Post-phylloxera terraces

Until the mid-19th century, before the phylloxera breakout, the land was sustained by low, dry-stone walls, usually quite crude in construction, shaping flat, narrow terraces, whose design followed the curves of the terrain. The land available was limited, holding one or two rows of vines. Even the walls would be used at times to grow the vines with opening of “pilheiros”. In some cases, vegetables and cereals would also be planted in this system, taking full advantage of the arable land (FAUVRELLE, 2014: 45).