Arboreal Archeology

Biodiversity is very important, but today it is seriously threatened by intensive monocultures and pesticides. Fortunately, many people in the World are mobilizing, among which there are the famous arboreal-archaeologist Isabella dalla Ragione and the Hollywood actor Bill Pullman, who together have played a role in the movie “The fruit hunters”, a documentary film by director Yung Chang, produced by the ” Eyesteel ” production company of Montreal. In the movie, Isabella investigates the Renaissance paintings of the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, in search of clues able to help her to discover rare plants and endangered species to save. In real life Isabella acytually owns a collectible orchard, where she saves and preserves many varieties of plants and fruits almost extinct now. In the historic estate of San Lorenzo Lerchi, near Città di Castello, Isabella takes care of about four hundred ancient fruit trees, cultivating them with the ancient method of the Upper Tiber Valley and saving them from a sure extinction. Plants with rare fruits, with strange names: touchy fig, cornet grapes, big nose apple, just to name a few. Livio Dalla Ragione, Isabella’s father, and founder of “Arborea Archaeology ” decided that the plants could also be adopted ( by giving them a name ) spending a sum, one-off, of 150,00 Euro. The adoptive ” parent “, whose name is engraved on a plaque hanging on the plant, can pick its fruits … by visiting his ” son ” once every eighteen months, on the sole condition that he brings a small sack of manure as a gift, and leaves three fruits to the tree: one for the sun, one for the ground and one for the tree itself. Many actors and celebrities have already adopted their ancient trees of the estate of Isabella.

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