From the low wall bordering the entrance to the village of Lumio (Upper Corsica) to the church, the view over the bay of Calvi, to the west, a blue that matches the sky, takes your breath away. All you have to do is turn your head to the left, towards the south, to embrace the hills where the bushy maquis climbs, the fields and the vineyards which make up the landscape of the Balagne hinterland, one of the most sensitive in Corsica in the climate change and its impact on water.
Below the village, the bees of Corinne Dumas and Christian Aurenty know something about it. The maquis is their cornucopia. At the beginning of August, the green tufts of slimy inula are not yet covered with the golden flowers that will be their delight this winter. In the shade of oaks and pines, around ten beehives are protected by car sunshades. Everything is good for lowering the temperature of the cabins. The previous three years, there was such a lack of water that it was necessary to install bird waterers for the thirsty foragers.
Last winter was so dry that, on these hills, white heather, the key ingredient of spring maquis honey, one of the six honeys listed in the AOP honey of Corsica, did not flower, just like , a few months earlier, the arbutus trees, guarantors of the autumn maquis honey harvest. “In Corsica there are no major crops, the bees only forage in nature, but these climate changes disrupt the flowering, when everything is tangled it becomes difficult”says Christian Aurenty, who nevertheless remembers with wonder that at the first rain in May, the maquis was suddenly displayed in Technicolor.
Further down still, on the road to Calvi, Lisandru Mariani, too, oscillates between gratitude towards this nature which gives so much and reflection to prepare for the future. His mother and aunt were the pioneers of herbalism in Corsica, banking on its gold, the immortelle. From this flower with its head-turning scent, a healing essential oil is derived, treating bruises, wounds and bumps, sold between 1,500 and 2,000 euros per liter. In front of the distillery, the residue from the last harvest dries while waiting for compost. This year, the everlasting bushes, now short, were half as large, due to lack of water at the right time. The fragility of the landscape that surrounds its fields reflects this image. “The scrub is deteriorating, it may appear green, but the drought and extreme heat cause all these plants to sweat, the oils evaporate, concentrate in the atmosphere and make the land flammable”he points out.
You have 65.64% of this article left to read. The rest is reserved for subscribers.