Exploitation of the slopes is determined by the morphology and nature of the soil, slope and altitude.

The most evident transformations are recorded at the base of the slopes, where partially bushy pastures alternate with arable land, vegetable gardens and orchards, favoured by the fertility of the soil and the presence of water. At the same altitude, but on the slopes subject to landslide phenomena, patches of woodland or natural high scrub often used as woodland prevail.

In the mid-Cenozoic (40 million years ago), the rotation began that led the Corsican Sardinian block to break away from the southern part of France and assume its current position.

In the Miocene, the sea invaded the Campidano and Marmilla areas, stopping at the foot of Laconi and Nurallao: a blanket of marine sediment was deposited there, which over the centuries became the typical fossiliferous rocks of Marmilla. At the end of the Miocene, the sea withdrew due to tectonic movements and the closure of the Mediterranean.