The forest of Curtipetrizzi in Cellino San Marco represents a cross-section of the forest that once covered this area of Salento that is famous since the pre-Roman period for its vegetation.
The forest has since been supplanted over the centuries by crops but one example has survived in Cellino San Marco because an area was enclosed by Count Balsamo, in fact the name Curtipetrizzi means "place closed by stones".
The forest covers an area of about 60 hectares and is a naturalistic area of community importance. An evergreen forest where you can find holm oaks, Aleppo pine and the rare Valonia oak while the undergrowth has all the characteristics of the Mediterranean scrub.
Inside the forest there are wetlands fed by an aquifer and many wild animals including fallow deer, foxes, porcupines and gray herons.
The forest is now private property and belongs to Franco Carrisi.
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