The role of mediterranean fruit tree orchards and vineyards in maintaining the traditional agricultural landscape

The Mediterranean area represents one of the most suitable and diversified environments for horticultural crops, being this propriety well expressed in the commonly accepted definition of \u201cMediterranean cultivated garden\u201d. In Italy, fruit crops have been in the past introduced and expanded in different environments depending on the species and adaptability to the physiographic characteristics of the regions. The climate and the diversity of environmental contexts, the specificity of soils, the plasticity of the cultivated genotypes, have allowed a tight and typical relationship among land and farmers. Since the past centuries olive and fruit orchards, vineyards and Citrus plantations have represented the typicity of the Italian rural landscape. The physiognomy of tree cropping systems has been changed rapidly starting from half of the past century owing to the introduction of new genetic resources, the change in the concepts of quality, the modernization and intensification of the agronomical techniques, resulting in loss of environmental and biological diversity. Nonetheless, some historic fruit orchards and vineyards have survived. The research is focused: a) on the recognition and mapping of the traditional landscapes of fruit crops in two representative Mediterranean regions; b) on the identification of their typological traits; c) on the definition of their environmental and technical sustainability based on an interdisciplinary methodology. Through a multi-criterial analysis it was possible to recognize and measure the sustainability of these cropping models and their ecological function, turning into preservation of environmental resources, environmental quality and quality of life. The study also underlined the crucial role of the traditional agricultural landscapes in the maintenance of local identity, history and economy. By representing a cultural heritage, traditional agricultural landscapes and traditional farming might justify preservation and valorisation actions