The Course, entitled "SOIL, PLANT BIOINDICATION AND TREE HEALTH", deals with topics concerning the basic principles for the management of soils and the conservation of their fertility, the use of vascular plants as bioindicators of the edaphic and nutritional conditions of forest ecosystems and the mycological, phenological and instrumental analyses for the assessment of the structural integrity of trees.
-- Pignatti S. et al. 2001. Le Piante come Indicatori Ambientali Manuale Tecnico Scientifico. Agenzia Nazionale per la protezione dell’Ambiente, Roma. Free PDF, downloadable at: https://core.ac.uk/download/pdf/11164571.pdf
--A. RAGAZZI, P. CAPRETTI, L. GHELARDINI, S. MORICCA (2020). Malattie delle piante in bosco, in vivaio e delle alberature. Bologna: Pàtron editore - Bologna, ISBN:9788855534796
Other material, such as scientific papers, technical-informative papers and presentations (slides) concerning the issues addressed during the course will be provided to students by the teachers.
Learning Objectives
Skills acquired at the end of the course are basic knowledge on the mechanisms underlying soil fertility and the expected ecosystem services; the comprehension of the bioindication signal provided by a number of native plants and communities of different soil conditions in forest ecosystems and other natural habitats, and the capacity to select the best plant species in practices of environmental restoration and sustainable management; the ability to visually recognize, through the "signs" of the disease, the major pathogens that attack plants in urban areas and to evaluate their action together with other non-biotic factors that alter tree resistance to mechanical forces (static and dynamic loads).
Expected learning outcomes are the acquisition of: the basic knowledge on the main strategies to maintain or recover the fertility in degraded and / or polluted soils with focus on urban soils; the concepts and basic knowledge to interpret the bioindication signal provided by plants and communities and the criteria for the selection of the best species in practices of environmental restoration and sustainable management; the knowledge necessary to evaluate the biomechanical characteristics of trees and the biological, physical and anthropogenic factors (e.g. pruning) that influence the mechanical behavior and stability of trees.
Prerequisites
General knwnoledge of Botany, Ecology, Plant Pathology
Teaching Methods
A series of thematic seminars are proposed, organized in three cycles, as follows:
1st cycle: SOIL, PLANTS AND ECOSYSTEM SERVICES (1CFU) - Prof. G. Pietramellara
The planned seminars are:
• Soil ecosystem and ecosystem services (2hrs);
• Rhizosphere as soil-plant interface and its ecological relevance (2hrs);
• Degraded and polluted soils and their remediantion strategy (2hrs);
• Green management: in urban soils. problems and required ecosystem services (2hrs).
2nd cycle: PLANTS, BIOINDICATION AND APPLICATIONS IN FOREST AND ENVIRONMENTAL RESTORATION (1 CFU) - Prof. F. Selvi
The planned seminars are:
• Plants, communities, concepts of ecological niche and bioindication with special reference to soil conditions (2hrs)
• Methods and approaches of measurements, examples, applications (2hrs)
• Field excursion dedicated to the observation and identification of bioindicator plants, communities and of their respective soil environment (4 hrs).
3rd cycle: TREES AND URBAN GREEN, PLANT HEALTH AND STRUCTURAL ASSESSMENT (1 CFU) - Prof. S. Moricca
The planned seminars are:
• Main pathogens responsible for the degradation of urban trees (2hrs);
• Analysis of the physical and biological factors that influence the behavior of trees (2hrs);
• Biological and mechanical essessment of tree stability (2hrs);
• Analysis of the structural integrity of the tree by sonic tomography (2hrs).
Further information
Attendance of lessons and exercises not compulsory but recommended
Teaching support tools: Video projector, PC, overhead projector
Type of Assessment
WRITTEN TEST.
A written test will be prepared with questions relating to each of the three cycles in which the course is divided. These questions will be used to verify the degree of knowledge of the subject and the argumentative rigor of the student. The test may include questions of different types: multiple choice questions (the student must select one or more answers from a given list); true / false questions; questions with free text answers.
Course program
The first cycle seminars focus on on aspects related to soil management providing both the fundamental knowledge on the soil functionality and on the main strategies to recover and / or maintenance of its fertility. Information is also given to the benefits arising from the correct soil management and defined as ecosystem services. A focus on the urban soils management is planned.
The seminars of the second cycle highlight the concept and significance of bioindication in vascular plants and communities, especially forests and other natural ecosystems. The variability in soil preferences and nutritional requirements that exists among different species is illustrated, as well as the diversity of signals and information that can be obtained from their presence regarding the characteristics and conservation status of the soil. Examples of species and communities that are associated with different soil conditions in forests and other types of natural habitats are given. Rapid methods for the measurement and quantification of the information provided by species are illustrated. Also, possible applications for environmental and forest restoration are presented, as well as examples of biotechnological applications, such as the sustainable use of soils rich in heavy metals of economic value. A field excursion (4 hrs) will be devoted to the direct observation of bioindicator species and natural communities, and the corresponding soil environments.
The third cycle seminars are focused on the analysis of the health conditions of trees in urban areas as well as on the assessment of their structural integrity. Individual trees or groups of trees are examined, and the presence and danger by harmful pathogens affecting the tree component are considered. Emphasis is placed on the role of these agents in compromising the health of plants and the ecosystem services that are expected by citizens. Visual analyses (VTA) and instrumental investigations are also carried out to highlight the anomalies and structural defects that undermine the stability of trees and which constitute crash or failure indices. The methods and criteria for remedying, where possible, the problems connected with improper management of trees are described.