“Virginia Senzani” Farm (FC)

azienda agricola virginia senzani

“Virginia Senzani” Farm (FC)

(Updated to the 20/09/2004)

“Romagna dolce e solatia”, “Sunlit, sweet Romagna”,

Sang the poet that in a timeless dimension makes us live landscapes and sounds in Cinemascope 3D and with Dolby Surround, but also brings back the smells, the moods and the geometries of a land that comes across as orderly, hospitable, sunny and that vibrates constantly, traits that men have been able with diligence to define in order to obtain from the land sustenance and wealth but always respectful, for some, of an esteem and gratitude virtual agreement.

With these “thoughts” occupying our minds, we ventured into the province of Forlì-Cesena until we reached its center, in a territory that stretches for about 200 ha and goes from the hills to the plains and belongs to “Virginia Senzani”’s Farm.

Dr. Gilberto Valdinoci, who has been in charge of the technical management for more than 20 years, welcomes us with the typical hospitality of a Romagnolo D.o.c. and tells us that the farm is composed of different types of produce that are so composed: 42 ha of vineyard, of which 25 ha on the hills, 43 ha of peach trees, 10 ha of kiwi trees, 2 ha of pear trees, 2 ha of apple trees, 1.5 ha of apricot trees, 6 ha of olive trees (not yet in production), while the remaining area is devoted to grain production.

Most of the tree cultivation (peach, apple, pear, apricot and olive) is carried out with biocontrol (mating disruption and natural produces) while the vineyard and the kiwi orchard are cultivated following accurately the regional product specification for the integrated production.

With a touch of regional pride, not overly dissimulated, the Dr. tells us that thanks to the implementation of the low volumes technique He has achieved remarkable success in terms of time, manpower, water and pesticides and immediately goes to explain:

In vineyard pest management, the volumes used for every treatment is approximately of 100 l/ha, while in the orchards is approximately of 200 l/ha.

If all downtimes caused by the displacements are taken into consideration, given that the farm is divided into a number of plots, a productivity of 1.25 ha/hour is considered remarkably high.

Previously, an operator, to exhaust the tank of a conventional 1500 L Atomizer, took 20 minutes, but now, using the same 1500 L at 100 l/ha, covers roughly 15 ha during a working day with only one filling and two at 200 l/ha.

Regarding the amount of pesticides used per ha, Dr. Valdinoci adheres to the dosage on the labels and more precisely to the first indicated dosage, i.e. the minimum; moreover this doses per hl of water, instead of multiplying it by 15, which is the norm in conventional machines at standard volumes, multiplies it by 10, thus adding to the savings given by the minimum dose, a further 30%.

All the work is carried out using 2 MARTIGNANI’s pneumatic mist blowers, a standard 1500 l pneumatic mist blower, used inside the orchards and a pneumatic mist blower mod. “Cognac-California” used in the vineyards which can treat two complete rows (4 walls) at each pass.

 Just to give a real dimension to what Dr. Valdinoci says, He tells us, for example, that during 2003 season while the regional product specification accepted the consumption of Bordeaux mixture to a maximum of 40 kg/ha, and thanks to the reduction work abovementioned allowed the farm to stop at 25 kg/ha, well below the maximum consumption value accepted that would be enforced in 2008 (30 kg/ha).

During that same 2003 season, the farm totaled a pesticide global saving of approximately 95 quintals and of 5.000 quintals (500.000 l) of water.

And here comes the culmination of what can be rightly defined as the real recognition of abundant commitment and genius.

These savings allowed the farm to achieve the highest goals contained in the standard ISO 14001, and to boast of having officially the certification of “First Italian Company”.

The “ecological balance” obtained from this initiative has been documented extensively in an article published on the website of the Emilia-Romagna region.

What to add?

Let us close this meeting by resuming the poet’s poem, once again supreme muse,

“…Da’ borghi sparsi le campane in tanto

si rincorron coi lor gridi argentini:

chiamano al rezzo, alla quiete, al santo

desco fiorito d’occhi di bambini”

Av salutèn

“… From the scattered villages the bells in the meantime

chase each other with their silvery cries:

they call for rest, for quiet, for the holy

meal blossoming of children’s gazes”

We salute you

Claudio Martignani
Luca Bellettini
Antonio Fimiani

This post is also available in: Italiano (Italian)