Search results for "plant species"
showing 10 items of 66 documents
Popular uses of wild plant species for medicinal purposes in the Nebrodi Regional Park (North-Eastern Sicily, Italy)
2014
Ethnopharmacological relevance: The area of the Nebrodi Regional Park (North-Eastern Sicily, Italy) has Q3 been quantitatively investigated in an ethnobotanical study for the first time. A total of 90 wild species are used for medicinal purposes and the uses of 5 species have not previously been reported in ethnobotanical studies in Italy (e.g., the use of Arisarum vulgare O. Targ. Tozz. for the treatment of rheumatic pains, the use of Silene vulgaris (Moench) Garcke for the treatment of liver diseases). Aim of the study: The aim of this paper was to understand to what extent current knowledge on the medicinal use of plants is still an element of the culture within the rural populations of …
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 …
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 …
Characterization and variation of bacterial and fungal communities from the sapwood of Apulian olive varieties with different susceptibility toXylell…
2020
AbstractEndophytes are symptomless fungal and/or bacterial microorganisms found in almost all living plant species. The symbiotic association with their host plants by colonizing the internal tissues has endowed them as a valuable tool to suppress diseases, to stimulate growth, and to promote stress resistance. In this context, the identification of cultivable endophytes residing the sapwood of Apulian olives might be a promising control strategy for xylem colonizing pathogens asXylella fatidiosa. To date, olive’s sapwood cultivable endophytes are still under exploration; therefore, this work pursues a study of diversity and occurrence variation of cultivable endophytes in the sapwood of di…
Vegetation of rock crevices of the montane and colline zones in the Pamir-Alai and Tian Shan Mts in Tajikistan (Middle Asia)
2014
The paper presents the results of phytosociological research conducted on the vegetation of rock habitats in the montane and colline zones of the Pamir-Alai Mountains (Tajikistan). During field surveys done in 2010–2013, 122 phytosociological releves were sampled. Plant species were recorded according to the Braun-Blanquet cover-abundance scale. The vegetation studies were carried out generally in the western Pamir-Alai and south-western Tian Shan Mts, especially in the Zeravshan, Hissar, Hazratishoh, Darvaz, Rushan, Turkestan, Kuramin and Vanch ranges. A synopsis of the rock communities of the montane and colline zones in Tajikistan is proposed. The collected material presents most of the …
Short seed-dispersal distances and low seedling recruitment in farmland populations of bird-dispersed cherry trees
2012
Summary In Central Europe, many plant populations are patchily distributed in human-modified landscapes and depend on animal vectors for seed dispersal. To predict seed-dispersal distances and locations of seeds of wild cherry trees (Prunus avium L.) in forest and farmland habitats in a human-modified landscape, we integrate movement data and seed regurgitation times of the Common Blackbird (Turdus merula L.) in a simulation model. We performed feeding trials with Common Blackbirds and wild cherries to determine the distribution of regurgitation times. We captured 32 male blackbirds and equipped them with radio tags to follow their movements in forest and farmland habitats. To simulate the …
Conservation Status of Some Peatbogs in Maramureş County
2016
AbstractPeat bogs and specially raised bogs are vulnerable ecosystems all over the world and they create refuges for some rare plant species. The aim of this paper is to provide information regarding the conservation status of five oligotrophic peat bogs situated in the volcanic mountains in the Oriental Chain of Carpathians, in Maramureș County. The studied peat bogs are: Tăul lui Dumitru (Dumitru Pond), Mlaștina Vlășinescu (Vlășinescu Peat bog), Iezeru Mare (Big Tarn), Tăul Chendroaiei (Chendroaiei Pond) and Tăul Negru (Black Pond), all of them have the status of nature reserve and under the IUCN categories they are included in category IV Habitat/Species Management Area (www.iucn.org, 20…
Leaf life span and the mobility of "non-mobile" mineral nutrients - The case of boron in conifers
2002
Nutrient conservation is considered important for the adaptation of plants to infertile environments. The importance of leaf life spans in controlling mean residence time of nutrients in plants has usually been analyzed in relation to nutrients that can be retranslocated within the plant. Longer leaf life spans increase the mean residence time of all mineral nutrients, but for non-mobile nutrients long leaf life spans concurrently cause concentrations in tissues to increase with leaf age, and consequently may reduce non-mobile nutrient use efficiency. Here we analyze how the role of leaf life span is related to the mobility of nutrients within the plant. We use optimality concepts to derive…
The essential oil composition of the endemic plant species Centaurea vandasii and chemotaxonomy of section Phalolepis (Asteraceae)
2021
In the present study, the chemical composition of the essential oil from aerial parts of the endemic plant species, Centaurea vandasii Velen (sect. Phalolepis, Asteraceae), collected in its locus classicus in Rhodope Mts, Bulgaria, was evaluated by GC-MS. The main components of the oil were hexadecanoic acid (18.3%), tetradecanoic acid (13.8%), caryophyllene oxide (12.1%) and germacrene D (8.4%). Furthermore, a complete literature review on the composition of the essential oils of all the other taxa of Centaurea, belonging to section Phalolepis, studied so far, was performed. HCA (Hierarchical Cluster Analysis) and PCA (Principal Component Analyses) were used in order to demonstrate chemota…
Anti-inflammatory properties of hydroalcoholic extracts of Argentine Puna plants
2015
The aim of this study is to evaluate the activity of thirteen hydroalcoholic extracts obtained from aerial parts of plants from Argentina Puna on pro-inflammatory enzymes and inflammatory mediators. Eleven extracts were non-cytotoxic on RAW 264.7. Data obtained suggest the capacity of these Argentine Puna plant extracts to inhibit the production of inflammatory mediators (nitric oxide and prostaglandin) at different levels. The plant extracts can affect enzymes expression and/or enzymes activity, and they can also act by NO scavenging. Each extract exerts its anti-inflammatory effect through different mechanisms. The inhibitory ability on pro-inflammatory enzymes by these hydroalcoholic ext…