Reserve of the Bosco di San Pietro in Caltagirone
The Bosco di San Pietro Reserve in Caltagirone is a splendid green area in which three main habitats are recognizable: the cork oak forest, the holm oak and the garrigue.
The monumental cork oaks of the forest, described by chroniclers of the past, are today largely disappeared. A recent census has attested the presence of about fifty cork trees and some carob trees. The holm oak forest extends for a few tens of hectares in the districts of Molara, Coste Stella, Coste Chiazzina and Vaccarizzo. Compared to the cork oak, the density is higher and more homogeneous. The presence of the carob tree is also relevant. In the garrigue there are extensive shrub formations such as carob, thyme and heather.
Inside the reserve it is possible to follow an itinerary that starts from the Santo Pietro wood and, after having crossed the areas affected by reforestation, pine and eucalyptus, reaches the two most beautiful areas of the wood: the valleys called the Cacciatore fountain and the Molara fountain. from this point a circular route starts, within which you can admire what remains of the Molara cork oak.
