Gonfaron: learning about cork oaks
© Patrick Morand / www.patmo.net
The Maures country derives its name from the Provencal maouro, which means "dark wood", referring to the deep colour of the cork oak covered hills.
Did you know? The Var, and in particular the Maures forest, has the most beautiful cork oak groves in France. They cover 45,000 hectares, only half of which are exploited. The species is also found in Corsica, in the Eastern Pyrenees and in Aquitaine. In the 19th century, the Maures forests were bustling with activity. The rusquiers, as the forest workers were called, were busy stripping the male and female cork.
The cork industry was at its peak, notably in La Garde Freinet and Collobrières, where numerous plants employed hundreds of men and women. From 1950 on, there was a decline, due to increased competition from Portugal, Spain, Italy, Morocco and Tunisia. With the spread of brambles and undergrowth, forest fires reinforced this decline. Nowadays, the vital necessity of maintaining the forests to prevent fires has led to the gradual rehabilitation of the cork oak forests. But there is still quite a bit of work to be done to revive this particular heritage!
Contact us
Office du tourisme de Gonfaron
Hôtel de ville
83590 Gonfaron
(0033) (0)4 94 78 30 05
See the access map
The Cork Ecomuseum
Discover
L'Institut méditérannéen du liège
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The La Garde Freinet Heritage Preservation Society
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Topic : Landscapes and nature
Published on : 2008/10/27
Tags : gonfaron decouverte chene-liege
