I’ve never seen such a wet January — it’s often the driest winter month here in Andalucía. Here’s a screenshot of the meteorological records for my area for January alone — nearly 400 mm! That’s almost what we usually get in a whole year, since the annual average is around 450–500 mm. If we add the rainfall since Autumn 2025, we’re probably already over 600 mm. It looks like we’re in the middle of a La Niña influence. I’m no meteorologist, but here’s what my gut tells me: - The last two years, aquifers have been able to recharge more than during the previous drought years. - We seem to have perfect conditions for larger-scale plantings, thanks to the rainfall. This is one of the reasons why, after seeing the heavy autumn 2024 rains, and the total rainfall of 2025 we went ahead with a large syntropic planting (~6000 m²). Doing this is especially important when water is limited - mind you, we’re on a hill where wells dry up faster than in the lowlands. So why is this the right time to plant? El Niño and La Niña cycles don’t happen from one year to the next. Each phase usually lasts 2–7 years, because ocean and atmospheric systems take time to shift. This creates clusters of wet or dry years, rather than a perfect alternating pattern. For planting, this is crucial: if we’re at the end of a wet phase, it’s a great opportunity to plant. The soil still has moisture, the aquifers are recharged, and there’s a high chance of more rain during the rest of winter and spring, maybe even into early June if we’re lucky. Let the trees and the soil soak up that rainfall, we'll end up with deeply taprooted trees that will grow more vigorously than in drought years, it's the perfect opportunity - the timing couldn't be better !

Hey everyone 👋 I’m noticing there’s a lot of great content on syntropic agroforestry design and succession, but much less on land preparation before planting, especially in Mediterranean contexts. I’d love some practical input on what you actually do before the first trees go in: • Is subsoiling always needed? For which soil types, and how do small growers even access one? • Do you add compost or manure at the start in planting lines? • Any experience with ash or rock dust early on, or better to let biology do the work? • Does a single initial plowing ever make sense in compacted Mediterranean soils? If you had to rank the most important interventions at the beginning, what would they be? Curious to hear real-world experiences (successes and failures), especially across different Mediterranean soil types. Thanks! 🌱