Actual and potential impact of air pollution on Italian forests: results from the long-term national forest monitoring networks under the ICP Forests

Actual and potential pressure and impacts of air pollution have been summarized by using the dataseries of the Italian forest monitoring networks (CONECOFOR), mostly on the basis of evaluations carried out within the LIFE project SMART4Action. Trends in air pollution shows only few important reductions (e.g.: sulphate and ozone). The impacts on forest health status, increments and standing volumes, plant diversity, soil and nutrient are discussed. Evidences of risk are also reported, mainly due to N deposition, on all the response factors

Distribution of hypovirulent strains of Cryphonectria parasitica in Tuscany (Italy) as influenced by climatic-environmental factors

During the 2005 phytopathological forest survey of the Tuscany Region, named META (Regione Toscana 2008a), the occurrence of Cryphonectria parasitica, responsible of the chestnut blight, was registered on all of the 63 monitoring areas and on about 90% of the trees. The hypovirulent strains of the pathogen were mostly prevalent (about twice) then virulent ones, excluding some areas near the Apennines. Generally hypovirulent strains were present in sites showing high values of solar radiation, where the dsRNA transfer from mycelia resulted easier, in respect to chilly sites (p < 0.05). The analysis offers a chance to predict the spreading of hypovirulent strains and organize sanitary operations in chestnut stands

The assessment of crown condition in Italy: new challenges and perspectives.

The assessment of crown conditions is practiced in Europe from ’80 of past century both at extensive (Level I) and intensive (Level II) scale within the international programs of long term forest monitoring (ICP-Forests). The original goal of such surveys was to evaluate the spread and intensity of defoliation, assumed as proxy of the impact of pollutants on forests. In recent years the rationale of the assessment changed, including also climate change and pathogen invasions among the causal factors of defoliation. Because of financial constraints, the continuation of crown monitoring is seriously questioned in Italy and in other countries. For this reason it is necessary to revise the overall organization of these activities in order to reduce the costs but, at the same time, producing clear and useful knowledge for forest management in a changing environment. These results will be achieved within the ongoing Life+ project Smart4Action (Sustainable Monitoring and Reporting to Inform Forest and Environmental Awareness and Protection), headed by the Italian National Forest Service (CFS). This presentation shows the concepts and the goals to pursue with the revision of the Italian program of crown condition assessment, with special reference to the following topics: (1) To assure reliable data for the statistics (at regional, national and European level) and for institutional use (for ex., sustainable forest management); (2) To explore the main factors inducing defoliation, with special reference to ecological features (climate and site conditions) and pathogenic attacks, in order to improve the forecasts of forest evolution and change; (3) To explore the role of the structure and composition of forest cover as factors inducing resilience or sensitivity, in order to define the most appropriate models of forest management for adaptation to climate change

Latent infection of Biscogniauxia nummularia in Fagus sylvatica: a possible bioindicator of beech health conditions

Biscogniauxia nummularia is a xylariaceous fungus known as a common endophyte of European beech, living in plant tissues without development of symptoms, or even inducing strip-cankers and wood decay on trees stressed by drought. We studied the presence of the fungus in apparently healthy beech trees, growing in two different bioclimatic zones characterized by Continental and Mediterranean climates. Asymptomatic twigs were collected in each zone over the season and evaluated for the presence of B. nummularia infections using both cultural and qPCR methods. Results from qPCR indicated differences in the detection of B. nummularia among the seasons and between the study sites. In both sites the highest frequency of detection was in summer. B. nummularia was more frequently detected in the Mediterranean bioclimatic area, where drought is more common. These results suggest that B. nummularia may be a possible bioindicator of beech health stands