Solina Common Wheat
Solina is the characteristic common wheat of the mountains of Abruzzi, surviving until present times for the particular taste and fragrance it gives to homemade bread and pasta. It resists very well to the cold climate and can provide limited but constant productions also on not very fertile soils. It is particularly suitable to organic farming methods.
There are historical documents demonstrating its presence in Abruzzi already in the 16th century: it is quoted in some notorial deeds of sale drawn up at Lanciano Trade Fair. At the end of the 18th century, in the book by Michele Torcia "Pel Paese de' Peligni", solina is quoted as a wheat from which "...one of the best kinds of bread of the Kingdom (of Naples)" was obtained.
It is a rare example of historically documented link between a variety and a territory; the awareness that it is a very ancient cereal also emerges from some popular sayings, like "solina is the mother of all wheat" or "if you want flour, you must cultivate solina".
