SUSTAINABILITY
We are in a unique environment, so we must maintain it and keep it for future generations. To do this, we must take advantage of the resources that this land provides us.
SUSTAINABLE BUILDINGS AND RENEWABLE ENERGIES
Recirculation of rainwater for irrigating the orchard. Solar energy is produced and the bone of the olive is reused as biomass, to supply its own energy consumption
DRIP IRRIGATION
We accurately supply just the required water employing digitally-controlled drip irrigation, so we can control fruit growth and quality.
BIODIVERSITY
Ground cover systems coupled with appropriate bank management create a suitable habitat for local fauna. There are a large number of partridges, rabbits and hares on the estate. Other wild animals include martens, badgers, foxes, a pair of golden eagles, a pair of nesting owls, and some other smaller birds of prey (kestrels, kites).
GROUND COVER, WITH PRUNING REMAINS
The alleys between rows are not tilled to prevent soil erosion and the loss of organic matter. This prevents the release of CO2 captured in photosynthesis by the olive orchard, saving fuel and respecting the ecosystem. The grass and prunings are chopped to facilitate composting and provide a natural organic fertiliser for the olive trees.
UPNA LIFE PROJECT
In 2014 we took part in a research project on the carbon footprint of agriculture. The study compared CO2 emissions from tilled and untilled agricultural plots.
Download. A paper by Paloma Bescansa and Iñigo Virto from the Department of Natural Sciences of the Public University of Navarre (UPNA).
ECOLOGICAL PEST CONTROL
The plantation is mostly organic and different combined methods are employed to achieve effective pest management while maintaining the quality of the fruit but always with the utmost respect for the environment. For example, traps are used to capture the olive fruit fly and flower strips are planted to house beneficial fauna.
TERROIR AND CLIMATE
The personality of extra virgin olive oil comes from fruit quality and ripening, the olive variety and also in a large measure from the soil and local climate.
Soil characterisation
Finca Los Llanos is located on a middle terrace are in the Ebro valley. The soil is deep, developed on quaternary deposits, slightly stony and uniform. This is the perfect medium for rooting and water retention, as well as for infiltration and drainage.
The content of organic matter in the surface horizon is high, above average for the soils of the area. It is the consequence of proper management maintaining a ground cover and applying conservation tillage.
It is therefore a soil with perfect agronomic aptitude for growing olives.
Climate
The estate has a complex climate, which limits olive production but contrasts are what give the oil a unique concentration of aromas. A characteristic trait of this part of Ribera de Navarra is the high levels of sun exposure, with more than 2600 hours of sunshine per year. It is also influenced by three different climates and all three can occur within the same week:
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Continental weather: Cold and dry, arriving from the Castile-Leon plateau passing the Moncayo, located 32 km in a straight line from the plantation.
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Atlantic Climate: Humid and mild, it comes from the north down the Ebro valley.
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Mediterranean climate with a cold winter: Extreme weather with very cold winters and very hot summers, coming up the Ebro Valley from the south-east.
VARIETIES IN THE ESTATE
In 2003 we started to test new varieties. We planted five tress each from over fifty varieties. The objective was to see what they offered us at the sensory level, since one way to obtain different nuances in extra virgin olive oil is to start from different varieties. After studying them in a laboratory mill, a total of eleven varieties were chosen to be planted in addition to Arbequina, which was our first plantation.
CALENDARIO DE CAMPO
WINTER DORMANCY AFTER HARVEST
It begins once the fruit has matured. The activity of the tree is minimal until spring.
PRUNING
This is determined by the training method, espalier, seeking to increase the surface area exposed to sunlight. It requires technical know-how and the entire field team, since it is done manually.
BUD SPROUTING
The flower buds begin to develop at the same time as the tree’s vegetative growth.
FLOWERING
Small open flowers with a large amount of pollen in the environment.
FRUIT SET
Some of the successfully-pollinated flowers stay in the tree and the fruit begins its development.
FRUIT GROWTH
During growth, fruit size increases and the pit hardens.
RIPENING
Green fruit advances in the ripening process, entering veraison or colour change (green, yellow, purple-red, black).
HARVEST
Early mechanical harvesting, which begins in mid-October, aims to get the aromas that the green olives can still offer.