“A denaturing orchard”: Ethnoecological approach of the chestnut groves of the Orezza valley (Castagniccia, Corsica)

 “A denaturing orchard”: Ethnoecological approach of the chestnut groves of the Orezza valley (Castagniccia, Corsica)
 Original title: “Un verger qui se dénature”: approche ethnoécologique des châtaigneraies de la vallée d’Orezza (Castagniccia, Corse)
by Bellache, Doria
Master thesis 2^nd year, 2020, dir. by Vincent Battesti, Muséum national d’histoire naturelle, Master “Écologie, biodiversité, évolution”, Paris, 120 p.
pdf: https://dumas.ccsd.cnrs.fr/dumas-03...

 Abstract:

This research focuses on the study of a rural socioecosystem, the chestnut orchards of Orezza valley (Castagniccia, Corsica). Until mid-19^th century, the valley supported large population densities. Chestnut flour was an essential staple in the subsistence farming system. Nowadays, only few farmers keep on harvesting chestnut trees; most of them are abandoned. By choosing an ethnoecological approach, this study questions how relationships between local peoples and chestnut orchards are (re)constructed. The uncontrolled growth of vegetation and the changing farming system both lead to a situation seen as anachronistic and anarchic. The difficult transmission of local knowledge linked to chestnut cultivation is perceived as a loss of tradition. It highlights the importance of the past as a resource for local peoples, and their contemporary reinterpretation of it when confronted to the valley evolution.

Châtaignes la Vallée d’Orezza [Chestnuts in Orezza Valley], Castanea sativa Mill., Castagniccia, Corse — Vincent Battesti

Hiver dans la Vallée d’Orezza [Winter in Orezza Valley], Castagniccia, Corse — Vincent Battesti