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Son Mut Nou: Memory and Diversity of Figs in Mallorca

Montserrat Pons i Boscana keeps the most extensive collection of fig trees in the world, where history meets agriculture

The red earth, from the sky, announces the triad of the dry land: fig, almond and olive trees. But in Llucmajor, in the center of the island, figs have the advantage because they have a custodian who has dedicated decades to the composition of a giant canvas that preserves the botanical memory of Mallorca. It is September and Montserrat walks the wide avenues of the plantation -thirteen meters between each specimen- with a basket and a staff, immersed in the contemplation of the 1300 varieties of figs that have turned his farm into the promised land of the ficus carica.

 

Golden, reddish, ochre and dark figs, with pulps of equally varied tones, reveal origins spread all over the planet. The seven biblical fig trees he obtained in the Levant coexist with hundreds of fig trees native to the Balearic Islands and Europe. "Look, this is Antonio Machado's fig tree, this other one was García Lorca's favorite," says Montserrat as he delicately takes a branch and cuts a fig at its point. "Here you have one from your country, my sister-in-law brought it to me from a town called Moche, near Trujillo."

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1. Monserrat Pons during a tour in Son Mut Nou. 2. The fig variety bordissot rimada. 3. An old fig tree that has been "bridled" so that the pigs can eat the fig remains.

He fills the basket and hurries the pace: today some philologists of the Catalan language are coming to see him to study the influence of fig trees on the songs and popular poetry of the island. Montserrat knows that his plantation is more than that: it is living history. Botanists come here, amazed by the enormous diversity of an ancient crop, slow food gourmets determined to revalue the local figs in their kitchens, artists who find inspiration on the texture of the red earth, the roughness of the trunks and the fall of the figs to create.

 

We walk the 200 meters that separate us from the stone house, where Montserrat usually turns the fruits of Son Mut into pa de figa - fig bread, always with Mallorcan almonds -, figat, compotes, champagne, wine, jams and macerates. He sets up a presentation with a projector for the philologists and prepares slices of fig bread, tostones with fresh figs and sobrasada, pieces of bread with dark fig jelly and sheep cheese. Montserrat has been giving talks for years about the importance of the fig tree for humanity, either in the courtyard of his farm, surrounded by oaks and carob trees, on television (journalists from all over Europe have come to portray his work), in distant countries like Malaysia or at the international meetings of the fig tree.

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1. Cosme mayo, a local variety of the island. 2. Fig bread with almonds. 3. Fig bread at the weekly market in Llucmajor.

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The plantation is also a place for contemplation and observation.

While Montserrat prepares the living room, I go to the fig drying room, where varieties such as the martinenca, the verdal, the madre de deus and the pratjal are transformed into fleshy dried figs. Some have the "fish mouth" cut, others remain whole on the panels. When the drying process is complete, a bowl of hot water is set out, the figs are immersed for a few seconds and briefly baked over a low heat. From this will come out the fig paste which will be garnished with peeled almonds. The afternoon matures and the reflection of the clay and coppery earth forms a single unit with the sky, dominated by reddish tones and defined clouds. Then the philologists arrive.

 

The session begins with a presentation about the importance of fig trees for the Balearic and world food system, the hundreds of varieties that Monserrat was able to rediscover going from one end of the island to the other, and the publication of a book that pays tribute to these stories (“The Fig Trees From the Balearic Islands”). Then the group heads to the figueretum, a sort of nursery for new added fig trees, where they receive special care until they are strong enough to be transplanted. Montserrat does not take long, as he wants to make the most of the day's remaining light, and leads the visitors to the plantation. There the group disperses, but not for long, because in a few moments the tasting will begin.

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1. A juicy dried fig. 2. Dusk is a good time to observe the beauty of the plantation.

We return to the courtyard of carob trees, where a table awaits us with the products arranged in a row. Olive oil with the aroma of dried figs next to the fig beer, figat next to the blond fig jam. Glasses of cold water complete the table, as the sweetness of the figs awakens thirst. This same frame is repeated two days later, now with a group of pedagogues enthusiastic about the idea of teaching arithmetic with fig leaves -some have three points, others five or seven-. And next year, and the year after that.

 

In the mornings, Montserrat usually attends in his pharmacy, one of the oldest in the village of Llucmajor. During the three visits I made to him, he made sure to show me the ramifications of Son Mut Nou, going to nurseries run by botanists who share his passion for nature, to festivals like those in the village of Randa, to a fig coffee tasting in the port of Alcudia or to the home of one of his mentors - such as the author "Pep" Mullet y Sacarés, almond grower, fig tree enthusiast and co-author of the book Les figueres mallorquines - where I can learn more about the long tradition of fig bread in Mallorca.

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Variety of fig products (fig bread, figat, fig olive oil, fig vinegar and fig wine).

Son Mut Nou is open twice a week (three times a week in summer). It is also possible to visit the plantation after hours, but reservations must be made. In that case, visits are usually shorter, starting in the fig orchard and culminating in the store that stocks everything the farm produces: fig derivatives, T-shirts with the Son Mut logo, a collection of fig products from around the world and the Montserrat book (available in Catalan, Spanish and English). Recognition comes from all sides, as the plantation has earned the honorable status of a place of pilgrimage for fig tree enthusiasts.

 

Even for those who come to explore their origins, like Agustin, an Argentinian man (from Santiago del Estero) in his eighties, whose Mallorcan ancestors planted varieties of the island in South America and protected such ancient recipes as sopas made with whole-grain bread and vegetables. Or Mónica Fuster, a renowned Mallorcan artist who uses the materials provided by this fertile clay soil as a tribute to an island increasingly overwhelmed by tourism. This convergence of passions helps to maintain this undeclared heritage of humanity, and Montserrat, who also personifies a cultural heritage for all he knows about the fig tree, is happy about it.

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Son Mut Nou in the fall, just before the arrival of the rainy season.

Son Mut Nou

Camí des Palmer, o7609, Mallorca, Spain.

www.monserratpons.com

+34 646 63 32 59

* La sobrasada es un embutido crudo, elaborado con carne de cerdo, pimentón de Mallorca, sal y pimienta. Esta artesanía alimentaria se encuentra protegida por una indicación geográfica en las Islas Baleares.

** La ensaimada es un postre tradicional de Mallorca. Consta de harina de trigo, azúcar, agua, huevos y manteca de cerdo. La masa fermenta y de hecho se conserva un poco a manera de masa madre.

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