In earliest times, the Gulf of Diana was covered by a sacred wood, dedicated to God Borman (Lucus Bormani) and then to Diana the hunter. Today, the aspect of the territory has completely changed.

The natural vegetation would be forests of durmasts, (quercus ilex). Man strongly changed the natural growth of the vegetation (holm-oaks, durmast, quercus petrae and quercus pubescens). Olive trees were rare. Pinewoods, could be found only close to the seacoast (pinus halepensis).

Today the panorama is featured by a vast area of olive terraces, man made pinewoods and implantations of oaks, together with grasses (as a residual of the rough grazing).

Geologically, the land of the Dianese is featured by the so called “flysch” with helmintoids, a soil which is typical of western Liguria and easy to see driving along the coast roads between Diano Marina, Imperia, and the valleys. In Diano Castello and Pairola we find Pliocene rocks, especially marlstones, which creates a fertile land for the production of Vermentino vineyards. The marlstones are in Ligurian dialect known as “tufi”, and this is the origin of the name “Tovo”, a hamlet in the municipality of Villa Faraldi.

To know more: “I Sentieri di Diana”, a book of itineraries that you can buy in all the book shops of the territory; see also on line "I Sentieri di Diana"