Articles publicats (Ciència i Enginyeria Forestal i Agrícola)
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- ItemOpen AccessThe role of social, policy and economic forces in shaping forest restoration practices in Europe(Elsevier, 2026) Erdozain, Maitane; Alberdi, Iciar; Aszalos, Reka; Bollmann, Kurt; Detsis, Vassilis; Diaci, Jurij; Dodan, Martina; Efthimiou, Georgios; Galhidy, Laszlo; Haase, Marie; Hoffmann, Johanna; Jaymond, Delphine; Johann, Elisabeth; Jorgensen, Henrik; Krumm, Frank; Kuuluvainen, Timo; Lachat, Thibault; Lapin, Katharina; Lindner, Marcus; Madsen, Palle; Nichiforel, Liviu; Pach, Maciej; Paillet, Yoan; Palaghianu, Ciprian; Palau, Jordi; Pemán García, Jesús; Peric, Sanja; Raum, Susanne; Schuler, Silvio; Skrzyszewski, Jerzy; Svensson, Johan; Teeuwen, Sander; Vacchiano, Giorgio; Vandekerkhove, Kris; Canellas, Isabel; Menendez-Miguelez, Maria; Warden, Leland; Fleckenstein, Simon; Sotirov, Metodi; Kazungu, Moses; Hunziker, Marcel; De Keersmaeker, Luc; Callau, Aitor Avila; Miguel Magaña, Sergio deForest restoration in Europe has a complex history strongly influenced by various social, policy and economic factors. Understanding these influences is essential for shaping effective restoration strategies and avoiding past mistakes, particularly in light of meeting ambitious targets outlined in initiatives such as the EU Nature Restoration Regulation. Here we identify the key social, policy and economic drivers, barriers and enablers that have historically shaped forest restoration across Europe. We analyzed and synthesized detailed information from historical national narratives on forest restoration provided by experts from 18 European countries. Our work details how wars, changes in governance (centralization vs. decentralization) and forest tenure (privatization vs. nationalization), different policy instruments (regulatory, financial, persuasive and organizational), market fluctuations and sociodemographic changes (e.g., rural abandonment, changes in public opinion) have driven the development of forest restoration in Europe. The findings underscore the need to use inclusive and innovative governance mechanisms to reconcile diverging societal paradigms (e.g., rural vs. urban, conservation vs. forestry) partly reflected in incoherent forest-related policies, as well as to address the fragmentation resulting from forest privatization. Ensuring stable funding mechanisms (e.g., remuneration systems for forest ecosystem services) alongside favorable regulatory frameworks will also be key for successful large-scale forest restoration efforts. Policy recommendations are made to ensure the effective implementation of the EU Nature Restoration Regulation, including a hybrid governance model that balances strong national regulatory frameworks with local adaptability to diverse socioecological contexts, integrating socioeconomic metrics, strengthening public engagement, and leveraging market-based and green tax incentives.
- ItemOpen AccessExtreme treatments and data overinterpretation could lead to the unjustified conclusion that crop yield is source-limited during the effective grain filling(Elsevier, 2026) Savin, Roxana; Serrago, Román A.; Miralles, Daniel J.; Tamagno, Santiago; Calderini, Daniel F.; Sadras, Victor O.; Slafer, Gustavo A.Understanding the physiology of crop yield is important to inform both agronomy and breeding. In grain crops, there is consensus in the interpretation of data, further supported by theory, to conclude that grain number is source-limited; this accounts for the strong correlation of yield and grain number, and the high phenotypic plasticity of grain number due to source limitation. However, whether grain weight during the effective grain filling period is source- or sink-limited remains debatable. This lack of consensus is commonly interpreted as variation associated with the interaction between genotype and environment. In this opinion paper, we argue that part of the inconsistency in the literature may stem from overinterpretation of experimental results, extreme treatments (e.g., 50–90 % shading), and the assumptions of linearity to conclude that grain weight is source-limited during the effective grain filling. A central flaw is the unjustified extrapolation of conclusions from manipulated plants to the unmanipulated real crop. We review the outcomes of both direct and indirect manipulations of source–sink ratios during the effective grain filling across grain crops with a focus on methods and interpretation of results. Indirect approaches that increase or reduce grain number to measure grain weight compensation (e.g., shading or thinning the plots during the critical period of grain number determination) are ill-suited because they influence potential grain size and grain size hierarchies, confounding interpretation of the grain weight–grain number relationship. Direct manipulations of source–sink ratio that do not alter grain weight (e.g., shading or de-graining plants during the effective grain filling), provide strong evidence that grain growth in the intact control is sink-limited. Conversely, when grain weight changes significantly in response to severe manipulation, the only valid conclusion is that the manipulated plants were source-limited; it is not justified to reach conclusions on the intact control crop. These considerations call for a more cautious interpretation of experimental data where direct manipulation of the source-sink ratio leads to a significant change in grain weight, and suggest a re-evaluation of experimental and analytical methods are needed to conclude on the nature of grain weight limitation.
- ItemOpen AccessHorticultural performance and elemental nutrient concentrations on ‘Fuji’ grafted on apple rootstocks under New York State climatic conditions(Elsevier, 2018) Reig Córdoba, Gemma; Lordan, Jaume; Fazio, Gennaro; Grusak, Michael A.; Hoying, Stephen; Cheng, Lailang; Francescatto, Poliana; Robinson, TerenceA study was carried out to determine the horticultural performance and leaf and fruit elemental nutrient concentrations of 48 apple rootstocks grafted on ‘Fuji’ apple cultivar, and grown on a commercial farm in the Hudson Valley (Milton) New York State, USA from 2005 to 2015. Tree circumference was measured at the end of each year, and fruit yield data were collected from the third year (2007) to the eleventh year (2015). Leaf and fruit macro- and microelements were evaluated at the tenth year of the study. Most of the rootstocks evaluated survived well in the Hudson Valley conditions, with the exception of the Geneva® (G or CG) rootstocks CG.4002 and CG.5030. The smallest trees were on CG.2034, M.27 and JM.4 and had the lowest cumulative yield and the lowest cumulative number of fruits, and medium to low fruit size, but the highest cumulative yield efficiency (kg cm−2). Other rootstocks, such as the dwarfing CG.2002, CG.2426, CG.4008, CG.5757, M.9 and the semi-dwarfing rootstock CG.6006, also had higher yield efficiencies. On the other hand, the medium vigor CG rootstocks such as CG.6001, CG.6253, CG.6976, and CG.8189 had high cumulative yield and high cumulative fruit number, and medium to high yield efficiency. Rootstocks had a significant influence on most of the fruit and leaf mineral concentration (dry weight basis). G.935, G.222 and CG.5257 conferred some of the highest values of fruit boron whereas M.9, M.27 and PiAu51.11 had the lowest. Fruit phosphorous values were closely associated with leaf boron, leaf potassium, and leaf sodium. Fruit calcium was highest in G.214, CG.2406, G.969, JM.4 and CG.5757, while the lowest values were with JM.1, PiAu51.11, and JTE-C. Fruit nitrogen values were lowest in M.7, PiAu51.4, B.54-118, and CG.8534 and the highest values were in the dwarfing rootstock CG.2034 and semi-dwarfing rootstock CG.4011. Weak but significant positive correlations were found between fruit size and leaf and fruit Mg, and leaf C. Significant correlations were found between nutrients: leaf B, P and K were highly positively correlated, and leaf Zn with leaf Mn and leaf Na. A strong positive correlation was found between fruit P and fruit K, fruit P and fruit B, and moderate positive correlation between fruit S and fruit K suggesting similar mechanisms of rootstock induction for these nutrients. These nutrient data are being utilized to customize scion nutrient requirements to rootstock-induced nutrient profiles.
- ItemOpen AccessFire severity shapes landscape heterogeneity in Mediterranean forest ecosystems(Springer Nature, 2025) Blanco-Rodríguez, Miguel Ángel; Améztegui González, Aitor; Alday, Josu G.; Lecina-Diaz, Judit; Pineda Zapata, Sara; Coll Mir, LluísIn Mediterranean forests, the increasing frequency of high severity fires poses a challenge to current landscape management. In addition, these areas are experiencing a generalized process of landscape homogenization leading to a major risk of large fires. In this context, it is important to understand how wildfires (e.g. fire severity) influence changes in landscape heterogeneity.
- ItemOpen AccessOptimizing enzymatic processing of apple pomace: a strategy for modifying techno-functional properties and dietary fiber(Springer Nature, 2025) Díaz Núñez, Alba; López-Gámez, Gloria; Martín Belloso, Olga; Soliva-Fortuny, Robert; Elez Martínez, PedroApple pomace (AP) holds significant nutritional and health-promoting potential due to its dietary fiber (DF) content. However, integrating AP into food formulations requires addressing its highly insoluble nature, which limits its functionality. This study investigates the efficacy of enzymatic treatment as a sustainable and cost-effective approach to modify the insoluble fraction and enhance DF techno-functional properties. The effects of a carbohydrase complex on AP functionality and its soluble uronic acid (SUA) and soluble neutral sugar (SNS) contents were assessed by optimizing enzyme concentration (0.5–5 mL/kg dry weight (DW)), hydrolysis time (1–4 h), and temperature (40–60 °C) using response-surface methodology with a central composite design. The optimization process identified the ideal conditions to be 3.31 h of hydrolysis at an enzyme concentration of 4.1 mL/kg DW and a temperature of 48 °C, which significantly improved treatment efficiency and maximized all evaluated responses simultaneously. Under these conditions, the solubility of AP, soluble uronic acid content and soluble neutral sugar content increased by 1.70, 3.60 and 2.48 times, respectively, compared to untreated AP. The water and oil retention capacities decreased by 16% and 15%. Furthermore, a 35% increase in soluble DF and a 39% decrease in insoluble DF were observed under optimal conditions. This research highlights the potential of optimizing enzymatic processing to transform fruit by-products into novel food ingredients with enhanced solubility.