The Agriates Desert

The Agriates has been a rich culture land since a long time with their 16.000 hectares. It is stretching between Alliso and Ostriconi country. Even more : Genois which have held Corsica for a long time, made their granary of wheat and olive trees. Till the beginning of the century, the farmers worked between thousands olive trees; still cultivates the wheat; harvests almonds; lemons and figs...

Still today, even we see pervaded by the maquis, an ancient threshing floor or an old farm in abandonment, encircled with elms and with hundred year old olive trees .
Agriates was also a big transhumance earth. In 1888, we took a census of hundred herds of sheep or ewe. But the successive waves of emigration, the harshness of life in the region, financial diffficulties and the First World War which left more widows and orphans here. After that Agriates began becoming depopulated.

Here, only stony low walls still testify an agricultural activity for ever abandoned.

Today, Agriates Desert is a predilection ground of the nature lovers. The flora of Agriates is particularly rich, diversified and coloured : hikers, horsemen,joggers,VT Tistes... appreciate poetics harshness of the landscape, and also the beaches (more particularly the immaculate extraordinary Mafalco beach or the long Saleccia beach) among the nicest of the island.

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