Pecoranera is a project that was born little by little, one of Massimiliano Rossi‘s daydreams, which came to fruition despite a tortuous path and thanks to his stubborn nature and often contrary to common opinion. Black sheep, in fact.
Originally it coincided with his desire to alternate his life as an actor-dubber in Milan with that of a “farmer” in the Romagna hills, and then gradually return to live in Romagna where he was born and where he spent a good part of his life. Having fallen in love with a farm of almost 7 hectares, cultivated with vineyards, olive trees, apricot trees and fodder, has greatly shifted the initial goal.
Thus the idea of a small wooden house with a garden evolved and became that of restoring an old existing farmhouse and transforming it into “his” home, cultivating the land (more than 300 olive trees were added to the 60 already existing) and create an annex with three bedrooms, shared kitchen and swimming pool, overlooking the hills of Bertinoro, to achieve what according to Massimiliano is one of the ultimate pleasures of life: sharing what you have with the people you love. This project was then enriched over the years to become what Pecoranera is today.
The Jujube
Before the restoration
The window on the hills
After the restoration
The arrival of Omar Babini, immediately after the construction of the house, led to the enrichment of the company with many animals, first of all Omar’s beautiful border collies who, in addition to being a veterinarian, is also a dog agility instructor and owner of a dog breeding and breeding center.
Flora & Fauna
In Pecoranera there are also many chickens, goats, two donkeys (both rescued from the fate of the slaughterhouse), free-ranging rabbits and geese that guard the henhouse. There are also spaces that can be used for sports, such as a dog agility field and a swimming pool. Finally, indispensable characteristics of this place, the panoramic setting of the Bertinoro hills surrounding the company, dirt paths, driveways full of roses, vineyards and olive groves, which are a splendid setting for a walk on foot or by mountain bike.
There is also a chicken coop where around thirty hens and some geese find shelter whose only task is to roam freely in the fields and garden and produce the eggs used to make the pasta and cakes for Pecoranera’s breakfast. It is therefore not strange to see lion-headed bunnies or wild animals that are regularly encountered such as roe deer, wild boars, porcupines and all those that populate our areas moving freely through the fields.
Dogs are an integral part of the family and a characteristic element of the company. Normally there are around 3/4 border collies that are part of Omar’s kennel and that in Pecoranera find the ideal environment to play, run and train. All border collies carry out the sporting activity of dog agility and some of these are already Italian champions such as Kiwi and Quinoa.
Below the panoramic window you will notice two large tubs. In addition to hosting different varieties of aquatic plants such as lotus flowers, water lilies, water irises, horsetail, mint, papyrus and attracting splendid dragonflies, they are the home of many goldfish and carp, which find the ideal ecosystem to live there. and reproduce.
Olive trees and oil
The olive trees present (all certified organic) are cultivated directly by the property: the aim is to produce an excellent extra virgin olive oil, thanks to the advice of experts who provide advice on the choice of varieties, their planting (added approximately 300 plants of Frantoio, Leccino and nostrana di Brisighella varieties) pruning, harvesting and choosing the best mill for pressing. The name that has been given to the oil (at the moment only for personal use and for friends, considering that the old plants in production are only about seventy) is “Orgolio”, precisely to underline the pleasure and satisfaction achieved after the harvest carried out with friends and the creation of the first self-produced oil.
In 2020 Massimiliano participated with his “Orgolio di Pecoranera” in the amateur section of the regional extra virgin olive oil competition “Il Novello dell’Emilia Romagna”, promoted by the Municipality of Montegridolfo in collaboration with O.L.E.A. and ARPO, ranking third with honors for excellence.
The house and beyond
In addition to the purely agricultural area, Pecoranera is made up of a manor house which overlooks a large garden surrounded by a large centuries-old oak and five large centenary mulberry trees, on which hammocks are hung during the summer. From the garden starts a carriage road which in the last year has been redeveloped and embellished by the planting of different varieties of roses and by wooden portals which serve to facilitate climbing plants, thus obtaining a very suggestive scenic effect and creating a walking path which during the flowering season also becomes an olfactory experience.
On a lower floor and parallel to the rose driveway, there is a green area that we would like to use both for the planting of fruit trees and Corten tubs for the cultivation of a raised vegetable garden, thus creating a garden-vegetable garden-orchard . This area is also crossed to be able to access a space intended for visitors who can follow the dog activities in the sports field below, having created with an earth movement that would allow for a multifunctional space for various sports disciplines and which is to all intents and purposes a meadow overlooking the valley.
