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Ailanthus altissima (tree of heaven): Spread and harmfulness in a case-study urban area

2013; Taylor & Francis; Volume: 35; Issue: 3 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1080/03071375.2013.852352

2168-1074

Francesca Casella, Maurizio Vurro,

Allelopathy and phytotoxic interactions

AbstractAmong the woody and shrubby weeds colonising non-crop areas in the Apulia Region (South Italy), Ailanthus altissima (tree of heaven), an exotic invasive species, is one of the worst, because of its fast growth and root-sucker production. It reaches the heart of protected areas and spreads everywhere in urban and peri-urban areas creating dense stands. As there are no official monitoring protocols for weed mapping, a method based on real-time global positioning system (GPS) on satellite maps was set up. Due to this method, the distribution, spread, size, density and harmfulness of A. altissima were assessed across the wide urban area of Bari (South Italy) by mapping all the individual plants and areas/stands of plants. In Bari, along a total of 76 km of roads mapped, 170 very large (diameter >18 cm), 231 large (diameter 8–18 cm), 130 medium (diameter 3–8 cm), 53 small (diameter < 3 cm) single plants, and 70 high, 63 medium and 13 low density areas were detected. This indicated that A. altissima (tree of heaven) was very widespread in the study area. Moreover, 35 types of damage or potential risks were recorded covering functional, environmental, health and safety and aesthetic aspects and then classified according to frequency and location. The real-time GPS method proved to be very useful for providing a speedy and accurate record of the data.Keywords:: invasive speciesweed mappingwoody weedsAilanthusaltissimatree of heaven AcknowledgementsThis study was carried out in a research programme on the management of woody weeds financed by Apulia Region Governorate.Additional informationNotes on contributorsFrancesca CasellaFrancesca Casella received her Ph.D. in Mediterranean Agronomy at the University of Bari, studying the possible use of mycoherbicides for controlling serious weeds in Mediterranean agriculture. She did her bachelor thesis on the possible use of toxins produced by fungal pathogens in grass weed management. She was a coordinator of a research project on the management of woody weeds financed by Apulia Region Governorate.Maurizio VurroMaurizio Vurro is a senior researcher at the Institute of Sciences of Food Production, National Research Council in Bari, Italy. The main fields of scientific interest and expertise include: the use of plant pathogens and of natural bioactive metabolites in the biological control of weeds; the biological characterisation of fungal toxins and of their role in the host-pathogen interactions; and parasitic and invasive weed management. He has recently led the European project "Enhancement and exploitation of soil-biocontrol agents for bio-constraint management in crops" and is the coordinator of the Working Group "Parasitic Weeds" within the European Weed Research Society. Currently he is a coordinator of a project for the biological control of weeds in archaeological sites. He is the author of more than 80 articles in scientific journals and book chapters.