Lake Palčje ( sl, Palško jezero) is an intermittent lake in the

Pivka basin The Pivka Basin or the Pivka Valley, also simply Pivka, is a varied basin in southwestern Slovenia, lying between high Dinaric plateaus, the Karst Plateau, and the Brkini Hills. It covers an area of . To the northwest, it is bordered by Mt. Nano ...

north of the settlement Palčje in the

Inner Carniola Inner Carniola ( sl, Notranjska; german: Innerkrain) is a traditional region of Slovenia, the southwestern part of the larger Carniola region. It comprises the Hrušica karst plateau up to Postojna Gate, bordering the Slovenian Littoral (the ...

region of

Slovenia Slovenia ( ; sl, Slovenija ), officially the Republic of Slovenia (Slovene: , abbr.: ''RS''), is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the southeast, an ...

. It fills an oval-shaped karst depression, crossed by

Pivka Pivka (, german: St. Peter in Krain, it, San Pietro del Carso) is a small town in Slovenia in the Pivka Basin in the Karst region. It is the seat of the Municipality of Pivka. It belongs to the traditional region of Inner Carniola. Name Pivka ...

, and approximately long and wide. Its bottom is relatively level at between above the sea, but the banks are steep. Lake Palčje is the largest among the Pivka Lakes with average maximum water area around .Palško jezero
". Pivka municipality. Accessed 2009-12-16. The bottom is at the

groundwater Groundwater is the water present beneath Earth's surface in rock and soil pore spaces and in the fractures of rock formations. About 30 percent of all readily available freshwater in the world is groundwater. A unit of rock or an unconsolidated ...

level, so the amount of water depends on current

hydrological Hydrology () is the scientific study of the movement, distribution, and management of water on Earth and other planets, including the water cycle, water resources, and environmental watershed sustainability. A practitioner of hydrology is calle ...

conditions. Usually, the lake fills after the heavy rains in late autumn and again in spring. On average, the area is flooded for around three months every year. The lake's main

inflow Inflow may refer to: * Inflow (hydrology), the water entering a body of water * Inflow (meteorology) Inflow is the flow of a fluid into a large collection of that fluid. Within meteorology, inflow normally refers to the influx of warmth and moi ...

is the

estavelle In karst geology, estavelle or inversac is a ground orifice which, depending on weather conditions and season, can serve either as a sink or as a source of fresh water. It is a type of ponor or sinkhole A sinkhole is a depression or hole in ...

Matija's Cave () out of which the water flowing from the Javornik Hills erupts.

Use

The area is filled with water for significant part of the year, so the lake's bottom cannot be used for agriculture, but the grassy surface makes it possible to allow

grazing In agriculture, grazing is a method of animal husbandry whereby domestic livestock are allowed outdoors to roam around and consume wild vegetations in order to convert the otherwise indigestible (by human gut) cellulose within grass and other ...

livestock Livestock are the domesticated animals raised in an agricultural setting to provide labor and produce diversified products for consumption such as meat, eggs, milk, fur, leather, and wool. The term is sometimes used to refer solely to animal ...

and harvesting

hay Hay is grass, legumes, or other herbaceous plants that have been cut and dried to be stored for use as animal fodder, either for large grazing animals raised as livestock, such as cattle, horses, goats, and sheep, or for smaller domesticat ...

. The farmers in nearby Palčje begin mowing at the end of July, when they finish with surrounding pastures. The garlic that grows on the bottom affects the taste of the milk, so the hay is used for feeding horses instead of

cattle Cattle (''Bos taurus'') are large, domesticated, cloven-hooved, herbivores. They are a prominent modern member of the subfamily Bovinae and the most widespread species of the genus ''Bos''. Adult females are referred to as cows and adult ma ...

. Ice-making was a supplementary source of income for locals from the end of the 18th century until the middle of the 20th century; farmers from Pivka used to break off ice blocks and store them until spring, then transport them on horse-pulled carts to

Trieste Trieste ( , ; sl, Trst ; german: Triest ) is a city and seaport in northeastern Italy. It is the capital city, and largest city, of the autonomous region of Friuli Venezia Giulia, one of two autonomous regions which are not subdivided into prov ...

where it was used in butcher shops, fisheries and restaurants before the onset of electric cooling. Women would pick herbs for

herbal remedies Herbal medicine (also herbalism) is the study of pharmacognosy and the use of medicinal plants, which are a basis of traditional medicine. With worldwide research into pharmacology, some herbal medicines have been translated into modern remedies ...

, mostly juniper berries,

ribwort plantain ''Plantago lanceolata'' is a species of flowering plant in the plantain family Plantaginaceae. It is known by the common names ribwort plantain, narrowleaf plantain, English plantain, ribleaf, lamb's tongue, and buckhorn. It is a common weed on c ...

yarrow ''Achillea millefolium'', commonly known as yarrow () or common yarrow, is a flowering plant in the family Asteraceae. Other common names include old man's pepper, devil's nettle, sanguinary, milfoil, soldier's woundwort, and thousand seal. The ...

thyme Thyme () is the herb (dried aerial parts) of some members of the genus '' Thymus'' of aromatic perennial evergreen herbs in the mint family Lamiaceae. Thymes are relatives of the oregano genus ''Origanum'', with both plants being mostly indigen ...

, and others. Branches of

willow Willows, also called sallows and osiers, from the genus ''Salix'', comprise around 400 speciesMabberley, D.J. 1997. The Plant Book, Cambridge University Press #2: Cambridge. of typically deciduous trees and shrubs, found primarily on moist so ...

s that grow around the lake were used for

basket weaving Basket weaving (also basketry or basket making) is the process of weaving or sewing pliable materials into three-dimensional artifacts, such as baskets, mats, mesh bags or even furniture. Craftspeople and artists specialized in making baskets ...

. Abandoned military facilities in vicinity bear witness of military use of this area. The broader area of the Pivka Lakes was used as a military training ground first by the

Austro-Hungarian army The Austro-Hungarian Army (, literally "Ground Forces of the Austro-Hungarians"; , literally "Imperial and Royal Army") was the ground force of the Austro-Hungarian Dual Monarchy from 1867 to 1918. It was composed of three parts: the joint arm ...

, and later by the

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

and Yugoslav armed forces. During military exercises, local inhabitants were compensated for their inability to use it. The area has not been used for military purposes since 1991, and the damage to the bed of Lake Palčje has been repaired. Today, the lake and its surroundings form part of the Natura 2000 network. Cutting hay continues until this day and development is directed towards

ecotourism Ecotourism is a form of tourism involving responsible travel (using sustainable transport) to natural areas, conserving the environment, and improving the well-being of the local people. Its purpose may be to educate the traveler, to provide fund ...

and sustainable agriculture.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Palcje Intermittent lakes Lakes of Inner Carniola Ljubljanica basin, Lake Wetlands in Inner Carniola Municipality of Pivka