The agricultural company “Juntos” has partnered with the Residents’ Association of Corona, with the support of the Consell, the town hall of San Antonio and IbizaPreservation
Santa Inés, 15 December 2021 – The agricultural company Can Escarrer SL, known as Juntos, has begun planting some 1500 almond trees in the Pla de Corona, aimed at recovering the iconic groves of Santa Inés, in a joint initiative with IbizaPreservation and the Residents’ Association of Corona,
In an event open to the media, Juntos technicians began to plant the new saplings on Wednesday afternoon, in holes dug following the excavation of trees that had reached the end of their productive life.
Between December and January, 1540 almond trees will be planted in an area of 9.60 hectares, using organic and regenerative agricultural techniques. They are expected to take about five years to start flowering and bearing fruit.
“We are honoured and grateful for the trust that local owners have placed in us to replant these iconic groves; we believe in both the almond business and its regenerative potential, given its water efficiency and resistance to fungi,” said Christian Jochnick, director of Juntos, a collective of farms focused on the regeneration of the land through both innovative and traditional techniques. The company already planted about 800 almond trees on its first farm, Can Escarrer de San Mateu, in 2019.
“We believe we have agreed a mutually beneficial model with the owners of the land, which we can continue to strengthen in the future. We are very excited about our contribution to the collective effort to protect this natural treasure in the Pla de Corona, so that future generations can enjoy these magical trees in bloom,” added Jochnick.
“For us it is a privilege and an honour to receive this assistance to restore the Pla de Santa Inés to its former glory,” said María Ferrer of the Residents’ Association of Corona. “Initiatives like these give life and joy to the people of Santa Inés and to the entire island, because the countryside belongs to everyone and we must recover it for all our sakes.”
This is the latest in a series of actions to regenerate the traditional Ibizan crop, which has been lost in recent decades due to the gradual abandonment of agricultural land and the emergence of tourism as the island’s main economic engine.
According to the Consell of Ibiza, the productive area of almond trees today is only equivalent to about 100 ha; most of the groves, including those of the iconic Pla de Corona, are in decline with the trees near the end of their biological life, of around 70 years. The Consell expressed its support for this most recent collaboration as a mechanism to expand the cultivated area covered by the trees.
The initiative also has the approval of the town hall of San Antonio. Attending today’s event, Miguel Ángel Costa, its agriculture technician, signalled the institution’s hope that more Corona residents join the plantation project. This initial stage was formalised with the support of IbizaPreservation, with the foundation acting as interlocutor between the interested parties.
“At IbizaPreservation we have always supported initiatives related to the recovery of the almond groves, not only because it is part of the heritage of the island, but also because the almond is a superfood with a multitude of nutritional benefits and should therefore be valued,” said Gabrielle Gambina, coordinator of Ibiza Produce, an IbizaPreservation project that promotes the regeneration of the soils and landscapes of the island.
