Search results for "forestry"
showing 10 items of 1998 documents
The role of forest fire severity on vegetation recovery after 18 years. Implications for forest management of Quercus suber L. in Iberian Peninsula
2016
Wildfires are a widespread phenomenon in Mediterranean environments. Wildfires result in different fire severities, and then in contrasting plant cover and floristic composition. This paper analyses the recovery of the vegetation eighteen years after a wildfire in Catalonia. The Pinus pinaster ssp. forest was affected by three different severities in July 1994, and studied the spring of 1995 and again in 2008. After eighteen years (2012), our research found that burnt sites constitute a dense forest with a broad variety of species, including many young pines, shrubs and herbaceous plants, but that the risk of fire remains very high, due to the large quantity of fuel and the flammability of …
Morphometric and hydraulic geometry assessment of a gully in SW Spain
2016
Abstract Gully erosion represents one of the most significant types of land degradation in the Mediterranean areas, giving place to important on- and off-site effects. In this paper, a second-order gully located in SW Spain is analyzed. Along the gully, 28 cross-sections were established and measured with a Leica TCRM1102 laser total station, approximately every 6 months from 2001 to 2007. The sections were located at variable distance, placing them in areas where active erosion was evident. In total, 13 field measurements were carried out, and the geometric characteristics of 28 cross-sections were obtained. Morphometric analyses were carried out in both the main gully and a tributary reac…
Urban growth (1956-2012) and soil sealing in the metropolitan area of Valencia (Eastern Spain)
2019
[EN] The aim of this study is to understand the urban growth dynamics from the mid-1950s to 2012 in the Metropolitan Area of Valencia, eastern Spain, and its impact on soils. The study area is a very interesting example of the many changes in land use and land cover in the landscape of Mediterranean alluvial plains. The analysis of urban growth was based on photo interpretation of aerial photographs and GIS based methodology. At a detailed scale (1:10,000), results show that there has been a highly dynamic process produced by the extent of land developed as urban area. In 1956 only 3,441 hectares (9.3% of the overall study area) were occupied by urban use. In 2012 the total sealed surface w…
The influence of fire history, plant species and post-fire management on soil water repellency in a Mediterranean catchment : The Mount Carmel range,…
2017
Fire is a key factor impacting soil hydrology in many Mediterranean catchments. Soil water repellency (SWR) can stimulate land degradation processes by reducing the affinity of soil and water thereby triggering a reduction in soil fertility and increasing soil and water losses. The effects of two consequent fires (1989 and 2005) on SWR were assessed in the Carmel Mountains, Israel. Fire history, plant recovery and post-fire management (14 treatments) were investigated as determining factors in a time dependent system. In total 210 locations were investigated 9 times from October 2011 to February 2012, which totals 1890 water drop penetration tests that were performed. During each visit to t…
Fruits arriving to the west. Introduction of cultivated fruits in the Iberian Peninsula
2021
Agricultural activities, including practices, crops and techniques have evolved throughout history undergoing tremendous changes. From the early Neolithic farmers in the Mediterranean focused on cereal agriculture and only later, during the 4th/3rd millennium cal. BC in the Eastern basin, other species such as fruit trees were introduced into the agrarian system transforming the model that had been in use for millennia. Fruit tree management required innovation and investment and more importantly multi-year foresight as the new crops entailed a new pace of work with delayed returns and, thus, a greater entanglement with the land. Processes of social complexity and urbanization accompanied t…
Pots, plants and animals: Broad-spectrum subsistence strategies in the Early Neolithic of the Moroccan Rif region
2019
Abstract The transition from hunter-gathering to food-producing societies in the Mediterranean zone of north Africa was complex and variable, likely influenced by local ecological conditions as well as the socio-economic origins of the population. The adoption of domestic plants and animals was piecemeal, with hunting and gathering continuing as an important part of local subsistence strategies. Here, we investigate the timing and extent of the adoption of agricultural practices, namely herding and cultivation, in three diverse coastal and inland Early Neolithic sites in the Mediterranean Maghreb region, namely Ifri Oudadane, Ifri n’Etsedda and Hassi Ouenzga. Results from absorbed lipid res…
Propagation techniques for three Mediterranean native shrubs with potentential as ornamental outdoor plants
2006
Grande are three Mediterranean shrubs with interesting ornamental features. The exploitation of wild plants for ornamental purposes implies knowledge on the factors influencing the propagation methods. To study the influence of temperature on germination, seeds of Teucrium flavum, Prasium majus and Micromeria fruticulosa were germinated in incubators at constant temperatures of 14, 20, 24 and 28°C. Highest germination, 45 % and 86%, occurred at 20°C in Teucrium flavum and Prasium majus, respectively. Micromeria fruticulosa seeds subjected at 24 or 28°C had a germination percentage significantly higher than at 20 or 14°C. To study the influence of auxin treatments on vegetative propagation, …
Effects of afforestation with four unmixed plant species on the soil–water interactions in a semiarid Mediterranean region (Sicily, Italy)
2012
Purpose An assessment of the effect of plant cover on the properties of four afforested soils in central Sicily was performed with the aim of discriminating among them after 60 years of afforestation. Materials and methods Chemical and biochemical soil analyses were coupled to fast field cycling (FFC) NMR relaxation investigations in order to monitor surface interactions of water in water-saturated soils. Results and discussion The traditional soil analyses revealed that the most stable soil properties such as soil texture and pH are not affected by 60 years of afforestation. Soils developed under eucalyptus trees showed larger amounts of hydrophilic organic matter as compared to the soils …
Isotopic composition of single rain events in the central Mediterranean
2008
[1] The ratios of stable isotopes of single rain events were investigated during the period October 2005 to September 2006 in the central Mediterranean. Clear seasonal trends were identified in both oxygen isotope ratios and the deuterium-excess parameter, and these were ascribed to the dominant circulation systems during both cold and hot intraannual periods. Rain events were classified on the basis of the origin of rain-bearing systems. Air masses coming from the south usually give rise to rainwater with a low deuterium excess. Air masses coming from the north and the northeast are often dry and cold, and are associated with high evaporation from the Mediterranean Sea that occurs under is…
Columnar aerosol properties in Valencia (Spain) by ground-based Sun photometry
2007
In this paper, we present a climatological study of atmospheric aerosols in coastal eastern Spain, by means of experimental measurements using a Cimel CE318-2 Sun photometer. The aerosol optical depth, Ångström wavelength exponent, size distribution, complex refractive index, asymmetry parameter, and single scattering albedo have been retrieved from these measurements. The columnar water content, as an important parameter for understanding aerosol growth, has also been retrieved. Statistical results of the annual and seasonal variability analysis, mainly related to the usual summer maximum turbidity found in the Mediterranean and European regions, are also shown. The results are linked to t…