The Garden of Jorba is located on the outskirts of the town of Senan, just down the hill from the town center. The site consists of a northeast-facing slope terraced by a series of stone walls running perpendicular to the valley. The stone walls created a complex artificial topography of slopes and flat land which reduces soil erosion, allowing people to farm the land. Several of the larger flat areas are accessible and were farmed with a tractor until recently. The slopes make other parts of the site difficult to access with a tractor, and the landowner planted these areas with almond trees and pine plantations or left them unmanaged. This diversity of management practices in a small area (2 hectares) creates a mosaic that is representative of the dominant types of agriculture in the region, including cereal production, almond orchards and pine plantations. The intricate geometry of the walls and variation in the topography, in combination with the beautiful views down the valley, make this a rewarding site to explore.

The soil profile shows a soil depth of more than one meter and three distinct soil horizons. There is no organic layer on the topsoil. Due to the location of the site, we expect the soil to correspond to the Empuries soil described by the ICGC.

Each garden contains a 10x20m test plot that is monitored closely prior, during and after the intervention in order to document changes to the soil and vegetation. We located the test plot so it straddles one of the walls, crossing the old almond orchard and pine plantation. This page contains more information about the test plot and the vegetation survey.

Until recently, the site was farmed and as a result, the land is not yet forested. This results in shrubby vegetation with many grasses and herbaceous plants. Some key indicator species include Blackstonia perfoliate, Euphorbia serrata, and Daucus carota.

The site contains a house next to the road that the landowner occasionally visits as well as a small apiary with several beehives that he tends. The layout of the plots for the horses allows access for beekeeping. We located the Jardinet by the road adjacent to the house. It links a small grove of pines near the road with several large exposed boulders. The remainder of the site is divided into evenly sized plots, each of which will support the herd of horses for a single day. More than elsewhere, the layout of the plots is constrained by the topography and resultant access limitations since each plot must be reachable by a tractor. This results in a layout that responds to the geometry of agriculture in the past, and adapts the this structure to new forms production for the 21st century.

Images showing the existing condition of the Jorba garden in June, including the landowners active apiary, Chair of Being Alive