Due mani legano con la rafia un mazzo di fiori secchi con spighe, lavanda ed eucalipto; sul banco le forbici, il filo di ferro e i gomitoli di spago.

Territories

Pistoia

The nurseries of northern Tuscany. The wrought iron of the forges. Confetti, brigidine, the slow know-how of the mountains.

The place

The territory

Pistoia is the greenest province in Tuscany — literally. One hundred and ninety thousand hectares of professional nurseries make it the Italian capital of ornamental plant growing and one of the leading European centres of the sector. Plants born here end up in the parks of Paris, London and Moscow, and on the terraces of New York.

But green is not everything. The province stretches from the Tuscan-Emilian Apennines down to the plain of the Padule di Fucecchio, gathering wildly different landscapes: the Montagna Pistoiese with its chestnut woods and its abandoned ironworks, the Valdinievole with its historic spas and its paper mills, the plain of Quarrata with its furniture makers, the city of Pistoia with its medieval centre and its ancient guilds.

Pistoia has a manufacturing history that has crossed the centuries without ever being too large. Historic railway workshops (trains are still built here by Hitachi Rail), furniture factories, smaller textile mills, the green district, ironworking. A province that has specialised in precise things, each with its niche, each with its masters.

And then there is the slow dimension — that of the mountains. Chestnut woods managed as they were a century ago, stone mills still turning, flocks of Apennine sheep, woodworking with hand tools. The Montagna Pistoiese is a laboratory of rural crafts that have disappeared elsewhere.

The know-how

The crafts of the territory

The crafts of Pistoia are few and specialised. Each has its own geography inside the province.

Plant nurseries. Pistoia is one of the few Italian districts where professional cultivation has reached industrial levels of technical sophistication. Conifers, ornamental broadleaves, shrubs, mature trees: the nurseries of Pistoia supply the greenery for the most important landscape projects in the world.

Wrought iron. The blacksmithing tradition of Pistoia is based in the city and in the surrounding municipalities. Gates, railings, lamps, furnishing pieces, restoration of historic ironwork. The forges of Pistoia keep ancient techniques alive — forging, fire welding, tempering — alongside modern ones.

Historic confectionery. The confetti of Pistoia, made by the Bruno Corsini pastry shop since 1918, are one of the emblematic sweets of the province. Almonds coated in sugar by processes that take days of handwork.

The brigidine of Lamporecchio. Thin wafers scented with aniseed, made in the Lamporecchio area since the eighteenth century. A speciality so specific that its name is inseparable from the place.

Mountain wood. Joineries and workshops of the Montagna Pistoiese work local wood — chestnut, beech, fir — for furniture, basketry and small objects.

Wicker basketry. In Lamporecchio and in the villages of the Valdinievole, wickerwork has a tradition a century and more old. Baskets for olives, hampers, cellar containers, decorative objects.

The historic paper mill. The Valdinievole is one of the Italian territories of handmade paper: some historic paper mills in Pescia still produce watermarked papers for restoration, calligraphy and art editions.

The producers in the network

Podere Macolo Podere MacoloExtra virgin olive oil · Montalbano L'ARTE DI CREARE L'ARTE DI CREAREGoldsmithing · Pracchia

The table

Food and wine production

The cooking of Pistoia is split in two — that of the plain, influenced by Firenze, and that of the mountains, self-contained and ancient.

Maccherone dolce di Pistoia. A short pasta dressed with meat sauce, sugar and spices. A medieval dish traditionally eaten on feast days.

Meat. Apennine breeds raised on the Montagna Pistoiese: the pomarancina sheep, the Garfagnina goat, the Mucca Pisana cow. Wild boar sausage, wild boar stew, leg of kid.

Mushrooms and truffles. The woods of the Montagna Pistoiese give porcini in quantity, chanterelles and Caesar's mushrooms. The prized black truffle is found in the valleys of Cutigliano and Abetone. Mountain cooking uses them generously.

Pecorino della Montagna Pistoiese. Raw milk from pomarancina sheep, aged in caves, a decided flavour. A cheese that tells the story of the Apennines in a few syllables.

Sweet things. Confetti di Pistoia (Corsini since 1918), brigidine di Lamporecchio, chestnut necci from the Apennines, frittelle di San Giuseppe, schiacciata fiorentina in the right season.

Wine. The Colli di Quarrata and Carmignano (on the Prato boundary) produce Chianti DOCG and Carmignano DOCG. The Valdinievole has lesser wines, but wines with character, from Vernaccia to Trebbiano.

The markets

Mercato di Pistoia — Piazza dello Spirito Santo

The twice-weekly city market, Wednesday and Saturday morning. Food stalls, clothing, flowers, household goods. One of the liveliest squares in the historic centre.

Mercato di Pescia — Piazza Mazzini

Saturday morning market in the Italian capital of cut flowers. Local stalls, products of the Valdinievole, specialities of the Valleriana.

Mercato di Montecatini Terme — Viale Verdi

Thursday market in the heart of the spa town. Mixed stalls, typical products, clothing. Well attended by residents and by visitors to the spas alike.

Fiera di Sant'Ansano — Pistoia, 15 May

The historic fair of the patron saint of Pistoia. Traditional stalls, farm produce, small goods, historic local sweets. One of the most keenly felt annual fairs in central Tuscany.

All the markets of Pistoia are on Tuscany Market Hub

Above there are the ones the territory recognises first. There you will find them all: day by day, square by square, with the stalls that work them and the shopping collection point where the market is actually held.