After:
After:
Step 2: Line the pit with plastic to stop too many plant roots going into the surrounding soil. Make some drainage holes in the plastic.
Step 3: Dig up some soil from underneath an established tree or shrub (here we used a retama plant) which should contain mychorrizal fungi. Take it from a depth of around 20cm.
Step 4: Mix the soil from the tree with the soil you dug from the hole and also with some compost and return this mix to the pit.
Step 5: Sow seeds of plant from the legume family (peas, beans, clover, alfalfa etc) and the grass family (corn, millet, grazing rye etc). These two families make relationships with different kinds of mychorrizas. Water regularly.
Step 6: Let the plants grow for at least 10 weeks and then cut them down to ground level.
Step 7: Wait for a week or so after cutting for the fungi has time to produce spores, then dig up the soil and chop the plant roots into small pieces (5mm should be fine). This mixture of soil and plant roots is your mychorrizal innoculum.
Step 8: To use the innoculum, place some in the bottom of your planting hole when transplanting or place some at the bottom of a seed tray if you are sowing seeds.
After restoring a stonewall in the Arboretum, it remained a clear area where we have recently planted Mediterranean plants. We have planted one Pistacia lentiscus (Mastic) that it can be found in north facing slopes and close to gullies around our valley. We have also planted another plant from the same gender, Pistacia terebinthus (Terebinth). And finally, two Laurus nobilis (Bay leaf), in terms to provide the kitchen with bay leafs for cooking.
Mastic, Terebinth and Bay leaf:

First, we selected the spots for the digging and planting depending on the proximity to other plants, the wall next to the parcel and the dripping irrigation system that it had already been laid around. Some weeding was needed in some spots too. In each hole, humanure was added as fertilizer. Once planted we have surrounded and secure each of the plants with stones taken from the site and safeguarding the dripping irrigation system stays in placed next to them.
The wall restored last year has been used for planting Sedum sediforme (Pale Stonecrop), and also for seeding Capparis spinosa (Capers) looking forward to harvest some this year.
We prepared a substrate with one basket of soil and one basket of “Humanure”, the manure from human ‘s faeces. Then we watered abundantly.
Before sowing the seeds, they were soaked in lemon juice to help the germination and develop a good percent of growth.
After this germinative treatment, we sow the seeds mixed with our substrate making balls to fill the gaps on the wall.
In the same way, we planted the plants of Pale Stonecrop. We used the same substrate to fix them on the wall and to protect their roots.
Both plants, Pale Stonecrop and Capers, are found in our valley in rocky soils with very low requirements of water,…perfect choice to encourage drylands biodiversity in the Arboretum!.
Después de la reciente restauración de un balate en el Arboretum, el departamento ha decidido revegetarlo con plantas mediterráneas locales. Hemos plantado una Pistacia lentiscus (Lentisco) presente en laderas de humbría orientadas al norte y cerca de barrancos y cárcavas en el entorno de nuestro valle. También hemos plantado otra planta del mismo género, Pistacia terebinthus (Cornicabra). Y por último, dos Laurus nobilis (Laurel), con el objetivo de dar un uso culinario a sus hojas.
Lentisco, Cornicabra y Laurel:
En primer lugar, se seleccionaron los puntos para la siembra y plantación en función de la proximidad a otras plantas y el sistema de riego por goteo ya establecido anteriormente. En cada hoyo, se añadió “humanure” como fertilizante, abono proveniente de las heces humanas. Una vez hecha la plantación se protegen las plantas con piedras para mantener la humedad y fijar el riego por goteo.
La pared restaurada el año pasado, se ha utilizado para la plantación de Sedum sediforme (Uña de gato) y la siembra de Capparis spinosa (Alcaparras), con vistas a cosechar algo de alcaparras este verano.
Hemos preparado un sustrato con mitad de suelo y mitad de “humanure”. A continuación se ha regado abundantemente.
Antes de la siembra de las semillas, éstas se empapan en jugo de limón para favorecer su germinación.
Después de este tratamiento pregerminativo, sembramos las semillas mezcladas con el sustrato haciendo bolas que permitan rellenar los huecos entre las rocas del balate.
De la misma manera se ha procedido a plantar las plantas de Uña de gato. Utilizando
el mismo sustrato, se fijan las plantas en la pared asegurándonos de que queden sus raíces bien protegidas.
Ambas plantas, Uña de gato y Alcaparras, se encuentran en nuestro valle en suelos rocosos con muy bajos requerimientos de agua,…una elección perfecta para fomentar la biodiversidad vegetal de climas semiáridos en el Arboretum!.










We have various patches of beetroot in the gardens planted at different times to ensure an extended harvest. During cold spells its growth slows right down, but after a nice warm period we harvested 10kg from one row in the Patch. We ate some fresh, grated into salads, some cooked and some preserved in jars for eating when we have none to harvest. Beetroot is a great crop to grow as it can grow in partial shade and does not need lots of water or nutrients, you can also eat the leaves like chard or spinach.
Our new timetable for our free guided tours is below. Nuestro horario nuevo de nuestra visitas guiadas gratuitas esta abajo.We look forward to seeing you! Os esperamos!