Effect of afforestation by introduced species in the old sweet chestnut (Castanea sativa Miller) groves of cevennes, southern France, on plant species diversity
2002
Shater, Z. (Tichrine Univ., Lattaquia (Syria). Agronomy Fac., Forestry and Ecology Dept.) | Gondard, H. | Romane, F. (CNRS-CEFE, Montpellier CEDEX (France)) | Amorini, E. (Instituto Seperimentale per la Selvicoltura, Arezzo (Italy))
Until a few decades ago, in a large part of the Cevennes in the southern France, the landscape was mostly occupied by chestnut (Castanea sativa Miller) groves. A large part of these groves are now abandoned and have turned into forests and sometimes into coppice stands. But part of them have been afforested by introduced species (Cedrus atlantica (Endl.) Carriere, Pseudotsuga menziesii (Mirbel) Franco, Pinus nigra Arnold subsp. laricio (Poiret) Maire).We discuss the consequences of these changes on the plant species diversity in the understorey and compare them with the diversity existing in abandoned chestnut groves and native forests (Pinus sylvestris L., Pinus nigra Arnold subsp. salzmannii (Dunal) Franco), and in stands where the species was introduced more than a century ago (Pinus pinaster Aiton). The tested hypothesis of a higher diversity in the native species forest was not verified, the highest diversity occurred in Cedrus atlantica and the lowest in Pseudotsuga menziesii, i.e. in two introduced species. The results are discussed including the sample age of approximately 40 years (older samples do not presently exist). The consequences of these results on management are also discussed.
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