Rockrose | From Weed to Crop

Many locals in Mértola, southeast Portugal, view the Cistus rockrose plant as a weed that needs to be periodically cut back. But for farmer-researchers Dr. João Palma and Jo Smith, this symbolic shrub holds great potential not only in the essential oils that is known for but also the under-utilised hydrolate product that can be obtained from it.

At the Moinhos de Vento Agroecology Research Centre (MVArc) farm, an AGROMIX pilot site, Palma and Smith are trialing the best methods to harvest and process the rockrose shrub, as well as ways to market its derivative products, which have multiple uses from the cosmetic to the agricultural.

The harvesting and processing techniques for the rockrose in combination with agroforestry paves the way for carbon negative farming but the full potential of the rockrose is being held up by challenges in the market and its classification.

A major step forward in spreading rockrose agriculture would be to recognise the shrub as a crop the same way as rosemary and thyme recognised.

Find out more information about rockrose products at https://myrockrose.com/.
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📔 Chapters:

00:00 My Rockrose
01:16 Local Climate & Traditional Land Use
02:06 MVARC Agroecology Research Centre
02:42 Rockrose and its Potential
04:58 The Process
07:17 Going Carbon Negative
08:22 Distillation Process
09:23 Biomass
10:40 Fresh Perspectives
11:55 Finding Value in Hydrolate
12:33 Looking Ahead

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🔗 Links:

AGROMIX

Project homepage - https://agromixproject.eu/

MVARC Pilot Site Information - https://agromixproject.eu/in-the-field/pil...

Linkedin - https://uk.linkedin.com/company/agromix-pr...

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/agromixproject/?...

X - https://x.com/agromixproject

MVArc

MVArc - https://www.mvarc.eu/

My Rockrose - https://myrockrose.com/


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The AGROMIX project promotes the transition towards a resilient and efficient land use in Europe, providing agroecological solutions for farm and land management. The project collaborates with farmers and other relevant actors to find common solutions.