VALLOMBROSA FOREST 1JN ITALY 



BY NELSON COURTLANDT BROWN 



(PHOTOGRAPHS BY THE AUTHOR) 



NEARLY everyone interested in forestry who spends 

 any time in sunny Italy, pays a visit to the State 

 Forests which are scattered in small patches 

 throughout the rugged peninsula. Perhaps the most 

 frequently visited of these forests, on account of its 

 relative accessibility as well as its interesting historical 

 associations and the welcome, cool shade in the warm 

 summers, is the Forest of Vallombrosa. It is as well 

 known and appreciated 

 among European travelers 

 as the well known Forest 

 of Sihlwald, near Zurich 

 in Switzerland, the Forest 

 of Fontainebleau southeast 

 of Paris or the Forest of 

 Nottingham in England. 



The Forests of Vallom- 

 brosa are within easy reach 

 by motor-car or by train 

 and funicular from Flor- 

 ence in the heart of Tus- 

 cany. By motor, it is just 

 34 miles from Florence and 

 lies over three thousand 

 feet in elevation along the 

 upper reaches of the Apen- 

 nies, overlooking the broad 

 sweeping valley of the 

 Arno. Not far from Val- 

 lombrosa is the crest of the 

 divide with the turning of 

 the waters between the 

 Adriatic to the east and the 

 Mediterranean to the west. 



Vallombrosa, within re- 

 cent years, has become a 

 favorite and well known 

 summer retreat, and for a 

 long time it has been 

 favored in song and story, 

 especially by Milton and 

 Dante who walked its shadowy paths centuries ago. Now, 

 every summer it is the vacation ground for many of 

 the Italian nobility and for the diplomatic corps at 

 Rome. Its great attractiveness lies in the dark, cool 

 silver fir forests with their many highways and woodland 

 walks and the fascinating scenery. There is a great con- 

 trast in climate between Vallombrosa lying high in the 

 mountains and the hot dusty valleys during the three 

 warm summer months. In this part of Italy, silver fir 

 grows only at the high elevations. Along the lower 

 slopes are the symmetrically laid-out olive groves, the 

 carefully tended vineyards and the scattered fig and 

 cypress trees, the latter especially to be remembered as 



MONASTERY OF VALLOMBROSA 



The old watch tower and guard house at the Monastery of Vallombrosa. 

 Here students of the National Forest School were placed in punishment 

 for breaking school rules. 



associated with every attractive view of the Tuscan land- 

 scape a pleasant and unforgettable part of every visi- 

 tor's impressions. Between the olive groves and the 

 forests along the upper slopes are the chestnut groves, 

 of which there is a greater percentage in Tuscany than 

 in any other province in Italy. 



It is said that every American tourist who includes 

 Italy in a European itinerary visits Rome, and next to 



Rome, he is attracted to 

 Florence and its charming 

 environs. From Florence, 

 the Forests of Vallombrosa 

 appear like a dark green 

 blanket on the mountain 

 crests to the east, and from 

 the forest itself one can 

 readily descry, on a fair 

 day, the city surrounded by 

 its villas and cypress-clad 

 hills and the characteristic 

 towers of its ancient cathe- 

 drals and palaces. 



Conditions surrounding 

 the Italian State forests 

 are comparable to those 

 about our own National 

 Forests. That is, most of 

 them are very irregular 

 patches of forests, some 

 are exceedingly remote 

 from the large communities 

 and transportation facili- 

 ties, and the forest cover 

 is often in a poor condition. 

 By way of comparison with 

 our extensive National For- 

 ests in this country, a much 

 smaller percentage of the 

 Italian forests are owned 

 and managed by the Gov- 

 ernmental authorities. Ex- 

 tensive plans, however, are under way for further regu- 

 lation of forests now in the hands of private interests, 

 much of which is not being managed according to modern 

 scientific principles of forestry. 



The historical associations connected with the Forest 

 of Vallombrosa are very interesting. It was founded in 

 the twelfth century and given its name which, literally 

 translated, means "Shadowed Valley," by Saint Giovanni 

 Gualberto. It was founded as a monastery and retreat 

 for one of the Benedictine order of Monks, and from its 

 early inception, the monk took great pride in caring for, 

 cultivating and replanting the forests. Both the monas- 

 tery itself and the forests became enlarged from time to 



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