<i>Quercus cerris</i> Leaf Functional Traits to Assess Urban Forest Health Status for Expeditious Analysis in a Mediterranean European Context
In the Mediterranean basin, urban forests are widely recognized as essential landscape components, playing a key role in nature-based solutions by enhancing environmental quality and providing a range of ecosystem services. The selection of woody plant species for afforestation and reforestation sho...
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MDPI AG
2025-01-01
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| Series: | Plants |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2223-7747/14/2/285 |
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| author | Luca Quaranta Piera Di Marzio Paola Fortini |
| author_facet | Luca Quaranta Piera Di Marzio Paola Fortini |
| author_sort | Luca Quaranta |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | In the Mediterranean basin, urban forests are widely recognized as essential landscape components, playing a key role in nature-based solutions by enhancing environmental quality and providing a range of ecosystem services. The selection of woody plant species for afforestation and reforestation should prioritize native species that align with the biogeographical and ecological characteristics of the planting sites. Among these, <i>Quercus cerris</i> L. (Turkey oak) is considered a promising candidate for urban reforestation. However, its fitness within urban forest environments remains poorly understood. This study aimed to identify suitable leaf functional traits for assessing the response of <i>Q. cerris</i> in urban forests and to analyze the main climatic variables influencing its performance in urban contexts. We also proposed practical, rapid monitoring tools to compare urban and natural forests across different seasons. The results demonstrated that <i>Q. cerris</i> experiences significant water stress in urban forests due to the combined effects of drought and high temperatures. To find the tools to mitigate this stress, the differences between leaf traits such as specific leaf area, thickness, and the contents of chlorophyll, anthocyanins, and flavonols in urban and natural forests were analyzed. Our findings underscore the high adaptability of <i>Q. cerris</i> to varied climatic and environmental conditions. This study provides a practical method for rapidly assessing the responses of tree species to climate change. In the future, this approach will be tested on other native species that are characteristic of Mediterranean forest ecosystems to help with choosing afforestation and reforestation strategies. |
| format | Article |
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| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2223-7747 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-01-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
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| series | Plants |
| spelling | doaj-art-cb9f1dc7b5cb4252be8684f9ddb943042025-01-24T13:47:06ZengMDPI AGPlants2223-77472025-01-0114228510.3390/plants14020285<i>Quercus cerris</i> Leaf Functional Traits to Assess Urban Forest Health Status for Expeditious Analysis in a Mediterranean European ContextLuca Quaranta0Piera Di Marzio1Paola Fortini2Department Biosciences and Territory, University of Molise, 86090 Pesche, ItalyDepartment Biosciences and Territory, University of Molise, 86090 Pesche, ItalyDepartment Biosciences and Territory, University of Molise, 86090 Pesche, ItalyIn the Mediterranean basin, urban forests are widely recognized as essential landscape components, playing a key role in nature-based solutions by enhancing environmental quality and providing a range of ecosystem services. The selection of woody plant species for afforestation and reforestation should prioritize native species that align with the biogeographical and ecological characteristics of the planting sites. Among these, <i>Quercus cerris</i> L. (Turkey oak) is considered a promising candidate for urban reforestation. However, its fitness within urban forest environments remains poorly understood. This study aimed to identify suitable leaf functional traits for assessing the response of <i>Q. cerris</i> in urban forests and to analyze the main climatic variables influencing its performance in urban contexts. We also proposed practical, rapid monitoring tools to compare urban and natural forests across different seasons. The results demonstrated that <i>Q. cerris</i> experiences significant water stress in urban forests due to the combined effects of drought and high temperatures. To find the tools to mitigate this stress, the differences between leaf traits such as specific leaf area, thickness, and the contents of chlorophyll, anthocyanins, and flavonols in urban and natural forests were analyzed. Our findings underscore the high adaptability of <i>Q. cerris</i> to varied climatic and environmental conditions. This study provides a practical method for rapidly assessing the responses of tree species to climate change. In the future, this approach will be tested on other native species that are characteristic of Mediterranean forest ecosystems to help with choosing afforestation and reforestation strategies.https://www.mdpi.com/2223-7747/14/2/285Campobasso municipalityenvironmental dataphytosociological surveyplant functional traitsstatistical analysisplant stress |
| spellingShingle | Luca Quaranta Piera Di Marzio Paola Fortini <i>Quercus cerris</i> Leaf Functional Traits to Assess Urban Forest Health Status for Expeditious Analysis in a Mediterranean European Context Plants Campobasso municipality environmental data phytosociological survey plant functional traits statistical analysis plant stress |
| title | <i>Quercus cerris</i> Leaf Functional Traits to Assess Urban Forest Health Status for Expeditious Analysis in a Mediterranean European Context |
| title_full | <i>Quercus cerris</i> Leaf Functional Traits to Assess Urban Forest Health Status for Expeditious Analysis in a Mediterranean European Context |
| title_fullStr | <i>Quercus cerris</i> Leaf Functional Traits to Assess Urban Forest Health Status for Expeditious Analysis in a Mediterranean European Context |
| title_full_unstemmed | <i>Quercus cerris</i> Leaf Functional Traits to Assess Urban Forest Health Status for Expeditious Analysis in a Mediterranean European Context |
| title_short | <i>Quercus cerris</i> Leaf Functional Traits to Assess Urban Forest Health Status for Expeditious Analysis in a Mediterranean European Context |
| title_sort | i quercus cerris i leaf functional traits to assess urban forest health status for expeditious analysis in a mediterranean european context |
| topic | Campobasso municipality environmental data phytosociological survey plant functional traits statistical analysis plant stress |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2223-7747/14/2/285 |
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