Castelvetrano is an Italian town of about 31,761
inhabitants. It is situated on the South-Western coast of Sicily, in
the province of Trapani.
BIO-GEOGRAPHICAL
STUDY OF THE TERRITORY
The territory
of Castelvetrano,
geologically young, is made up of a monocline that gradually plunges towards
the sea. Its morphology is quite hilly
with small slopes, reaching a maximum of
290 metres
above sea level to the north of the
inhabited area. The territory has plenty of water. The main streams ,that are
typically torrential , are Belice, that gives its name to the Valley, Modione
and Delia. Since the territory is an agricultural area ,
the outskirts of the town are intensively cultivated . For this reason
it is quite difficult to find natural sites with flora and fauna typical of the
Mediterranean insular area. The most common cultivation is the olive tree in its variety called "Nocellara del Belice" used either
as table olive or oil. The latter product
is recognized as a PDO product and
is well-appreciated both in Italy
and abroad. Other agricultural products
are vineyards, vegetables and wheat.
CASE STUDY: VILLA MARGHERITA
The site we
have chosen as a case study for urban recovery is a small garden that overlooks
Regina Margherita Square
(37°67' North ,12°79' East) from which it takes its name, in the city centre
and on the edge of the first historical nucleus.
Regina Margherita Villa occupies a triangular space between two
churches, St. Dominic Church (the oldest of the town ,XVth century) and St John Church
( XVIth century ) . In 1871 trees, palms, rubber plants were planted. In 1885 it was
embellished with an iron railing and in 1887
a sculptor from Palermo,
Mario Rutelli, added a marble group in the centre of a fountain. Unfortunately,
during the Second World War the original , iron railing was partially damaged in
order to make some cannons , and during
the 1968 earthquake that
destroyed the Belice
Valley, the garden was
used as a shantytown for the homeless .
Rutelli sculpture was restored by Professor Benedetto Risalvato and it was put at the entrance to the Selinus
Theatre while a copy of it was located in its original place, these days vandalized
and degraded. Our recovery project includes a botanical study to identify any
problems with the trees ; an intervention on them to remove molds and other
infections; cleaning of flower beds and restoration of the sculpture called "Bambocciata".
Images
referring to the first site visit to Margherita Villa that took place on 26th February, 2016 with the whole staff and with the expert in
Forestry and Environmental Sciences, Doctor Cirabisi.
February, 2016
Today’s sculpture
A history and art lesson about the origins of the Villa and subsequent
vicissitudes by Professor Calcara.
A lesson about the different tree species and flowers.
Date-palm and weed.
Last September our students took part in an environmental campaign called "Puliamo il Mondo!", the Italian version of "Clean Up the World". It was meant to be a follow-up of the Green Day, organized in May to restore Villa Margherita in Castelvetrano. But what is "Clean Up the World?
START TODAY....
