Sa Melabrina and Sardinia's Monumental Trees

Sa Melabrina is a Downy Oak tree the size of a small church, draped in moss and ferns. Her ancient arms spread wide in the surrounding forest near Illorai, Sardinia. She's the oldest and largest of her kind in all of Europe. And she's been standing here in these mountains for nine centuries. What she symbolizes is even greater than her beauty. The town’s mayor organized a remarkable conference drawing scientists, conservationists, and community leaders from across Sardinia and beyond, all united around a single idea: that Sardinia's ancient trees, its oldest living landmarks, could form a network worth protecting, visiting, and fighting for. There is something else at stake. Sardinia's small towns are quietly shrinking. Depopulation is hollowing out villages that have survived for millennia. Saving these old trees is vital, but Sardinia's leaders ask a new type of question: Can Sa Melabrina and Sardinia’s monumental trees save its small towns? Guests Gianluca Grande, Mayor Illorai, Sardinia Dr. Gianluigi Bacchetta Professor, Department of Life and Environmental Sciences Director, Centre for the Conservation of Biodiversity and Germplasm Bank of Sardinia University of Cagliari, Sardinia Pina Muras Resident of Illorai, Sardinia Carlo Poddi Arborist, Sassari, Sardinia Readings "Su chercu pius bellu" (The Most Beautiful Oak) by Ignazio Camarda - read by Fulgenzio Piras "The Sa Melabrina Oak" by Graziano Nudda Quote by T.S. Eliot from "The Little Gidding" Voiceover Readers Manuela Buonanno (Pina Muras) Jeff Taliaferro (Graziano Nudda reading) Music Sa Melabrina Choir Conference hospitality provided by Proloco Oak Species of Sardinia - Quercus pubescens group Quercus dalechampii (Downy Oak) Quercus ichnusae Quercus congesta Quercus virgiliana Other Oak species in Sardinia Quercus ilex (Holm Oak) Quercus suber (Cork Oak) Quercus calliprinos Quercus morisi Theme Music "This Old Tree," Diccon Lee, www.deeleetree.com Artwork Dahn Hiuni, www.dahnhiuni.com/home Website thisoldtree.show Transcripts available. Follow on Facebook or Instagram This Old Tree podcast is a sponsored project of the New England Chapter of the International Society of Arboriculture. To support This Old Tree and New England ISA, click here. We want to hear about the favorite tree in your life! To submit a ~4 or 5 minute  audio story for consideration for an upcoming episode of "Tree Story Shorts" on This Old Tree, record the story on your phone’s voice memo app and email to: [email protected] This episode was written in part at LitArts RI, a community organization and co-working space that supports Rhode Island's creators. litartsri.org