Objective:
The main objective of the study is assessing the areas where Quercus suber (cork oak) seeds (acorns) should be collected, taking into account both environmental and genetic variables, identifying uniform climatic areas and investigating the genetic diversity among populations at the regional scale. Combining the two factors, areas of interest for valorising the available germplasm can be identified.
Context:
The Region of Provenance (RoP) for a species is the area or group of areas subject to sufficiently uniform ecological conditions in which stands or seed sources show similar phenotypic or genetic characters, taking into account altitudinal boundaries where appropriate. However, the delineation of RoPs is usually based on the overall estimates of climate homogeneity, but integrating genetic data into RoP maps is important to obtain a valid base for the legislation compliance and displacement of forest reproductive materials from collection sites to plantation sites.
Contacts:
Giovanbattista de Dato giovanbattista.dedato@crea.gov.it https://www.crea.gov.it/en/web/foreste-e-legno
Angela Teani angela.teani@crea.gov.it https://www.crea.gov.it/en/web/foreste-e-legno
Maurizio Marchi maurizio.marchi@ibbr.cnr.it https://ibbr.cnr.it/ibbr/info/main-information
Further information:
de Dato, G., Teani, A., Mattioni, C., Marchi, M., Monteverdi, M., C., Ducci, F. (2018). Delineation of seed collection zones based on environmental and genetic characteristics for Quercus suber L. in Sardinia, Italy. iForest 11, 651–659. 10.3832/ifor2572-011