Haria Lanzarote

David & Birgit

To contact us please e-mail to:
harialanzarote@hotmail.com
Phone/fax no +34 928 835 566

Haria is very different from the Lanzarote most tourists are familiar with. In ‘the valley of 1000 palms’ there are inspiring views, traditional architecture, friendly local people, and fascinating wildlife not to be found elsewhere.

For the last 15 years we have been restoring and extending this centuries old- house and turning the associated land into a unique wildlife garden.

Our house at Calle la Cañada 2 is two or three centuries old, the land behind it stretches alongside a section of Haria’s main barranco – a gulley which only flows withwater for a few days a year, but moistens the surrounding ground enough to support our collection of Lanzarote’s fantastic native flora.

Garden and Pines

Lillies

Lanzarote and Haria
Lanzarote is unique among the Canary islands – it is well developed in terms of communications and services but has not suffered from the ugly over-development that has blighted some of the other islands. This is mainly thanks to the enthusiasm of Cesar Manrique, a local artist and architect whose sadly Francoist politics I am willing to forgive because of his tireless efforts to preserve the heritage and environment of Lanzarote. For example preventing erection of any billboards or multi-storey buildings outside the main tourist ghettoes (OK, they’re nice places if you like that sort of thing). The tourist attractions he helped to develop are all (I think) tastefully unobtrusive.

Back Garden (Today)

Back Garden (15 years ago)

He built his world-famous house in Tahiche (on a section of the world’s longest terrestrial lava flow) but moved to Haria a couple of years after I arrived here, building a home in the next street from Calle la Cañada and living there till he died a decade ago.

Manrique shared my belief that Haria is one of the most agreeable places on the island to live in. I appreciate the way local people manage to combine a friendly and welcoming attitude with a respect for privacy and an easy tolerance for individual variations – for example Haria was the first district council in Spain to officially recognise gay relationships.

WHY GROW NATIVE PLANTS? – The first plantings here were of exotic drought tolerant trees as part of the HDRA’s ‘Drought Defeaters’ programme. These have gradually been replaced by native species. The advantages of local plants was first pointed out by Gus Hutchinson, the noted wildlife gardener, who was himself inspired by Dr. David Bramwell, the Canaries’ foremost botanist.

Marguerites

- they are so easy to grow! Having evolved over millions of years to suit local conditions they can tolerate Lanzarote’s wind, heat and aridity better than most imported alternatives. While neighbours struggle to keep their roses alive this garden blossoms and stays green throughout the year with minimal care.

-they are beautiful! Planted in a garden, protected from goats, Lanzarote’s native plants can develop far beyond the stunted specimens found in the wild, into the most spectacular forms.

-they have medicinal properties. The Canarian people have a long tradition of herbal medicine based on their unique plants.

Fresias

-they are a source of potentially valuable genetic material. The limited genetic variety of modern food crops has often required plant breeders to find wild relatives whose genes can resist disease. Perhaps the Acebuchi, Lanzarote’s rare relative of the cultivated olive might one day prove valuable in this way.

-they are the basis of a unique ecosystem. Every species of plant provides food and habitat for a variety of insects, birds etc. As well as visible associated species a single species of tree may be the sole host to a variety of micro-organisms living in the soil around the roots. As tree species become extinct so do associated fungal species – possible sources of new antibiotics are lost before they have even been investigated.

Garden End

Palm Trees

If you love gardens and are interested in native plants (as well as our birds, lizards and frogs) you are welcome to come and visit what I believe to be a quite unique wildlife garden. Please phone first!

Garden Patio

Frog Pond

Birgit in the Jacuzz

To contact us please e-mail to: harialanzarote@hotmail.com Phone/fax no +34 928 835 566
	David & Birgit

Haria is very different from the Lanzarote most tourists are familiar with. In ‘the valley of 1000 palms’ there are inspiring views, traditional architecture, friendly local people, and fascinating wildlife not to be found elsewhere. For the last 15 years we have been restoring and extending this centuries old- house and turning the associated land into a unique wildlife garden. Our house at Calle la Cañ ada 2 is two or three centuries old, the land behind it stretches alongside a section of Haria’s main barranco – a gulley which only flows withwater for a few days a year, but moistens the surrounding ground enough to support our collection of Lanzarote’s fantastic native flora. Garden & Pines Lillies Back of the Garden Now (top) & 15 Years Ago Lanzarote and Haria Lanzarote is unique among the Canary islands – it is well developed in terms of communications and services but has not suffered from the ugly over-development that has blighted some of the other islands. This is mainly thanks to the enthusiasm of Cesar Manrique, a local artist and architect whose sadly Francoist politics I am willing to forgive because of his tireless efforts to preserve the heritage and environment of Lanzarote. For example preventing erection of any billboards or multi-storey buildings outside the main tourist ghettoes (OK, they’re nice places if you like that sort of thing). The tourist attractions he helped to develop are all (I think) tastefully unobtrusive. He built his world-famous house in Tahiche (on a section of the world’s longest terrestrial lava flow) but moved to Haria a couple of years after I arrived here, building a home in the next street from Calle la Cañada and living there till he died a decade ago. Manrique shared my belief that Haria is one of the most agreeable places on the island to live in. I appreciate the way local people manage to combine a friendly and welcoming attitude with a respect for privacy and an easy tolerance for individual variations – for example Haria was the first district council in Spain to officially recognise gay relationships. WHY GROW NATIVE PLANTS? - The first plantings here were of exotic drought tolerant trees as part of the HDRA’s ‘Drought Defeaters’ programme. These have gradually been replaced by native species. The advantages of local plants was first pointed out by Gus Hutchinson, the noted wildlife gardener, who was himself inspired by Dr. David Bramwell, the Canaries’ foremost botanist. - they are so easy to grow! Having evolved over millions of years to suit local conditions they can tolerate Lanzarote’s wind, heat and aridity better than most imported alternatives. While neighbours struggle to keep their roses alive this garden blossoms and stays green throughout the year with minimal care. -they are beautiful! Planted in a garden, protected from goats, Lanzarote’s native plants can develop far beyond the stunted specimens found in the wild, into the most spectacular forms. -they have medicinal properties. The Canarian people have a long tradition of herbal medicine based on their unique plants. -they are a source of potentially valuable genetic material. The limited genetic variety of modern food crops has often required plant breeders to find wild relatives whose genes can resist disease. Perhaps the Acebuchi, Lanzarote’s rare relative of the cultivated olive might one day prove valuable in this way. -they are the basis of a unique ecosystem. Every species of plant provides food and habitat for a variety of insects, birds etc. As well as visible associated species a single species of tree may be the sole host to a variety of micro-organisms living in the soil around the roots. As tree species become extinct so do associated fungal species – possible sources of new antibiotics are lost before they have even been investigated. Garden End Palm Trees

If you love gardens and are interested in native plants (as well as our birds, lizards and frogs) you are welcome to come and visit what I believe to be a quite unique wildlife garden. Please phone first!

Garden Patio	Lanzarote’s Wild Fresias	Frog Pond	Birgit in Garden Jacuzzi	Marguerites