Pines and oaks in the restoration of Mediterranean landscapes of Spain: New perspectives for an old practice - a review

Pines have been extensively used for land restoration in the Mediterranean basin and in other parts of the world, since the late 19(th) century. The theoretical basis supporting pine utilisation was its stress-tolerant and pioneer features, and their attributed role of facilitating the development of late-successional hardwoods in the long-term. In the present work, the use of pines and hardwoods in forest restoration is discussed in the frame of the current disturbance regime and social demands for Mediterranean forests. Large pine plantations have recently disappeared because of their sensitivity to fire (e.g., Pinus nigra) or because of the short fire-intervals (e.g., Pinus halepensis). Combined pine and oak plantations are proposed for degraded land restoration on the basis of the complementary features of both groups of species. Seeding and containerised seedling plantation, soil amendments and plantation techniques to reduce transplant shock are evaluated for reforestation under water-stressing conditions, on the basis of several experiments performed in eastern Spain. Both P. halepensis and Quercus ilex are tested.