the water extraction techniques for each new arrival at the show.

Carol was invited to try the Paulanca and was 'well impressed' (pun so obviously intended) with its efficiency though she seemed a little disappointed to learn that modern day pumps lift the water nowadays.

Horta exhibition

2009-09-24T22:50:00.003+02:00

The Hortas were immaculately presented and despite the dry hot windy summer exhibition standards were presented by all concerned with the land cultivation. The route around the village was well signposted. I was particularly impressed with the attitude of the people of the village everyone tried to be helpful and they all smiled. Thoughtfully there were albums of photographs showing the seasonal crop production which occur outside of the Fiesta period, were exhibited alongside historic photographs of village life. A young African man was only too pleased to show us photographs of he and his colleagues at work in the plant nurseries of the village.

Fira L´Horta y Poma Relleno plant sales

2009-09-24T22:49:00.003+02:00

Catalan Donkey

2009-09-24T22:49:00.000+02:00

The black coloured Catalan donkey is not famed for its easy temperament but these two fine looking youngsters responded to my Dr. Doolittle impression and were only kept away from us by an electric fence. Hard working donkeys were the beast of burden in many Mediterranean countries in the past and some are working just as hard today in poorer countries.

Take a look at the Spana web site if you have a few moments to spare.

Sooner or later

2009-09-23T22:59:00.004+02:00

Having planted a young lemon tree we have high hopes of being self sufficient in lemons one day, though it may be quite a while till we have fruits like this fine example, which was a gift from Noellia who had picked it from her own mature lemon tree.

Nerium Oleander in flower

2009-09-23T22:55:00.000+02:00

Mediterranean Garden plants

2009-09-22T23:33:00.003+02:00

The evergreen Rosebay or Nerium Oleander (Apocynaceae) is the foundation plant of our garden continuously displaying a wealth of pretty funnel shaped flowers in various shades according to the variety. We have also planted a variegated form with cerise coloured blooms, and have placed it in front of climbers with darker green foliage. Throughout the Costa Brava in particular and the Ált Emporda district as a whole, this dependable plant is often used to screen boundaries as a hedge or also as a feature shrub in its own right.

Dependably hardy down to – 10° C. once established, the Oleander will thrive in any Mediterranean Garden. And will create an impressive shrub up to 3m high and 4m wide. The willow like leaves, sage green coloured with a silver underside, rustle like paper in the winds that shape this land; and with a little water during the flowering stage Oleanders will largely take care of themselves. Tip pruning will create a bushy shrub and removal of the seed pods will prolong the flowering period. It can be shaped easily and soon recovers from over enthusiastic clipping.

If you want to propagate this species then seeds are easily germinated in the springtime though the colours of the flowers may vary from the parent plant. Summertime will produce semi ripe wood ideal for cuttings, our friend Gabby recommends taking longer cuttings which she says root quickly.

All parts of the plant are poisonous to both humans and animals so care must be taken when planting Oleanders in your garden; as is the case with many other plants. Don't let that dissuade you from planting this pretty Mediterranean shrub which is the perfect flowering shrub in all other respects.

Virtual Herbarium Mediterranean Plants

2009-08-21T22:40:00.002+02:00

HERBARIO VIRTUAL DEL MEDITERRÁNEO OCCIDENTAL

The western Mediterranean Virtual Herbarium is a web page born out of the VH of the Balearic Islands. It collects information and a wide gallery of images of the vascular plants in the western Mediterranean basin. This project is led by the Botanical Area of the University of the Balearic Islands (UIB). At present the Universities of Barcelona and Valencia are also participating.

The Virtual Herbarium has been structured in index entries or individual web pages for each vegetable species considered. The most important aim of each entry are the images of the plants; however, a brief information in the form of a text is also included together with the scientific names of the plants both in Catalan and Spanish. The main image has been obtained by scanning a fresh specimen.

Most of the represented species correspond to autochthonous plants, although several cultivated and garden plants have been incorporated, thus, being a useful tool for studious of botany as well as garden and horticulture lovers. The western Mediterranean Virtual Herbarium is a lively project, and like any data bank its value is found in the constant incorporation of new images and information.

The Virtual Herbarium can be looked up in its whole, or either by restriction of the different territories included up to date: the Balearic Islands (Illes Balears),Catalonia (Catalunya), Valencian Community (Comunitat Valenciana).

Tamarix (Tamaricaceae) Tamarisk

2009-08-17T23:18:00.001+02:00

Tamarisk can be deciduous or evergreen shrubs and trees. Mild areas produce trees that are very wind-resistant and therefore they are often used as barrier hedges in exposed coastal areas. They like a sunny position in well drained fertile soil; where they produce abundant racemes of small pink or white flowers in the summer.

Spring time is the optimum time to prune trees and hedges, and it is then that the new growth of purple stems contrasting with the blue grey foliage gives a second season of interest. Semi ripe cuttings are easy to propagate.

Here in northern Catalunya farmland which has been reclaimed from marshland is rich and fertile and produces apples, peaches and pears in profusion. The farmland extends down to the beaches of the Costa Brava and is subject to high winds; it is the Tamarisk which is used to separate the agricultural land from the Mediterranean sand carried by the wind. Anybody who has used the campsites around the coastal region will have sheltered behind the Tamarisk tree.

In some parts of the USA the Tamarisk has become an invasive species and is weeded out of the native forests.

I have seen fine examples of a specimen tree and will try to add a photograph to this entry.

Caramelized figs with Peaches

2009-08-04T23:43:00.002+02:00

Caramelized figs with Peaches.

Nutritional value per serving:

Energy: 287 kcal.

Protein: 1.5 g.

Carbohydrates: 45.2 g.

Fat: 7.8 g.

saturated: 4.7 g.
Monounsaturated: 2.3 g
Polyunsaturated: 0.26 g
Cholesterol: 22.7 mg.

Fiber: 3.9 g.

Vitamin C: 20.9 mg.

Ingredients for 4:

20 g. mint

100 g. brown sugar

35 g. butter

50 g. brandy

140 g. peach

80 g. Greek yogurt

460 g. apple green

30 g. lemon

120 g. fig

Steps to follow:

Peel the apples and crush with a little lemon
In a skillet with some butter, skip the peaches, figs, mint and a little brown sugar. Add the brandy and let it reduce.
In a bowl, put a little yogurt, chopped apple and sautéed fruit (peaches and figs)
Crown with a little fresh mint

From El Mundo

Got to get ourselves back to the garden

2009-05-31T23:06:00.000+02:00

Proverbial Spanish wisdom is that 'more grows in the garden than the gardener sows'.

As the head of the seeds and weeds department on our Finca I have returned from an enforced absence accompanied by the recently retired Carol, who deals with the identified weeds and all the heavier and rougher work with relish. Our first week's work is beginning to show results and we are claiming back the garden from nature's grasp. Carol's war on the freely spreading Fenel is being won.

Winter has seen the demise of our young Mimmosa tree. The bougainvilla has died back to almost ground level but is producing new shoots. Everything else seems to be prospering.

Fuchsia Futures - Easy propagation & Care.

2009-05-10T15:05:00.007+02:00

You may have killed them with kindness. That would be my diagnosis on the failure of your fuchsia cuttings to germinate. If you are new to plant propagation and would like a fool proof method of germinating small quantities of fuchsia plants from existing plants; then the following method may help you.

Take your cuttings from non flowering stems 3" to 4" long and from just above a leaf joint.
Pinch out the growing tip and shorten any large leaves by half.
Using an opaque container i.e. a plastic beaker, to hold your cuttings.
Place the cut stems in a little water in the container, ensuring that the leaves are clear of the water.
Change the water every three days.
After 10 - 14 days you will see roots forming at the base of the stem. Pot up the rooted cutting in your usual manner.

The opaque container will help to diffuse (soften) the light, place it near to a window but out of direct sunlight.

Fuchsias do grow in Spain but are best kept out of the hot summer afternoon sun. If your patio or balcony specimens have suffered from the heat a solution would be to double pot them.

Using a larger pot than you plant is growing in place any inert material such as polystyrene around the circumference of the outer pot and place your potted plant in the middle of the outer pot. You have created a thermal barrier between the roots of the Fuchsia and the outer pot which will absorb the sunshine.

Once the sun has gone down water and feed your plants. Misting the foliage with water will prevent red spider mite. Fuchsia do best if the roots are restricted if you are potting on young plants do so 1/2 a pot size at a time. I find a very dilute feed more often gives the best results.+

Rural Spain

2009-04-30T10:27:00.006+02:00

The Spanish landscape offers a rich and diverse natural habitats which the population view with much pride. They enjoy the wild rugged places for recreational activities and like to see arable land in full production.

Protected natural areas of Spain now amount to 28% of the land (6.3 million hectares) with 42% of the population living within those reserves. The marine ecosystems of the Mediterranean are less protected and the authorities are trying to bring coastal bio-diversity schemes up to the standards of neighbouring countries. A budget of €1,000,000 p.a is allocated to bio-diversity conservationism.

If you are contemplating a holiday this year try rural Spain it is a land full of delights. Every village in the country will be celebrating a fiesta or two, giving the artisans a chance to showcase their handicrafts and traditional food.

Tour Spain

The summer wind, came blowin in - from across the sea

2009-04-23T23:45:00.004+02:00

Amongst the estimated eight thousand (8,000) endemic plants of the Iberian peninsular there are plants worthy of inclusion in the Mediterranean garden, but please do not collect those plants from the wild. Photograph what you see in it's natural habitat and then source your plants from reputable sources. If you can not identify a plant somebody on the Internet will be only too pleased to help you

Semi arid poor and stony soil can be easily washed away by the infrequent though often torrential rains that fall on the Spanish peninsula. Even on those hot summer days flash storms can wash away trees, embankments and street furniture. Watch the news broadcasts on Spanish television to see how wide spread and devastating the damage can be. Terraced walls can be undermined in an hour by the rains, and your carefully nurtured garden or orchard can wash away before your eyes. Try to use the rain running off the land by channelling it away from fragile areas to where you need it most if you can collect it for reuse so much the better.

If you dot your plants around your garden leaving vast tracts of bare soil, you will find that the soil will rapidly dry out making your plants weaker and therefore prone to the effects of plant disease or infestation by insect attacks. Plant your plants closer together and protect the exposed earth with a mulch of composted material or even stones and you will minimise water loss to the atmosphere. The shade afforded to the ground by the leaf canopy of the growing plants will create a micro-climate in your garden in which your plants will prosper. Look out for seedlings between the older plants, they will enable you to regenerate the older specimens and keep your garden fresh.

An important consideration to the land conservation in Spain is the clearing of debris from the land. Fire here can spread quickly with horrendous and sometimes fatal results. Endemic plants like the Cistus and those useful aromatic herbs are filled with flammable oils; those hot summer winds and the lightening strike are enough to start a wild fire. Barbecue and camp fires add to the risk of such events happening. I have seen wild fires burning on three sides of my property, even though the fire fighters and local authorities managed them well, acres of native forests were lost.

Much of the debris that you clear up around your plot can be composted in your own garden. Anything else that you feel you are unable to recycle, can be placed in the plant waste receptacle provided in each village for commercial composting.

Corn popped -Transgenic Maize

2009-04-14T22:37:00.005+02:00

Transgenic maize otherwise referred to as genetically modified is the subject of much controversy across European lands. MON810 marketed as Yeildguard in the USA, is permitted as a foodstuff in Europe but has been rejected by both France and Greece.

Germany too has banned MON810 the countries representatives were lobbied by Greenpeace in what turned out to be an effective campaign. (see photograph).

Here in Spain Transgenic maize is authorised. If like many garden bloggers you grow your own vegetables you could still be exposed to the crop which is used as an animal feed in countries like Argentina.

World wide use of the product opens many paths for GM food to enter the food chain and is often not apparent to the end user.

Even South American countries who fight hard to maintain the integrity of their native maize varieties are at the mercy of the wind during pollination periods. If you save your own seed you too could be affected.

Ewe Tube from Wales

2009-04-13T22:02:00.002+02:00

We spend our spring and summer watching the Catalan shepherds controlling 500 head of sheep using just two Gos Catalan (sheepdogs) so when we saw this Welsh sheep farmer use his flock to put on a display we thought other bloggers might appreciate the film.