The first two weeks in February are a magic time in the valley — the almond blossom is out. A hundred years ago there would twice as many trees at least, the almonds going to the nearby Jijona Turrón factories, but there are still thousands of trees left – lining the bancales like white ghosts. Jijona buys its almonds from California now, but there’s still a market through the local co-operative. Now the groves are full of photographers, we gather almonds in August.