The Olive Grove

Olive growing is a major agrarian activity in Mediterranean countries with high international demand for olive oil, which increased by 50 per cent between 1990–1995 and 2005–2010, from 1,877,000 to 2,602,000 tonnes. ¹ This increase contributed to the local development of several regions in the Mediterranean basin and to the extension of productive olive landscapes. Olive groves are very common in the Mediterranean mountains because of the positive adaptation of the climatic, topographic and edaphic conditions of the land. In parallel to this, olive landscapes also have a strong symbolic and identity dimension (Luginbühl, 1990; Angles, 2001). In this respect, and as part of a movement to promote the multi-functionality of agricultural landscapes, olive groves have become an object of heritage and a major element in the location-marketing strategies of several Mediterranean regions. Faced with new olive-growing practices which tend towards increased intensification and modernisation, the question is raised of the compatibility of some productive olive groves with the preservation of natural resources (Montiel Bueno, 1998; Beaufoy, 2001; Araque Jimenez, 2008), in particular soil (Costa Perez et al., 1999; Costa Aguilar, 2001; Pastor et al., 2001), water, and biodiversity (Pujadas Salva, 1986; Muñoz Cobo et al., 2001; Medad, 2004; Le Roux et al., 2008; Cano, 2009), which limits the scope of this multi-functionality.