Papers by paolo semenzato
The present landscape structure and function is the result of centuries of changes produced both ... more The present landscape structure and function is the result of centuries of changes produced both by natural processes and human driving forces. For centuries many mountain and hillside areas have been the subject of deforestation to create space for agriculture and grazing, although the abandonment of traditional mountain agriculture has produced a natural forest recovery in many regions of the world. The physical changes imposed on the landscape by the development of secondary woodland have brought both positive and negative consequences, depending on the geographical and economic context and on the scale of the sites. Among the ecological problems caused by natural reforestation, one of great interest is the reduction of open spaces resulting in a loss of landscape heterogeneity and mosaic features. This review paper focused its attention on landscape metrics or indices that are frequently used to assess the structural characteristics of the landscape and to monitor changes in land use: mean patch size (MPS), connectivity (CONN), boundary length (BL) and the patch number (NP). Through the analysis of 52 selected papers and 53 case studies, we identified the main gaps in current knowledge, providing directions for further research. Most of the reviewed studies focused only on a portion of the spatial attributes that we were interested in and only 32 case studies reported accurate data both on forest expansion rate and time range analyzed in the study area. We conclude that the study of changes in all the spatial attributes considered within the same case study is a key to explain ecological consequences in mosaic cycles or in stochastic dynamic landscapes that emerged from the interplay of several processes, and to predict and explain their spatial and temporal characteristics. The current knowledge of how changing spatial attributes affect biodiversity, habitats, and ecosystem functions is limited by the scarcity of studies that explicitly consider the shifting in time of the four spatial attributes together.
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L'etilene è stato per molto tempo considerato l'ormone della senescenza e della maturazio... more L'etilene è stato per molto tempo considerato l'ormone della senescenza e della maturazione, e in linea generale, un potente inibitore della crescita. Oggi, in considerazione delle nuove evidenze sperimentali, il concetto originale del suo ruolo nello sviluppo delle piante risulta inadeguato.
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Urban Forestry & Urban Greening
Dune plantation forests are typically used for recreation. However, the soil and vegetation of th... more Dune plantation forests are typically used for recreation. However, the soil and vegetation of these forests are sensitive to trampling. Therefore, recreational trails should have clearly defined boundaries. The aim of this study was to test a cell-based survey for the alignment of interpretative trails in sand dune plantation forests, where each cell of a sampling grid is surveyed in the field at a grain size of 10-m, which is an appropriate scale for both visitors and to accurately assess vegetation and stand structure. The alignment of the trail was then performed using a combined least-cost path algorithm with GIS-based land suitability analysis. Using this approach, sets of key factors for land suitability and visibility which are generally applicable to dune plantation forests were identified. Specific criteria were adopted to score and weigh each factor in this case study, where each of the 284 cells of a 10-m grid were surveyed for two weeks in a coastal urban reserve locate...
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The sites of Community importance (SCI) contribute to the maintenance and restoration of biologic... more The sites of Community importance (SCI) contribute to the maintenance and restoration of biological diversity and of natural habitat types and species in Directive 92/43/EEC. In densely populated areas, such as north-eastern Italy, such sites are often surrounded by a strongly urbanized landscape. Their existence and preservation has to cope with pressure for new development or, at best, from recreational, educational and other social uses of open spaces. Moreover, the promotion of education is provided by the Directive 92/43/EEC itself (art. 22). For these reasons the management of such sites becomes an interesting urban forestry issue. In this paper we wish to describe the methodological approach to the management and partial redesign of a portion of a coastal SCI, located in the urban centre of a resort town along the shore of Northern Adriatic Sea. The site is quite small, approximately 2.5 ha, and belongs to the larger SCI IT3250033 “Laguna di Caorle”, which includes a variety ...
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II International Conference on Landscape and Urban Horticulture, 2010
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Green spaces have positive effects on human well-being and quality of life in cities. So far, stu... more Green spaces have positive effects on human well-being and quality of life in cities. So far, studies in this fi eld mainly compared preferences for, and outcomes of contact with, natural vs. built environments. Less attention has been given to the study of the psychological effects of contact with green spaces differing in their degree of naturalness. This paper thus aims at understanding the relation between ecological (e.g., level of naturalness) and psychological factors (e.g., perceived restorativeness) in shaping evaluations of different urban and peri-urban green spaces. Five different typologies of green space have been identifi ed in the city of Bari (southern Italy) and Padua (northern Italy), ranging from minimum (i.e., high level of man-made elements) to maximum levels of naturalness (i.e., low level of man-made elements). A set of pictures of the different urban green space typologies were shown to fi fty undergraduate students of each city, and then measures of perceiv...
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Atti del Terzo Congresso Nazionale di Selvicoltura, 2009
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Landscape and Urban Planning, 2015
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Plant, Cell and Environment, 1993
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The woody component along field edges often provides the only permanent elements of structural an... more The woody component along field edges often provides the only permanent elements of structural and biological diversity in landscapes that have lost much of their naturalness to agriculture and urban use. The main aims of this study were (i) to investigate how four hedge stand types, i.e., systems of management distinguished on the basis of the natural and managed growth forms of trees and shrubs (low single-storied, high single-storied, two-storied and multi-storied), differ in their biometric parameters and (ii) to identify the primary management-related determinants of native woody species richness. The study used a large dataset of hedgerows (n=538) sampled in seven sites in Northern Italy. The four hedge stand types exhibited highly significant differences in size and biometric parameters. The multi-storied hedges, associated with the highest stand structural diversity index values, supported the highest number of tree species, followed by high single-storied hedges. The low single-storied hedge stand type contained the lowest number of species. We found a positive effect of hedge area as well as a marginal negative effect of basal area on native woody species richness. The management implications addressed by our study include conversion of single-storied into two- or multi-storied types, increasing hedge size and controlling hedge stand basal area
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Plant and Soil, 2014
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Forest Ecology and Management, 2010
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While studies on physical activity behavior are widely available, research on physical activity e... more While studies on physical activity behavior are widely available, research on physical activity environments is relatively new, particularly when related to ‘natural’ environments. In this chapter planning issues and design elements that can influence the use of urban green areas for physical activity are discussed. Availability, features, conditions, safety, aesthetics and climatic comfort are the main characteristics of urban green areas considered in the discussion, particularly in relation to natural elements. In the first part of the chapter the current literature presenting scientific evidence is examined. Once this evidence is discussed examples of best practices and significant planning and design solutions concerning the most relevant attributes of the green spaces are presented.
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Urban Forestry & Urban Greening, 2011
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Papers by paolo semenzato