FAO awards GIAHS certificate to two Iranian traditional gardens

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) has
awarded the Globally Important Agricultural Heritage Systems (GIAHS)
certificate to Traditional Garden of Qazvin and the Traditional Walnut
Agricultural System in Tuyserkan, Hamedan province.

This recognition was made during the GIAHS scientific advisory group
meeting held in Rome from November 7 to 10.

The traditional gardens of Qazvin, northwest of Iran’s capital Tehran, are
a flood-spreading system that date back thousands of years. Situated in the
foothills of the Alborz ranges, the creation of the gardens surrounding the
city has protected its inhabitants from floods adapting to and taking advantage
of the watershed to produce nuts and local delicacies.

By capturing, redirecting and sharing floodwaters, local communities have
been able to cultivate and grow fruits all around Qazvin. Today, the system
provides food and employment opportunities for people but also cools the
temperature of the city and serves to replenish groundwater tables.

The traditional walnut agricultural system in Tuyserkan, Iran, is known not
just for its walnut orchards but also for its delicacies as well as its
landscapes and historical monuments. Based on family-farming, the cultivation
of walnuts supports the livelihoods of a major part of the households in the
area.

This cultivation is mainly developed in valleys and is irrigated using
water canals designed at different levels and fed mainly by rivers and springs
as well as qanats. Among the local practices is irrigating walnut trees in the
cold and frost season, which farmers believe helps to eliminate pests and
diseases.

So far, two Iranian sites of the qanat-based saffron farming system in
Gonabad and the grape production system in Jowzan Valley in the provinces of
Razavi Khorasan and Hamadan were granted GIAHS awards. It is noteworthy that in
2014, the qanat irrigated system of Kashan, Isfahan province, has been
designated as a Globally Important Agricultural Heritage System.

Under the FAO’s GIAHS program, the selection criteria stipulate that sites
must be of global importance, have value as a public good, support food and
livelihood security, agro-biodiversity, sustainable knowledge systems and
practices, social values and culture as well as outstanding landscapes. With
the newest addition to the global agricultural heritage systems list, FAO’s
worldwide agricultural heritage network now consists of 86 systems in 26
countries around the globe.

“Now over 20 years strong, GIAHS has proven to be a great
model for showcasing longstanding practices to render agrifood systems more
resilient to climate change,” said FAO Deputy Director-General Maria Helena
Semedo.