Floristic composition and spatial distribution assessment of montane mesophilous grasslands in the central Apennines, Italy: A multi-scale and diachronic approach

Abstract

Evaluation of past land use offers valuable information in seeking to understand the distribution patterns of plant communities, insofar as such activity may have altered soil features, causing anthropogenic soil patchiness and marked plant diversity both locally and regionally. This study sought to provide a general overview of the relationships between the different syntaxonomical units and the soil features in a sub-Mediterranean grassland landscape, starting from assessment of soil parameters. In addition, we wanted to verify whether soil features and hierarchical landscape assessments of grasslands under homogeneous grazing disturbance are sufficient to explain the floristic differentiation of the plant communities, and whether study of land use history helps explain the distribution patterns of these plant communities. A clear understanding of the relationships between environmental factors and the floristic composition of plant communities is a strong basis for future inquiries into how disturbance variations (grazing, mowing, manuring, etc.) and past land use variations have affected grassland structures. This study examined nine syntaxa that develop on semi-flat slopes or those with northern exposure.