Our visit at Lemon farm in Menton
We visited Piero on a lovely sunny morning in Menton, France
Piero is 76 years old lemon farmer (with vitality of 20 years old), whose lemons received IGP in Menton region.
IGP - L'Indication géographique protégée (protected Geographical Indication) is a European classification for identifying agricultural or food products whose connection with the geographical area of reference can be limited even to a single stage of the production cycle. Piero’s lemon farm was the first farm to receive this recognition in France.
Menton is the city located in the South of France, close to Italian border and just behind the corner from my (Zuzana’s) home in France. Mentonese lemons are world famous lemons which are famous for high quality and unique taste and I am very fortunate that I can use these lemons for cooking and baking every day.
Lemons have thick skin, which is typical for lemons from this region. You can eat all of the lemon even the skin. Mentonese lemon should not be (surprisingly) sour but it should have nice refreshing taste. This is one of the characteristics of how you can recognize a good quality lemon.
There are many unique conditions which need to be fulfilled in order to have a good quality lemons. Piero explained us in a detail how important sandy and clayey soil in combination with salty breeze coming from the sea (which is only 2 km away) and more than 300 sunny days per year are creating perfect conditions for growing high quality lemons.
Piero has 120 lemon trees, some of them around 50 years old. He is 6th generation of lemon growers and some of the trees were planted by his father. Farm produces around 2000 kg of lemons per year.
You can also find mandarins, grapefruit and 130 olive trees, some of them 400 – 600 years old at Piero’s farm. They all live and grow together in the harmony on the hills of Menton.
Piero is even producing his very own olive oil, which we were luck to taste – and it was really delicious.
We had no idea there is so much to learn about lemons!
There are so many different shapes, colours and sizes of lemons.
Lemons are an excellent source of vitamin C and fibre, which may help lower blood sugar levels. Piro also mentioned that he drinks lemon water every morning on empty stomach. We practise drinking lemon water in the morning for many years already. Lemon water can help to start your digesting in the morning and it is healthier alternative of orange juice (since there is no sugar).
Drinking healthy homemade lemon water will help to flush out toxins from the body. Remember to choose good quality lemons, preferably organic.
This lemon farm is thriving also thanks to bees, which Piero keeps in his garden. Since he started with api culture, his production increased by 30 percent.
Tips how to choose a good lemon:
Choose a lemon that’s heavy for its size and has a pleasant fragrance.
The skin should be bright yellow with no wrinkling.
A thinner-skinned lemon will give you more juice, while a thicker-skinned one may be better for the zest.
Be sure to check that the lemon is not too soft and has no signs of white or green mold. Small blemishes and spots won’t affect the juice.
