Enhancing the attractiveness of the Traditional Gardens of Cap Corse

"This project, rooted in the heart of the territory of Upper Corsica, meets heritage conservation as well as educational objectives. The work is unanimously recognized by the authorities and, more broadly speaking, by the public and the population. Beyond providing a link between its various public and private partners, it will also exploit the knowhow and feedback of our teams, particularly for the construction of the pond."

Pierre Fiori

It all began in 1992... the Regional Nature Park of Corsica and ethnobotanist Georges Métailie decided to form a nonprofit to investigate the cultivated plant heritage of Cap Corse. The nonprofit Cap Vert saw the day, and, very quickly, with three ethnobotanic surveys, it demonstrated the local wealth of cultivated plant resources and installed the Traditional Gardens in the commune of Luri.

The very first structure of this type in Corsica, these gardens are designed for the safeguarding, conservation, utilization, awareness raising, research and dissemination of the plant resources of Corsica and particularly of Cap Corse, chiefly on local vegetable and fruit species, which are endangered. These gardens - more than 300 fruit trees and over 20 varieties of heritage vegetables - on an area of three hectares, are managed by the nonprofit, which earned the AB label in 2004.

Visitors are also offered an exhibition room on ethnobotany, including a library, a seed library, a room depicting rural and local expertise, and a taste center, where everyone can rediscover the forgotten flavors of the vegetables and fruits of yesteryear by tasting the Saveurs Cap Vert (registered trademark).

Promoting biodiversity

Alongside their primary vocation conserve the plant heritage, the Jardins Traditionnels du Cap Corse are also a venue for information and exchanges, public awareness and environmental education for schoolchildren. The nonprofit wants to enhance the attractiveness of the facility by building a reception area for visitors at the site entrance, creating an identity garden, and installing botanical signage. The improvement of these infrastructures and the creation of the identity garden, a true showcase of the Corsican plant heritage, are further steps in favor of biodiversity. The nonprofit Cap Vert, incarnating the cultivated and wild plant heritage of Corsica, will then emerge as a genuine tool for the promotion and enhancement of the soil of Corsica, of its environment, its culture, its history, and also its traditional rural and artisanal expertise.