Considerazioni fitogeografiche sui castagneti dell’Appennino meridionale nei rapporti con l’Appennino settentrionale

Abstract

Considerazioni fitogeografiche sui castagneti dell’Appennino meridionale nei rapporti con l’Appennino settentrionale ERMINIO FERRARINI Dz'pzzrtz'me;zt0 dz‘ Biologzkz m72bz'e11tale dell 'UIziver5z'tci dzq Sie/2:2, sez. Bola/rim, Via Mrz[tz'0[z' 4 ~ 53100 Sielm SUMMARY The chorologic analysis of the plants which are together \vith the chestnut in the Southern and, for a comparison, in the Northern Apennines is done. The area of the most significative plants is built on the basis of direct observations, herbarial specimens and certain bibliographic data too. Plants with a large area shared by the two parts of the Apennines are prevalent. In the Northern Apennines, however, such plants as Ca/[mm u//lgarls (L.) Hull, Ge/zism pi’/om L., Vac:/'/zzimz z7zyrti/lz/5 L., which are not in the Southern Apennines, vegetate and sometimes they are plentiful. The plants of the chestnut \voods in Southern Italy, which, more or less, go up the Apennines without reaching the Northern ones are numerous too. Among these plants we can notice: 1) Endemic entities of the Middle and Southern Apennines which have vicariants in the Northern ones, 2) Endemic entities of the Southern Apennines with vicariants in the Balkan Pennsula, 3) Entities spread in the Southern Apennines and in the Balkan Peninsula which have vicariants in the Northern Apennines, 4) Entities with an area which includes the Mddle Southern Apennines, the Balkan Peninsula and the Pontic regions. Finally, the proof of the indigenity of the chestnut in Italy are taken into consideration: the present areas of the plants of the chestnut woods, environmental demands of the chestnut and, in particular, palinologic remains. Among the areas of the plants which are together with the chestnut, those which range from the Italian Penisula to the Balkan one and the Pontic regions are numerous: the spontaneous chestnut mght have the same distributon. The fossilized pollens show the permanence of the chestnut in Italy during the cold—wa\Ies of the glaciations in stations of shelter: this is showed by remain of fossilized pollens of the coast plain at the foot of the Apuane Alps. From this remain it is evident that, during the last \X/urn cold»wave in the coast hills, where there is now the Mediterranean bush, beeches and Silver firs vegetaded and among these, in an environment which is more suitable for the soil and the morphology of the ground, there were a nucleus of chestnuts. Generalzfci Nell’Appennino settentrionale il castagno e stato diffuso dall’uomo in am- biente di cerreto—carpineto (con carpino bianco), talora di querceto—carpineto (con carpino nero), dove scende fin quasi al mare, e piii raramente di faggeta, dove sale fin quasi a 1000 In di altitudine; non resiste in arnbiente di macchia mediterranea data l’aridit2‘1 estiva. Nell’Appennino meridionale si trova ancora in arnbiente cli cerreto—carpir1eto (con carpino bianco), di faggeta fine a q. 1300 tn circa, di querceto—carpir1eto (con carpino nero) dove pero raramente scende a quota inferiore a 500 In; piante mediterranee (come Calycotome spinosa (L.) 185