Room: Poster Area B
Date: Thursday, 12 June 2025
Time: 11:45 - 12:45 CEST
Session code 1DV.4
Sustainable integrated agricultural management practices
Demonstration of an Innovative Cultivation System for Medicinal and Aromatic Plants Adapted to Marginal Lands
Short Introductive summary
The BIOVALOR project developed in in Central-East Spain, promotes sustainable management of degraded land to create employment and enhance biodiversity. It explores the cultivation of underutilized Medicinal and Aromatic Plants (MAPs), which help improve soil health by boosting organic matter and microbial activity, reducing erosion, and enhancing water retention. Initial activities focused on selecting MAP species adapted to marginal soils, establishing demonstration plantations, and analyzing essential oils. In Lubia (Soria), a 2-hectare plot was intercropped with Juniperus communis, Thymus mastichina, and Lavandula luisieri, achieving high survival and good first-year yields. Essential oil production for TM and LL exceeded typical yields, with high-quality chemical profiles. The results highlight MAP cultivation as a viable option for restoring degraded lands with minimal inputs, benefiting local economies and reducing environmental impacts relative to conventional crops. Future research will assess long-term survival and resilience under adverse conditions.
Presenter
Luis Saúl ESTEBAN PASCUAL
CEDER-CIEMAT, SPAIN
Presenter's biography
Doctor in Forestry. Research Scientist at CEDER-CIEMAT. He has worked since 1993 on Research and Innovation of different stages of the biomass value chain such as resources assessment, harvesting, logistics, drying, size reduction and densification.
Biographies and Short introductive summaries are supplied directly by presenters and are published here unedited
Co-authors:
M. Tomás Gascón, CEDER-CIEMAT, Lubia, SPAIN
I. Mediavilla Ruiz, CEDER-CIEMAT, Lubia, SPAIN
C.S. Ciria Ramos, CEDER-CIEMAT, Lubia, SPAIN
J. Perez García, CEDER-CIEMAT, Lubia, SPAIN
R. Corredor De Miguel, CEDER-CIEMAT, Lubia, SPAIN
R. Ramos Casado, CEDER-CIEMAT, Lubia, SPAIN
L.S. Esteban Pascual, CEDER-CIEMAT, Lubia, SPAIN
Session reference: 1DV.4.10