Teglio

A route through fields of rye and buckwheat, the Sommasassa pond and the Tower of Teglio.

Buckwheat fields, like rye fields, are an integral part of the local landscape, and their changing shapes and colours throughout the seasons offer a truly remarkable spectacle.

Known locally as “furmentùn”, buckwheat is not actually a cereal but a herbaceous plant. It is sown at the beginning of July, and already by September its delicate white-pink flowers bloom, reaching full maturity in October.

Cultivating rye also requires time and patience. It is, in fact, a slow-growing cereal. It is sown in autumn, but only at the end of June are its golden ears ready for harvesting and subsequent drying on stone floors, in well-ventilated lofts.

After the rye harvest, following crop rotation, the fields are prepared to receive the sowing of buckwheat. In this way, within a single year, a second crop is obtained. Buckwheat, unlike rye, has a rapid growth cycle.

The threshing of buckwheat, after the drying phase in sheaves, takes place according to a traditional ritual handed down over centuries. The sheaves of grain are first spread out on a large hemp cloth known as pelorscia.

The threshers then stand in pairs, facing each other, and with their flails (the tool used to thresh grain, locally known as fiel) alternate their blows with a precise, rhythmic cadence. In this way, the grains are cleaned of all impurities and prepared for the mill.

Originally from the southern regions of Siberia, this herbaceous plant reached Europe through the ports of Genoa and Antwerp, spreading rapidly across various regions. The first recorded mention of formentùn in the fields of Teglio dates back to the mid-16th century, and in 1616 the Grisons historian Guler von Weineck already attested to its widespread cultivation in the central district of Valtellina.

Until the early decades of the 20th century, buckwheat was the staple food in Valtellina, before being gradually replaced by wheat and maize. From the late 1990s, however, there has been a gradual revival in the cultivation of buckwheat, not only in Valtellina but also in various areas of the Alps and the Apennines. This renewed interest is also due to the fact that buckwheat is completely gluten-free and has significant nutritional properties.

Today in Teglio, approximately 18 hectares of land are cultivated with buckwheat, partly using local seed and partly imported seed from Northern Europe. A constantly growing production that risks compromising the original tellino seed, a heritage that many are committed to preserving.

Sommasassa Pond

The artificial lake of Sommasassa (Lach de Sumasàsa, 700 m) collects water channelled here from the Val Fontana. It was created in the early 1970s on the initiative of the Consorzio Imbrifero Montano di Sondrio (BIM Adda), in order to provide a water reserve for irrigating the orchards of the Bianzone and Villa di Tirano area. At weekends, many enthusiasts visit the lake to fish.

Tower of Teglio

The Tower, the symbol of Teglio, is all that remains of the medieval castle, Castrum Tilii, built on Roman ruins of an earlier settlement. Surrounded by greenery and located on a hill, it offers a splendid panoramic viewpoint.

Its popular name, “Torre de li Beli Miri”, derives from the spectacular view enjoyed from the upper terrace, from which the gaze can extend over a stretch of approximately 60 kilometres. For centuries, the Tower was the focal point of the valley’s defensive system, together with the underlying Castrum Vetus (today Castelvetro) and the towers on the Orobie side.

Part of the ancient Castrum Tilii complex also includes the nearby Church of Santo Stefano, once the oratory of the military garrison.