Orchid Valley, a treasure of biodiversity

A treasure of biodiversity in the heart of Cilento National Park, Vallo di Diano and Alburni. And the Valley of the Orchidsa Sassanoin which they flower spontaneously well 184 species of wild orchids. An explosion of scents and colors, an open-air nature museum, which in spring gives life to an incredible show. A Valley of 47 square kilometers along a route of about eight kilometres, in which you can observe various species of wild orchids, numerous and spectacular birch trees, a rare species for the Park territory, and numerous other examples of local flora and fauna, as well as animals in the wild, especially cattle and horses.

The idea and name of the Orchid Valley was born at the beginning of the 90s, with the aim of affirming and communicating the research, studies and professional experiences of the professor Nicola Di Novella, pharmacist, naturalist and geobotanist, carried out on the nature in the broad sense of the territories south of the province of Salerno and in particular of the Vallo di Diano and the Monte Cervati massif. The initiative acquired greater development when the Botanical Garden of Naples and the Department of Plant Biology of the Federico II University of Naples became interested in the research.

Among grasslands, pastures, prairies, grassy slopes and woods they flourish well 184 wild orchid entities, between species, subspecies, varieties and hybrids. While the bright colors of the orchids are observed, in the belts between chestnut and black hornbeam and black hornbeam and beech, the first tall, beautiful, elegant and supple birches begin to appear, accompanied by hazelnuts, pears and wild apple trees, aspens, willows goats, opal maples and maple trees Lobel, dogwoods, Neapolitan alders, hollies and numerous medicinal, officinal and aromatic plants. In fact, the era of the glaciations wanted to give the Sassano valley a unique naturalistic richness in the entire Southern Apennines: the most important stations ofRoth pendulous birch”.

Don’t miss the Ecomuseum of the Orchid Valley and the ancient cultivations of Sassano. It is made up of 3 sections: the first, indoors, is currently being reorganized and will contain an archive of the botanical-floristic research studies of the

Cilento Vallo di Diano and Alburni National Park, a newspaper library of spontaneous orchids, spontaneous flora, the landscape and the activities of rural man, a germ library of spontaneous plant species and ancient cultivars of cereals, vegetables and fruits of the park area , a Herbarium di dried of plant species. The second is a traveling collection, which collects fresh (in certain periods of the year) and dried samples of the plant biodiversity of the Park Area.

The third, the “living” one, which is represented by the entire territory of 47 square kilometers of the Orchid Valley, from 420 meters to 1271 meters above sea level, and by the collection fields of the Guardian Growers Network, located in various municipalities belonging to the Park area. From April to May the blooms are numerous and it is the best time to visit the Valley of the Orchids (excursions are scheduled for Sunday 5 May at 10:00 and Sunday 12 May at 10:00 reservations (required) at ricardodinovella@gmail. com).

The traditional Orchid Festival also takes place in May with guided tours, tastings of typical products, musical and folklore shows organized by the municipality of Sassano.