Andreu Meijer Mora, researcher of the Forest Health group of the Center of Forest Science and Technology of Catalonia (CTFC) has defended his thesis entitled “Chestnut tree productive stands in Catalonia: Improvement of sanitary management of Fistulina hepatica and Cryphonectria parasitica” at the University of Lleida on July 19. The thesis was co-directed by Carlos Colinas, professor at the UdL and head of the Forest Health group of the CTFC, and E. Jordán Muñoz Adalia, professor at the University of Valladolid.
In his dissertation, Meijer elaborates on how chestnut (Castanea sativa Mill.) faces several threats in northeastern Spain, including Chestnut Blight and Chestnut Red Stain (CRS). These diseases affect both the health of the trees and the economic value of the wood. Thus, the dissertation addresses three key objectives: to evaluate the tolerance to Chestnut Blight in local genotypes, to study how different thinning intensities affect the incidence of CRS, and to use resistography (the study of the resistance of wood to drilling by an extremely thin drill bit) to analyze the wood infected by F. hepatica.
The results suggest that certain chestnut genotypes show significant tolerance to Blight, that the timing of forest management interventions is crucial to control CRS, and that resistography can identify early CRS infections. These findings provide valuable tools to improve chestnut forest management and conservation, promoting more sustainable and economically viable practices.
Last modified: 2 August 2024
