Ulivi Millenari Luras: monumental trees in Sardinia
Half an hour's drive from Olbia and its coastline, it is possible to discover another wonderful side of Sardinia. Luras, a small village in the heart of green Gallura between Bassacutena, Luogosanto, Calangianus and Sant'Antonio di Gallura, is home to monumental trees that are the magnificent thousand-year-old olive trees.
Olives in Sardinia are very common trees that can be counted among the typical plants in Sardinia. These are wild olive trees generally of medium height with spindly young branches and fruit not suitable for oil production.
Olive trees are generally very long-lived plants, but the Olivastri Millenari of Luras have some truly incredible characteristics and are in fact among the oldest trees in the world
Thousand-year-old olive trees: S'Ozzastru, The Senator
In Luras in the Carana (Karana) area near the Liscia dam is S'Ozzastru - the Olive Tree -. one of the 20 oldest trees in Italy, one of the oldest trees in Europe and the world.
The thousand-year-old wild olive tree is a true senator, a very important natural monument of rare beauty. Experts date the birth of this tree between about 3000 and 4000 years ago.
Height: approx. 14 metres
Circumference: approx. 19 metres
Canopy: approx. 600 m2
Not far from this patriarch is another thousand-year-old olive tree, estimated to be around 2000 years old. Its foliage creates a real miniature foresta magical place out of time.
The Park of the Ancient Olive Trees
The park where the thousand-year-old olive trees reside is guarded, well cared for and maintained. There are fences delimiting the sensitive areas and preserving the trees. The infographic on the site reads:
The Green Patriarch
Millenary witnesses of the severe landscape, the thousand-year-old olive trees have silently observed the passing of history and certainly the building of the nearby church of San Bartolomeo, Santu Baltolu di Karana.
These are centuries-old wild olive trees (Olea oleaster or Olea europaea var. Sylvestris), including the green 'Patriarca' (s'ozzastru in Sardinian), also defined as the oldest tree in Italy, which was declared a Natural Monument, and included in 1991, by ministerial decree for the region of Sardinia, in the list of 'twenty centuries-old trees in Italy'.
The patriarch measures 14 metres in height, 18 metres and 60 cm in circumference of the trunk at the base, 11 metres and 16 cm in circumference of the trunk at breast height (apd) at one metre and thirty centimetres; the crown covers 600 square metres.
Its age, according to some experts, is estimated between 3.00 and 4.00 years, making it one of the oldest trees in Europe.
From the gnarled heart of the trunk, some long, emerged roots start, firmly securing the green giant to the ground. The irregular foliage laps the ground on one side and rises up on the other as if looking out over the wonderful panorama of the Liscia lake.
A second olive tree over 2,000 years old, measuring 8 m high, 1315 cm at the collar, 820 cm at one metre and thirty feet (apd).
Closing the group of centenarians is another plant more than five centuries old.
Lakes in Sardinia
The lakes in Sardinia are mainly of artificial originwith the exception of Lake Baratz, a natural lake located in the Nurra di Sassari.
There are also small lakes in seasonal character which are created from catchment areas by rainwater and are thus fed exclusively by rainfall.
Some of the Sardinia's most important lakes are:
- Lake Baratz - Province of Sassari
- Lake Coghinas - Province of Sassari
- Lake Mulargia - province of Nuoro and South Sardinia
- Lake Omodeo - in the province of Oristano
- Liscia Lake - Province of Sassari
The Liscia Lake
Lake Liscia is an artificial lake located in Gallura between the municipalities of Luras, Sant'Antonio di Gallura, Arzachena, Calangianus and Luogosanto, totally surrounded by greenery and Gallura rocks of northern area of Sardinia.
The lake is formed by the barrage of the Liscia river, which originates on Mount San Giorgio and flows with its wide delta mouth opposite the La Maddalena Archipelago.
The Liscia lake is well known in Sardinia for its scenic beauty. It is possible to take a boat trip to admire its shores, dam and vegetation. The Liscia dam guarantees the water supply for the whole of Gallura to Olbia and Golfo Aranci.
The best tours Luras
