Planting a forest in Salento

This is what it's all about.

We are Ilaria and Alberto, a couple in art and in life. We work in theatre and wellness, teaching body awareness and vocal expression techniques. For the past three years, we have been living in Salento, in the countryside of Nardò (Lecce) at CasaPepe, a house with two hectares of land, 25% of which is covered with eucalyptus trees, fruit trees and pink pepper trees, and the remaining 75% is free of vegetation. We live in an area at high risk of desertification (with 57% of the territory vulnerable) due to a combination of factors: drought, fires, intensive agriculture, overbuilding, and lack of proper land management. Our land is located 300 metres from Vora Colucce, a karst gorge where the Asso River, the longest watercourse in Salento, sinks into the ground. The riverbanks are a breeding site for protected species such as egrets (water birds).

Our project consists of planting a forest of native plants, trees and Mediterranean scrub on our 1.5-hectare plot of land with the aim of:

• Generate biodiversity by restoring the original Mediterranean flora of the area, creating and nurturing the growth of a forest consisting of four different habitats: tree clusters, shrubbery, grassy clearings and marshy ponds.
• Create habitats conducive to local wildlife (foxes, hedgehogs, grass snakes, birds of prey, small rodents).
• Contribute to the ecological and landscape redevelopment of the area near the Asso river.
• Develop biophilia in the community through physical and vocal wellness programmes for individuals and groups in relation to the natural landscape (meditation, mindfulness, dance therapy, theatre therapy, natural voice).
• Create a fertile ground for creativity that can inspire, host and nurture our artistic research (theatre, dance, storytelling) and that of other artists on the theme of the relationship between the human body and wild nature
• Promoting participatory and educational processes with the community that aim to raise awareness and rebalance the relationship between human beings and nature
• Triggering grassroots cooperation processes for the reforestation of other neighbouring areas.

My project is special because ...

Living in Salento, we realise how closely the natural beauty of the landscape is linked to its fragility and, consequently, to the necessary efforts made by the community that inhabits it to protect, value and enhance it. Living in areas at risk of desertification, where the remaining woods and vegetation are threatened by frequent summer fires, the land is depleted by intensive and water-intensive monocultures, the use of pesticides and herbicides pollutes the aquifer, and the air is poisoned with CO2 and dioxin due to the unhealthy agricultural practice of burning to clear the land of brushwood and waste material (including plastic pipe and sheet residues), we feel a strong responsibility to act to ensure a greener future for those who come after us, by taking a simple but decisive step: planting new trees. That’s why when we bought our house, which included a large plot of arable land, the idea of planting a forest of native plants instantly blossomed in our minds.

We have a young daughter, and the thought that her growth could be accompanied by that of an entire forest, with all the infinite connections between the plants, insect populations and wildlife that will inhabit it, fills our hearts with joy and confidence in the future. So we entrusted ourselves to two professionals who immediately took the project to heart: Dr Antonio Orlando and Dr Bruno Vaglio, highly sensitive agronomists and experts in the area, who came up with a project in line with our vision to restore the possibility of native Mediterranean vegetation to land that had been devoted to agriculture for years.

The agroforestry project involves planting a multifunctional Mediterranean forest using agroecological criteria in a rural setting, which will be divided into the following habitats:

• 6 tree clusters that will host 247 trees for a total of 5,460 square metres of the following species: hackberry, carob, Mediterranean cypress, fragno, holm oak, field elm, Aleppo pine, domestic pine, white poplar, thorny oak, downy oak, cork oak

• 13 shrubbery areas with 560 plants covering a total of 2,640 square metres of: laurel, buckthorn, chamomile, rockrose, strawberry tree, phillyrea, broom, mastic, myrtle , rosemary, terebinth, viburnum

• A marsh pond covering an area of 520 square metres surrounded by marsh plants such as: agrostis, common reed, lippia nodiflora, cattail

• Grassy clearing covering 1850 square metres consisting of: iris, daffodil, squill. As the plants grow, they will contribute to:

• transforming the landscape, creating habitats conducive to the birth and development of a natural ecosystem consisting of Mediterranean flora, which originally inhabited the land before human intervention
• attract and become a refuge for wild species, including foxes, hedgehogs, snakes, small rodents and birds of prey, which are often in danger of extinction due to an environment that is unfavourable to their survival
• absorb large quantities of carbon dioxide, capture fine particles and mitigate the greenhouse effect (once they reach an average size, 850 plants could absorb the equivalent of 20 tonnes of CO2 in a year)
• produce significant amounts of oxygen (a forest of 850 healthy plants could produce up to 2 tonnes of oxygen per year)

• clean and cool the air, thanks to shade and evapotranspiration, which reduces summer temperatures and mitigates cold winds in winter.

• protecting the soil and reducing hydraulic risks, consolidating the ground with roots, preventing erosion, while the foliage cushions the impact of heavy rainfall (increasingly frequent in Salento)
• storing and filtering water, strengthening resistance to drought, mitigating excessive heat during the summer and preventing the risk of fires.

At the heart of the field, there will also be a marsh pond, a typical habitat of the Mediterranean landscape, especially in areas such as this one called Paduli (which indicates the area’s susceptibility to flooding), where the Asso River, the longest watercourse in Salento, sinks underground, only to re-emerge a few kilometres away on the coast in the Palude del Capitano park.
The pond will attract and become a breeding ground for water birds such as egrets, herons, coots and ducks, as well as hosting amphibians, reptiles, butterflies and cicadas.

We also want the forest to be a place open to shared experiences, a common heritage to be opened up to people through:

• awareness-raising and educational events for children and adolescents, who would have the opportunity to witness the growth of a new ecosystem from scratch

• wellness meetings, which, through the proposal of silvotherapy practices, meditation in nature, butoh dance and exploration of the natural voice, allow participants to cultivate a deeper awareness of themselves through listening to their breath, the subtle movement of their body and the perception of the vibration of their own voice. All this takes place in a natural environment that is constantly growing and evolving, which is considered in itself to be beneficial for mental and physical health, as it activates blood circulation, facilitates breathing, promotes relaxation and lowers anxiety and stress levels.

This is what I need backing for.

Your support for this project is essential to cover all the costs related to the agroforestry project, specifically:

• Cost of the agroforestry project and agro-landscape consulting
• Purchase and procurement of 1,300 seedlings
• Technical equipment needed for planting

Furthermore, your support will help us turn this project into a community initiative: the fruits of which will be a gift for everyone, for those who will one day walk through the woods enjoying its biodiversity, for the children who will see the seedlings grow alongside them, and for the wild animals that will find shelter there.

Your support will become sap, leaves and roots… which will grow more and more each year.

• Expenses related to the water system
• Materials needed to build a wooden observatory on the Great Pepper Tree
• Fire prevention measures
• Forest maintenance