Terraprims

Some historical notes on the landscape of Els Terraprims:

• A landscape characterised by agricultural-forest mosaics of fields of grain and white pine woods with Holm oak trees. During the 19th century, a time when most agricultural land was non-irrigated, grains and fodder were located in flatter areas, accessible at a lower altitude, while crops like vineyards and olive trees were found on hillier, less productive lands. There was no shortage of fallow lands and places given over to pasture. These marginal areas were abandoned to a greater or lesser extent after agricultural occupation reached its maximum levels, during the second half of the century.
• The parts of the old continuous forest that were not broken up for agricultural exploitation were used intensively in the 1950s to obtain charcoal, firewood and lumber. From then on, these forests were practically not taken advantage of and ended up giving rise to today's forested places. It was also during the second half of the 20th century that cultivation typical of the Mediterranean trilogy gradually abandoned the area to other, more productive crops clearly oriented to livestock, such as sweet corn, alfalfa and ryegrass. Other elements that appeared in the landscape of Els Terraprims were the facilities that reflect intensification in agricultural and livestock-raising production: feed factories and storehouses, new pens for cattle, silos and water tanks, among others.
• The Ter river, south of Els Terraprims, gives rise to an alluvial plain dominated by irrigated croplands, already present in the 13th century thanks to the construction of canals and windmills that have been improved and expanded over the centuries.
• The gentle relief and the presence of water courses have facilitated human action upon the landscape of Els Terraprims since ancient times. The population is dispersed in small rural villages, farmhouses and hamlets located mainly on small hills and stand out as landmarks against the winding landscape of Els Terraprims. The small rural villages, dating back to the Middle Ages, have a compact structure situated around historical buildings like churches and castles. Enjoying the protection of the surrounding area, these churches are what ended up stimulating the formation of the villages. Besides the ecclesiastic demarcations, there were also those of the local manor, where fortifications and towers were erected that sometimes ended up becoming real castles or fortified villages and are still present in the landscape of Els Terraprims.
• Another dynamic characteristic of the second half of the 20th century was the construction of various types of communications infrastructure that cut longitudinally across Els Terraprims within relative proximity to each other. These are roads AP-7 and N-II, as well as the Barcelona-Portbou railway. More recently, the high-speed train (TGV) was built at the start of the 21st century.

More information on Terraprims in the Landscape Catalog of Comarques Gironines:

• Fitxa de la unitat
• Cartography of the unit
• Full catalog

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Cartography of the historic landscape:

The complete mapping of this landscape is being elaborated and will be available soon.

Detail maps in PDF format between 30 and 60 Mb. They may take a minute or so to open.

• Roman era
• Contemporary times (changes 1956-2010)