Wildfires in Portugal  are both real and disastrous, as was seen in the devastating loss of property, livelihoods, and lives in 2017. Native wood species, like pine and oak, are more and more shunned in favour of eucalyptus trees. As a result industrial monoculture plantations are created, which burn easily, as the trees contain a highly flammable oil. Ironically, after each fire, more eucalyptus plantations spring up in an attempt to recoup the losses by investing in a species, which requires a much shorter production cycle.

A New York Times article states that the ownership of a fifth of the land in Portugal is unidentified. The tendency of young people to migrate from rural to urban areas have left much of central Portugal with an aging population. Foreigners, or estrangeiros, like ourselves in search of an alternative lifestyle or cheaper property prices, have found their way to these parts of Portugal, and in most cases are keen to make a positive contribution to the community.  Neglect and abandonment are often stated as contributing factors to these wildfires, and laws are regularly amended in an effort to clamp down on the problem. Knowing that our land is located in a high fire risk environment, despite the fact that we have no large forests or plantations directly bordering it, makes us very much aware of how our choices and actions can impact on our surroundings.

With our eye on the official deadline for clearing one’s land at the end of April, we decided that it would be lovely to spend both our wedding anniversary and Michael’s birthday at the beginning of April on the land. We also reasoned that spring would be beautiful and green. What we didn’t know was that April is still very cold, and that there is a reason the Portuguese have a saying to indicate that April is a rainy month. As a result we experienced first hand what “abril aguás mil” means, and although the rain was often only a slight drizzle, we did get thoroughly wet on our last day of work. I am not one, even on a hot summer’s day, to dance in the rain, so cold and wet is not what I would describe as either pleasant or enjoyable. After many long days of physical exertion, our bodies screamed in protest, and our nerves felt a tad frazzled.

Having a neighbour, who grazes his sheep on our land is a blessing, as they keep the grass short, but the parcel of land we have come to affectionately call Maria’s Land (read about our land ‘dispute’) has been neglected in recent years, and has become overgrown. Clumps of dead vegetation and tangles of bramble bushes had to be removed, while we also wanted to clear the land of small trees growing too close to one another. Being novice landowners we tackled the huge task with enthusiasm, but the lack of experience meant we didn’t approach the task in the most efficient way. The result was double the exertion, and half the result, despite putting both my sister and niece, who came to visit us from Spain, to work.

If nothing else, we have learned what to do differently next time, and although we have done only part of what we would have liked to, we also know that there will always be some task on the land that would need our attention, and that each visit will demand something different. For now the brambles by the stream will have to wait until the next clearing season, and the bramble bush in the well, for a warm summer’s day.

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Working and shooting video footage at the same time is way beyond my current skill set, but I did manage to put a video together for a glimpse of our time there.

Written by: Jolandi

April visit 2018