Two hands tie a bunch of dried flowers — ears of wheat, lavender and eucalyptus — with raffia; on the bench, scissors, florist's wire and balls of string.

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

Professional nurseries make Pistoia 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 are one of the emblematic sweets of the province. Almonds coated in sugar by processes that take days of handwork.

The brigidini of Lamporecchio. Thin wafers scented with aniseed, made in the Lamporecchio area. 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.

The historic paper mill. The Valdinievole is one of the Italian territories of handmade paper: in Pescia watermarked paper is still made.

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.

Meat. The massese sheep is raised on the Montagna Pistoiese. Wild boar sausage, wild boar stew, leg of kid.

Mushrooms. The woods of the Montagna Pistoiese give porcini in quantity, chanterelles and Caesar's mushrooms. Mountain cooking uses them generously.

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

Sweet things. Confetti di Pistoia, brigidini di Lamporecchio, chestnut necci from the Apennines, frittelle di San Giuseppe, schiacciata fiorentina in the right season.

Wine. The Colli di Quarrata produce Chianti DOCG. The Valdinievole has lesser wines, but wines with character, made from Trebbiano.

The markets

Mercato di Pistoia — Piazza San Francesco and Piazza del Duomo

The city's most important market is held on Wednesday and Saturday. The food stalls stand in Piazza San Francesco, the others spread out over Piazza del Duomo, Via Roma, Via Cavour, Via Cino and the other streets of the centre. When there are events the market moves to Zona Stadio.

Mercato di Pescia — Piazza Mazzini

The weekly market of Pescia is held on Saturday in Piazza Mazzini. In exceptional cases it moves to Piazza dei Fiori, Via Fratelli Rosselli or Via Turati, and it is held even when the Saturday falls on a public holiday.

Mercato di Montecatini Terme — Piazzale Leopoldo

The street market of Montecatini Terme is held on Thursday in Piazzale Leopoldo. When the Thursday falls on a public holiday, the municipality publishes the change.

Mercato di Monsummano Terme — the historic centre

On Monday morning the market takes over the historic centre and spreads out over several squares and streets, with stalls of different kinds of goods. After the one in Pistoia it is the largest in the province.

It is also held on Easter Monday and on other public holidays.

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.