Nature

Your journey begins at Bokskogen, or “Beech forest”, originally planted as part of the Torup Slott Castle gardens. Today it is one of the most highly valued key woodland habitats in Skåne. In addition to many bird species and deer, it is also home to Europe’s largest and rare stag beetle, named for its formidable jaws which resemble the horns of a stag. 

You continue south, crossing the rolling hills of the southern plains. On the border between the woodland and open areas is Roslätts oak pasture, an oasis for specialised insects, birds, bats and lichens, and on Västerkulla Hill you can see out over the plains. Keep your eyes open for a stand of stubborn field maples. This type of tree was common in the 1700s, but the last one was cut down in 1912. But just here, new shoots grew from the stumps, and these are the only wild examples left in Sweden. Svedala chose the field maple leaf for their District Council coat of arms.

South of Svedala, your footsteps carry you along the foot of an unusual geological formation. Ullbergskroken was bulldozed up at the forward edge of advancing ice sheets, and then left behind when the glaciers retreated. Beech and oak grow here, and in the spring, there is an explosion of wild flowers, and in the fall, lots of different types of mushrooms. You see some other signs of the ice age alongside Route 101, in the form of small pools. The majority are ice hollows, also formed by retreating ice.

Cultural History

Svedala is a study in brick architecture. The area is rich in clay, and many brick works flourished here at the end of the 1800s. Notice the patterned brickwork and decorated façades in the "modern" brick houses. Victoria Benedictsson, one of the best poets of the 1880s and an early feminist, had her breakthrough under the pseudonym Ernst Ahlgren. She grew up on the Charlottenberg farm south of Svedala. She committed suicide in a hotel room in Copenhagen at 38 years of age.

Make a pilgrimage to a sacrificial well, as people have done for thousands of years. The sacrificial well at Fru Alstad supposedly cured most ailments, while the one at Aggarp was especially helpful for treating bad-smelling colic. The central pillar of nearby Fru Alstad Church, built in the Gothic style in the 1400s, is covered with inscriptions made by pilgrims.