The irrigated countryside of the Milanese hinterland and its history

The countryside of San Giuliano Milanese and its history.

In the Milanese hinterland, in a remnant of irrigated countryside, stands the 14th-century Viboldone Abbey. The land surrounding it was once owned by the Abbey itself. Today, however, they are an example of how these lands were once worked.

The special technique of the Humiliati

The Milanese lowlands have always been wetlands, full of canals and resurgences. It was the monks who reclaimed it, channeling the waters, building sluices, manholes and drains. The Humiliati of Viboldone were the first to use the marcite system: they irrigated the meadows with water from the resurgences, which, being always at the same temperature, allowed them to make several crops of grass a year, even in winter. In fact, the slightly sloping terrain allowed the water to flow without freezing.

This particular technique allowed the livestock to be fed fresh grass even in winter. The result was that even in the cold season, the herds on these lands yielded abundant and highly prized milk that augmented a thriving dairy production for which Lombardy was famous throughout Europe.