How the structure and form of vegetation in a black locust (Robinia pseudoacacia L.) silvopastoral system influences tree growth, forage mass and its nutrient content

Papachristou, T. G.; Platis, Panagiotis; Papachristou, Ioannis; Samara, Theano; Spanos, Ioannis; Chavales, Evangelos; Bataka, Alkmini

doi:10.1007/s10457-020-00552-z

Cited by 6 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 45 publications

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“…In Greece, black locust has been planted for torrent stabilization on mountains and for soil erosion control on rivers, roads and railway banks. It has been also used as a fodder in silvopastures [26] and as an alternative crop for privately owned plantations, in line with the 2080/92 and 1257/99 European Union (EU) Regulations, due to its great adaptation to marginal agricultural lands [9]. Furthermore, black locust is a suitable non-native species for the restoration of sites extremely degraded by anthropogenic activities such as mining, as it can survive on nutrient-poor depositions like the ones of former open-cast mining areas [20].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Assessing Black Locust Biomass Accumulation in Restoration Plantations

Spyroglou¹,

Fotelli²,

Nanos

et al. 2021

Forests

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Forests (either natural or planted) play a key role in climate change mitigation due to their huge carbon-storing potential. In the 1980s, the Hellenic Public Power Corporation (HPPC) started the rehabilitation of lignite post-mining areas in Northwest Greece by planting mainly black locust (Robinia pseudoacacia L.). Today, these plantations occupy about 2570 ha, but the accumulation of Above Ground Biomass (AGB) and deadwood has not been assessed to date. Therefore, we aimed at estimating these biomass pools by calibrating an allometric model for AGB, performing an inventory for both pools and predicting the spatial distribution of AGB. 214 sample plots of 100 m2 each were set up through systematic sampling in a grid dimension of 500 × 500 m and tree dbh and height were recorded. AGB was estimated using an exponential allometric model and performing inventory measurements and was on average 57.6 t ha−1. Kriging analysis reliably estimated mean AGB, but produced errors in the prediction of high and low biomass values, related to the high fragmentation and heterogeneity of the studied area. Mean estimated AGB was low compared with European biomass yield tables for black locust. Similarly, standing deadwood was low (6–10%) and decay degrees were mostly 1 and 2, indicating recent deadwood formation. The overall low biomass accumulation in the studied black locust restoration plantations may be partially attributed to their young age (5–30 years old), but is comparable to that reported in black locust restoration plantation in extremely degraded sites. Thus, black locust successfully adapted to the studied depositions of former mines and its accumulated biomass has the potential to improve the carbon footprint of the region. However, the invasiveness of the species should be considered for future management planning of these restoration plantations.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Assessing Black Locust Biomass Accumulation in Restoration Plantations

Spyroglou¹,

Fotelli²,

Nanos

et al. 2021

Forests

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“…This was corroborated by the observed higher pellet counts in olive groves in 2002 compared to 2021, whereas grassland use by the hare went in the opposite direction; i.e., grassland use was significantly higher in 2021 than in 2002. It is well known that herbivory and other silvopastoral practices have a prominent role in determining the structure of plant communities [38][39][40][41][42]. It seems that the hare more often uses areas covered by short and sparse vegetation [34]; a behavior thought to be linked to increased hare ability to visually detect approaching predators in such habitats [27][28][29].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Abandonment of Silvopastoral Practices Affects the Use of Habitats by the European Hare (Lepus europaeus)

Karmiris¹,

Papachristou²,

Fotakis³

2022

Agriculture

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Silvopasture, a traditional agroforestry practice, combines the presence of trees, shrubs, herbage, and livestock in time and space to provide multiple ecosystem services that contribute to human well-being. However, the abandonment of traditional agroforestry practices across Europe has led to substantial changes in vegetation characteristics, mainly due to woody plant expansion and, as a consequence, changes in wildlife that rely on open habitats. This study examines the effects of a 20-year abandonment of silvopastoral practices (i.e., livestock grazing and fuelwood harvesting) in a typical agroforestry Mediterranean landscape (kermes oak shrubland, natural grassland, and olive groves) on European hare (Lepus europaeus) habitat use. We estimated tree, shrub, and herb cover using a densitometer and hare habitat use using pellet counts within 2004-m2 rectangular plots in 2002, 2011, and 2021. Hare pellet density in olive groves was significantly lower in 2021 compared to 2002, while the opposite trend was found in grassland for the same period. Woody plant cover expanded from 2002 to 2021. We suggest that the woody plant encroachment that followed the abandonment of traditional silvopastoral practices in the area is the main driver behind the reported decline in hare use of the habitat, as it became less open and therefore less favorable for the species. Maintaining a mosaic of open and closed habitats at the landscape level, which was once provided by silvopastures, is vital for the conservation of this species.

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“…In Greece, the National Forest Service introduced and planted black locust to stabilize torrents on mountains and prevent soil erosion near rivers, roads and railway banks. It has also been used as fodder in silvopastures 22 and as an alternative plantation crop for privately owned marginal agricultural lands, in line with the 2080/92 and 1257/99 European Union (EU) Regulations 23 . In the 1980s, the Hellenic Public Power Corporation (HPPC) started to rehabilitate open-cast coal mining fields in the Lignite Center of Northwestern Greece by planting mainly black locust, both alone and in mixture with other species.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Applying taper function models for black locust plantations in Greek post-mining areas

Wilms,

Berendt,

Bronisz

et al. 2024

Sci Rep

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A key process in forest management planning is the estimation of tree volume and, more specifically, merchantable volume. The ability to predict the cumulative stem volume relative to any upper stem diameter on standing trees or stands is essential for forest inventories and the management of forest resources. In the 1980s, the Hellenic Public Power Corporation (HPPC) started the rehabilitation of lignite post-mining areas in Greece by planting mainly black locust (Robinia pseudoacacia, L.). Today, these plantations occupy an area of approximately 2570 ha, but the stem volume has not yet been estimated. Therefore, we aimed to estimate the over- and under-bark stem volume using taper function models for 30 destructively sampled trees. Of the nineteen calibrated fixed-effects models, Kozak’s (2004) equation performed best for both the over-bark and under-bark datasets, followed by Lee’s (2003) and Muhairwe’s (1999) equations. Two fixed effect models were compared with fitted coefficients from Poland and the United States confirming that the local model fits were better suited, as the foreign model coefficients caused an increase in root mean square error (RMSE) for stem diameter predictions of 13% and 218%, respectively. The addition of random effects on a single-stem basis for two coefficients of Kozak’s (2004) equation improved the model fit significantly at 86% of the over-bark fixed effect RMSE and 69% for the under-bark model. Integrated taper functions were found to slightly outperform three volume equations for predictions of single stem volume over and under bark. Ultimately it was shown that these models can be used to precisely predict stem diameters and total stem volume for the population average as well as for specific trees of the black locust plantations in the study area.

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How the structure and form of vegetation in a black locust (Robinia pseudoacacia L.) silvopastoral system influences tree growth, forage mass and its nutrient content

Cited by 6 publications

References 45 publications

Assessing Black Locust Biomass Accumulation in Restoration Plantations

Assessing Black Locust Biomass Accumulation in Restoration Plantations

Abandonment of Silvopastoral Practices Affects the Use of Habitats by the European Hare (Lepus europaeus)

Applying taper function models for black locust plantations in Greek post-mining areas

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