Salgesch

Salgesch
Coat of arms
Salgesch Show map of Switzerland Salgesch Show map of Canton of Valais
Location of Salgesch
Coordinates: 46°18′N 7°34′E / 46.300°N 7.567°E / 46.300; 7.567Coordinates: 46°18′N 7°34′E / 46.300°N 7.567°E / 46.300; 7.567
Country	Switzerland
Canton	Valais
District	Leuk
Government
• Mayor	Urs Kuonen
Area
• Total	11.34 km2 (4.38 sq mi)
Elevation	581 m (1,906 ft)
Population (Dec 2015)
• Total	1,465
• Density	130/km2 (330/sq mi)
Postal code	3970
SFOS number	6113
Surrounded by	Chandolin, Leuk, Miège, Mollens, Sierre, Varen, Veyras
Website	www.salgesch.ch SFSO statistics

Salgesch (French: Salquenen) is a municipality in the district of Leuk in the canton of Valais in Switzerland.

Salgesch is first mentioned in the 11th Century as Salconio. In 1225 it was mentioned as Salquenum.

The transformation of Salquenen from a farming village to today’s wine village began after World War II. Today, there are 203 hectares (500 acres) of vineyards and over forty wineries.

The blazon of the municipal coat of arms is Sable a Cross Patee Fourche Argent.

The coat of arms of Salquenen bears the Maltese Cross in memory of the Knights of St. John of Malta. In the 13th century, members of the Maltese Order settled in Salquenen and, in accordance with their beliefs, founded a lodging for pilgrims and travelers. The Knights of St. John remained in Salquenen for about 400 years.

Salgesch has an area, as of 2009^[update], of 11.3 square kilometers (4.4 sq mi). Of this area, 2.42 km² (0.93 sq mi) or 21.3% is used for agricultural purposes, while 5.72 km² (2.21 sq mi) or 50.4% is forested. Of the rest of the land, 1.1 km² (0.42 sq mi) or 9.7% is settled (buildings or roads), 0.37 km² (0.14 sq mi) or 3.3% is either rivers or lakes and 1.75 km² (0.68 sq mi) or 15.4% is unproductive land.

Of the built up area, housing and buildings made up 2.6% and transportation infrastructure made up 3.4%. Power and water infrastructure as well as other special developed areas made up 1.7% of the area while parks, green belts and sports fields made up 1.4%. Out of the forested land, 47.0% of the total land area is heavily forested and 3.4% is covered with orchards or small clusters of trees. Of the agricultural land, 0.1% is used for growing crops and 2.6% is pastures, while 18.7% is used for orchards or vine crops. Of the water in the municipality, 0.3% is in lakes and 3.0% is in rivers and streams. Of the unproductive areas, 10.6% is unproductive vegetation and 4.9% is too rocky for vegetation.

The municipality is located in the Leuk district, on the right side of the Rhone valley, across from the Pfynwald (Pfyn woods). It is the western-most German speaking municipality in Valais.