Rose Valley

The rose-growing valley stretches for about 20 km along the Mgoun River, from Kelaa M'Gouna eastward to Boulmane Dadès. In May, the hillsides and hedgerow boundaries of fields turn pink with damask rose blossoms. Women harvest the flowers at dawn, when the oil content is highest, filling large wicker baskets that are carried to the cooperative distilleries by donkey.

Outside flowering season the valley is still beautiful — the red ochre kasbahs, Berber villages, and the eroded rock formations of the Dadès gorge above make it worth visiting in any month. The drive or bike ride along the valley road gives a series of increasingly dramatic views as you approach the gorge.

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A story
The damask roses grown here — Rosa damascena — are not native to Morocco. They were brought along ancient trade routes, likely from the Middle East or Central Asia, possibly by returning pilgrims or Crusade-era merchants. They have grown in this valley for at least four centuries. The climate of the Dadès Valley, with its hot days and cold nights at altitude, produces rose oil of exceptional quality — it takes around three tonnes of rose petals to distil a single kilogram of attar.

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