Sustainable silviculture in beech forest habitats, through thinnings, and the creation of gaps

LIFE11 NAT/IT/000135

Implementation of silvicultural techniques on Apennine beech forests aimed at the conservation of habitats 9210* and 9220* and, therefore, aimed at diversifying the structure and increasing the levels of biological diversity.

PROJECT REFERENT
Di Santo Daniele

WEBSITE

The traditional management of the Apennine beech forests has historically led to conditions of structural and compositional simplification of the forest stands. This good practice, through specific silvicultural protocols, aims to combine the production of ecosystem services for local communities considering conservation issues and specifically: regeneration of the target species (Taxus baccata, Abies alba) characterizing habitats 9210* and 9220*, regeneration of beech trees and increase in forest biodiversity in terms of both the number of species and the structure of the vegetation.

It consists mainly in the opening of small patches (max 100 m²) where well-established renewal nuclei (height greater than 3 m) both of beech and of target or sporadic species have been reported. Within the groups, qualitative and quantitative selection is envisaged with the release of one or two shoots among the most developed ones. The treatment entails the natural evolution of those parts of the forest that are most difficult to reach because they are on steep slopes or on rocky surfaces. The project also gave great importance to the issues related to the preparation of the material and the logging, with a focus on causing the least possible damage to the regeneration in progress and to the soil.

The good practice was implemented in a stand of about 70 ha of Apennine beech forests, within 3 Sites of Community Interest (SCI) of 2 National Parks: that of Cilento (SA) and that of Gran Sasso and Monti della Laga. These are typically mountainous and foothill areas, characterised by the presence of small, inhabited centres and by a general delay in the development of the infrastructural system.

The silvicultural approach can be implemented wherever there are similar objectives and conditions.

From the LIFE GoProFor database, in the final part of the sheet, it is possible to download some material relating to the project, including the Layman's report in the technical manual entitled: "Manual of best practices for the management of habitats 9210* and 9220*".