El cultivo tradicional del almendro en el Mediterráneo: Baleares en el contexto español (ca. 1770-2017)

The process of arboreal diversification that was initiated in Spain in the final stage of the Old Regime propitiated the emergence of new areas of production and crops. Some Mediterranean regions, and in particular the Balearic Islands, stood out for the early dry farming cultivation of almond trees. Its development has been related above all to the evolution of the commercial value of almonds, often ignoring other uses of the tree: fertilizer, fodder for livestock, firewood, etc. But in traditional agrarian systems, as with other crops, their multifunctionality was extremely important for the reinitiation of productive cycles on many farms; especially for peasant units. In the Balearic Islands, the moderate yields of almond plantations and the competition exercised by other national and international areas of production, in particular from the second half of the 20th century on, did not discourage cultivation of them. As in other regions, development was favoured by successive improvement plans financed from the 1960s on by different government institutions: first by the government of Spain, and more recently by the European Community. However, over recent years, a highly destructive bacteria (Xylella fastidiosa) has not only discouraged cultivation, but threatens the survival of one of the most characteristic trees of the agricultural landscape of the islands.