Soria dresses in red holly for Christmas

Decorate the homes and businesses of Soria with the branches of this tree, characterized by purple red of the little balls that adorn it, It has become a hobby and fashion for many families in Soria during the month of December.

The manager of El Acebarillo, Cristina Martínez Narro, highlights in statements to Ical that throughout this month the Acebarillo team teaches workshops in the towns of Soria those who come, especially women, who make decorations to decorate their homes with an emblematic product of the province.

Martínez points out that, although the summer and part of the fall were dry, the holly is “splendid” and a large production was recorded. “Garagüeta holly is splendid,” emphasizes the businesswoman, who started selling ornamental twigs to florists in Valencia and Madrid, mainly, and who currently sells Soria holly centerpieces and wreaths to florists and private clients throughout Spain.

El Acebarillo organizes many workshops in rural areas to make wreaths, baskets and centerpieces. To this more artisanal work is added the offer of routes through the Acebal de Garagüeta and the sales stand available in El Collado Soria. The company managed to employ around fifteen people. “People who buy holly from the controlled pruning of Acebal de Garagüeta contribute to the conservation of the forest. In addition, the municipality receives revenue and the company creates jobs in rural areas,” he says.

Cuttings allowed

The Junta de Castilla y León, through the Territorial Environmental Service, has authorized the use of records of 27,850 kilograms of ornamental twigs from forestry treatments of holly authorized in public utility forests.

In Garagüeta and in the Dehesa de Arévalo de la Sierra, the cutting of holly 16,000 kilos and 7,500 kilos respectively is authorized. The rest of the authorizations are distributed in the forests of the municipalities of Oncala (3,200 kilos), Almarza (750) and Castilfrío de la Sierra (400).

According to the Forest Map of Spain, holly appears as the main species on approximately 1,600 hectares in Soria, it appears as a companion species on a further 2,430 hectares and, given the ease of dispersal through fauna, it is present, although in isolated stands or with a rarer presence, in many other mountains.

The uniqueness of this species has not only made it the target of various studies, but in some mountains, such as Acebal de Garagüeta, it receives a series of catalogings at European level of great importance, being part of the Natura 2000 network since it is an SPA (Special Protection Area for Birds) and the species is included in the catalog of habitats of community interest established by the Habitats Directive within Sclerophyll Forests Mediterranean.

According to the Natural Heritage Law of Castilla y León In 2015, holly was no longer protected in the Autonomous Community due to the significant presence of the species and its guarantee of persistence. in time. However, to allow their sustainable use, the vast majority of the holly forests in the province have been organized through the “Dasocratic Plan for the Acebals of Sections III and IV of the Province of Soria”, with an area close to 2,000 hectares.

Any cutting of branches is carried out in accordance with the provisions of the said Plan, under the supervision of environmental agents, who control the execution of the work. In addition, the forests included in this document are certified with the PEFC label, which guarantees their sustainable use and marketing on “green label” markets. But the most important thing is that it generates wages in rural areas and that the added value remains in the producing cities.

Pruning is generally carried out by the inhabitants of these municipalities with holly trees and the main destinations for this product, typically at Christmas, are Soria capital, Valencia, Barcelona and Madrid. The local company El Acebarillo has been marketing ornamental twigs and other processed products, such as centers, of this species for many years.