Agroforestry in Thessaloniki - notes

Agroforestry notes - Thessaloniki Greece - 9/28/09 with Kostas Mantzanas

In Greece, 95% of forested land is public 

Thus much is managed by the State Forest Service

anyone is allowed to graze public lands

this makes management oversight and coordination very challenging

The average precipitation in this part of Greece is 500-600mm and is generally distributed during the winter and early spring

This year to date, they’ve received 700mm and it’s been much more evenly distributed

The general grazing system has changed over the past 20 years

graziers have begun to supplement diets with grain to increase milk production

goats are not grazed intensively while cattle and sheep are

The Legadas Valley is the area north of Thessaloniki

it has deep(er) soils that formed from ancient lake bottom sediment

here, crops include maize, legumes, hay and cereal grains

In this area, the first frost generally comes around the end of November or late December - highly variable due to elevation and microclimate

The area around the ring road that surrounds Thessaloniki burnt in 1996

This area had previously been planted with Brutia and Aleppo Pine to help control erosion

This forest is managed for its ecosystem services

It has since been replanted with hardwoods which are less susceptible to fire

The community called Solvos is dominated by diverse woody perennial production including grape, walnut, cherry, peach

In the village of Askos the economy derives from livestock husbandry

In Sagarada, near Kissos, there is a 1000 year old plane tree (Platanus orientalis)

The EU today does provide subsidies to farmers to plant tree crops - started in 1992

As a result, you’ll see black locust and walnut plantations that have been established for timber

Generally, plantings are done in the winter months and trees are not provided irrigation

Kostas did his doctoral research monitoring the productivity of grass crop in the understory of pine forests.  He compared the productivity of a native grass (Fallares aquatica) when fertilized with nitrogen fertilizer with that fertilized by legumes (Trifolium subterraneanum and Medicago lupulian)  He found that the grass supported by legumes actually performed best

He also found that spacings of 500 trees/hectare were the most effective - often 3x6m apart with some open blocks

Also, Kostas revealed that his ideal agroforestry system would be a walnut-maize biculture 

They had done studies that compared the productivity of walnut intercropped with maize and/or wheat and found that the walnut trees responded dramatically better when grown with maize.  This is because the wheat is a winter crop and is not irrigated whereas the maize is grown in the summer and is irrigated at the same time that the walnut also needs water.  They actually found that at spacings of about 100 trees per hectare (10x10 m spacings), walnuts grown with maize attained heights of 7 meters and diameters of 15cm in (I forgot how many) years while walnuts growth with wheat only grew to about 4 meters and 6 cm diameters.  These systems ideally provide a 35 year sawlog harvest.

In areas used for silvopasture, the typical spacing is about 300 trees per hectare

There are approximately 18 species of oak found throughout Greece

Oaks are often managed by pollarding

For a tree with a typical life span of 80 years, a pollarded tree may attain 300 to 700 years 

Germes Oak (Quercus coccifera) is a multi-stemmed shrub oak

it is valuable for livestock feed - especially goats who browse the leaves

it stays low to the ground and is often grazed down to a height of about 1/2 meter

this species is adapted to fire and would typically burn every 50-60 years

it’s growth is renewed very quickly after fire - about every 10 years

ideally there would be no grazing during that 10 year period but this is not the case

Quercus funeto (spelling?) is a favored tree for shredding and feeding to goats

Quercus pubescens - has a tree form

Olive trees are generally tolerant of sites at 300 meters or less

Some of the trees still under production can be up to 500 years old

Under typical conditions, these trees would average 30-40 year life spans

Olive trees in western Greece were planted by Venetians during their occupation

Trees were typically pollarded a 2 meter heights so they were out of the range of grazing goats

Chestnut Castanea sativa can generally be found at elevations about 500m

Juglans regia - the black walnut is prevalent throughout Greece

It is commonly known that walnut and grapes grow well together 

In fact, many say that wine made from grapes grown amongst walnuts is more flavorful

In northwestern Greece, many old walnut trees are integrated with grape culture

Wild Pear - this is a native species with a small fruit that is often used as rootstock

When managed as such, almond trees are pollarded after 25-30 years

?Honey Locust - is more or less not present in Greece though they do use it in France

‘Caratonia cilica’ or something is a species native to south Greece that bears similar fruits and is adapted to the dry climate

Populus ligna and alba are the two primary native poplars

There is also a hybrid of the two

These are often planted in lowlands because they are faster growing and used for pulp production

During the last decade, the paper industry collapsed so the poplar market has dried up

Today they only use it as fuel

Phragmites is occasionally grown as a bedding crop for cattle

There are about three or four areas in Greece where apples are grown as a crop - the Pilion Peninsula is one of them

Ailanthus - common throughout Greece

planted as a soil stabilizer and for its fast growth

it’s not shade tolerant so tends to die out as a canopy develops

Acacia - legume with tiny pinnately compound leaves