Introduction
Here in the mountains, dry farming was practiced: cereals and vineyards, with olives and almonds being less common. Vineyard cultivation intensified from the 18th century onwards, as these steep, sunny slopes were ideal. Vineyard huts hidden among the maquis and pine forest testify to the terracing of the land for cultivation.
With the arrival of phylloxera, vineyards were drastically reduced and many abandoned. This pest reached the Penedès around 1893 and destroyed 885,000 hectares of vineyards in just eight years.
Without vineyards, other minor crops followed. The carob trees scattered throughout these woods, such as the one at the bend in the path, were used to feed livestock.
By the mid-20th century, these crops were abandoned and replaced by plantations of Aleppo pine, forming the pine forest we see today.