The history of the Calabrian hazelnut

There are many curiosities linked to the history of the hazelnut, which ancient manuscripts indicate first in China and then in Europe, in the Mediterranean and the Balkans, where shepherds and nymphs, in the shade of hazelnuts, sang the praises of love, but was almost certainly known in Greek and Roman times.

In Calabria, instead, hazelnut cultivation took root in 1700 in Cardinale and, when Gaetano Filangieri planted the first hazelnut grove in 1850, luxuriant plantations also sprang up in Torre di Ruggiero in the Catanzaro area and in Simbario in the Vibonese area, where the excellent product was the result of an understanding between man and nature, human labour and the vocation of the land.

Once ripe, between the end of August and the beginning of September, the hazelnuts fall from the tree without husks, facilitating harvesting and increasing productivity per hectare: the hazelnut grove, in fact, becomes productive in its fourth year, matures in its seventh and, with the rejuvenation of the foliage, can last for decades. Once the harvest is over, the hazelnuts are dried, shelled and sorted.