A dendrochronological analysis of Pinus pinea L. on the Italian mid-Tyrrhenian coast

Abstract

Abstract:In order to assess the response of the radial growth of Pinus pinea L. to climatic variability in Central Italy, dendrochronological and dendroclimatological analyses were carried out on five different populations scattered along the Tyrrhenian coasts of the peninsula. The aim of this study is to contribute to the understanding of the ecological demands of this species, particularly in the study area. For each site total ring, early-, and late-wood width chronologies were developed. Multidimensional analyses were performed for the three tree-ring datasets in order to analyze the relations between sites chronologies. Both Principal Component Analyses and hierarchical classifications highlighted an important difference of one site in respect to the other, probably due to site characteristics. Correlation functions were performed to infer the main climatic factors controlling the radial growth of the species. For a comparative study, we limited our attention to the common interval 1926-2003 (78 years) in which the response of the tree-ring chronologies to climate at both local and regional scale was investigated. Positive moisture balance in the late spring-summer period of the year of growth is the climatic driver of P. pinea radial growth in the study area. Moreover, this study shows how low summer temperatures strongly favor the radial growth of the species.

Tree rings reflect growth adjustments and enhanced synchrony among sites in Iberian stone pine (Pinus pinea L.) under climate change

“…Previous studies reported that spring precipitation increased radial growth in Mediterranean pines (e.g., Vieira et al 2010;Campelo et al 2006;De Luis et al 2009Piraino et al 2013;Novak et al 2013) and other Mediterranean trees (e.g., Campelo et al 2009;Gea-Izquierdo et al 2011). Although we found similar results for the old trees in Huelva, showing a positive correlation with rainfall up to May (Fig.…”

Radial growth responses of Pinus halepensis Mill. and Pinus pinea L. forests to climate variability in Western Albania

“…Lastly, it should be stated that in our study site, both species grow on a narrow strip of alluvial sandy soils and the underground water table is affected by salty waters. The influence of salt on roots and on the absorption of the phreatic waters is detrimental to the growth of both pine species and particularly of P. pinea during periods of low precipitation (Teobaldelli et al, 2004;Piraino et al, 2013). Consequently, the presence of salty waters might bias the relation of tree growth with climatic parameters as found elsewhere (Piraino et al, 2013).…”

“…However, P. pinea LW showed positive correlation with January temperatures and January-February PET. This relationship could be explained by the fact that warm conditions in winter can favour a direct improvement of EW formation (Campelo et al, 2006;Piraino et al, 2013) leading to an indirect LW enhanced growth. This indicates that the LW growth is not only determined by the climatic conditions during summer -autumn, but also by the previous EW growth rates (Pasho et al, 2012).…”

“…and studied its response to climate, while Seim et al (2012) constructed a more than 1000 year-long tree-ring width chronology for P. heldreichii H. Christ. There are numerous dendrochronological studies about growth dynamics and climate-growth relationship in many Mediterranean species, including P. halepensis and P. pinea (Andreu et al, 2007;de Luis et al, 2007;Piraino et al, 2013). However, there are no studies related to these species in western Balkan, particularly in Albania, where P. halepensis and P. pinea grow naturally only at Divjaka and Pishe-Poro sites.…”

“…Rathgeber et al (2005) indicated that P. halepensis growth is mainly controlled by soil water availability during the growing season. As summer drought is becoming increasingly important for pine forest growth at low elevation sites in the Mediterranean basin (de Luis et al, 2009;Olivar et al, 2012;Piraino et al, 2013), it is vital to understand how pine's populations growing in Western Albania responded to summer drought in the past.…”