Paolo Tomei

Curing animals with plants: traditional usage in Tuscany (Italy).

Tuscany is an area rich in traditions, many of an ethnobotanical nature, and those of veterinary practice are of special interest. Almost a 100 different plant species are used to treat animals; sometimes old remedies are used to cure similar human ailments, other times the cure is used exclusively for veterinary treatment.

ETHNOPHARMACOBOTANICAL STUDIES OF THE TUSCAN ARCHIPELAGO

From an ethno-pharmacobotanical point of view, Tuscany is a region with very rich and interesting traditions. The Tuscan Archipelago, particularly due to its geographical position and its history, presents a large variety of plant species used in popular medicine in numerous pathologies, including several viral infections. Over 100 species of plants are used in popular medicine in this region.

Type of mycorrhizal associations in two coastal nature reserves of the Mediterranean basin

Abstract. We analysed the mycorrhizal types of two coastal Mediterranean plant communities. Plants belonging to 82 species of 46 families growing in two Mediterranean study sites located within a Regional Natural Park in Italy (Macchia Lucchese) and in a National Park in Croatia (Brijuni) were assessed for the type of their mycorrhizal associations. Mycorrhizas occurred in 83% and 90% of the plant species surveyed in Macchia Lucchese and in Brijuni, respectively. On the basis of macroscopic and microscopic characteristics, six different mycorrhizal types were found, and their co-occurrence in the same plant community showed the large mycorrhizal diversity in Mediterranean vegetation. Different occurrence patterns of mycorrhizal types have been recognised in diverse habitats within Macchia Lucchese, from sand dune plant communities to sclerophyllous woodland. Mycorrhizal type abundance calculated on a floristic basis was very different from that obtained using a vegetation cover index.

An ethno-pharmacobotanical survey in the Sarrabus district (south-east Sardinia).

The therapeutic uses and methods of administration of 70 plants in the traditional medicine of Sarrabus (south-east Sardinia, Italy) are documented. Among these species, some were not reported previously for Sardinia, while others turn out to have an original therapeutic use.

Evaluation of the Chemical Composition of the Essential Oils of Some Lamiaceae from Serrania de Ronda (Andaluçia, Spain)

ABSTRACT The chemical composition of the essential oils of three Spanish Lamiaceae, Rosmarinus officinalis, Thymus mastichina and Lavandula lanata from Serrania de Ronda were studied by means of GC and GC/MS. All three plants produced oils containing great amounts of oxygenated terpenes. The habitat have been described and some ecological and geobotanical considerations have been provided.

Invertebrates and nutrients in a Mediterranean vineyard mulched with subterranean clover (Trifolium subterraneum L.)

SummaryIn the 25-year-old vineyard of a farm near the Maremma National Park (Central Italy), replicate plots were established with a mulch of Trifolium subterraneum L. or cultivation and two levels of fertilizer. The mai objective of this research was to analyse responses by soil invertebrates and nutrients after introducing a herbaceous component into the system; the yield was also considered. The greater availability of organic substrate and the reduced cultivation as a result of green mulching increased the soil mesofauna biomass, especially detritivores. With time, a significant difference became evident between the populations of invertebrates present in the mulched plots and those in the cultivated plots. Over 2 years, most nutrients (Ca, K, P, and N) were significantly increased in the mulched plots compared to the cultivated plots. Grape yields were consistently higher in the bare plots. No significant differences were found in fertilizer effects.

Characterization of the Volatile Fraction of a Sideritis romana Population from Montemarcello (Eastern Liguria)

ABSTRACT The essential oil of Sideritis romana L. was investigated for the first time. It shows a typical composition due to the significant presence of limonene (11.8%) and carvacrol (20.1%).

Concepts to Sustain a Change in Farm Performance Evaluation

Abstract The demand to convert agricultural style in industrialized countries stems from increasing surpluses, environmental decline and health exposure. The authors underline the role that agricultural scientist can play in this process of agricultural transformation. Criteria for the evaluation of environmentally compatible agroecosystems are suggested. The need to elaborate indexes such as agroecological performance indicators is emphasized, in order to support and stimulate regulations that could obtain environmentally compatible agroecosystems in practice. The Maremma park project, designed to compare high and reduced input farming systems, is presented. In two different farms, energy and nutrient flow, animal and plant communities will be analysed together with the economics involved in the agricultural practices.

Essential oil of Satureja montana L. ssp. montana. Composition and yields of plants grown under different environmental conditions

ABSTRACT The yield and composition of essential oils of Satureja montana L. ssp. montana plants growing naturally in a calcareous, rocky and arid area were determined and compared with those that were transplanted and grown in environmental conditions different in altitude, light intensity and soil moisture. During the two years of experimentation the plants, which were found to be of the carvacrol chemotype, showed good adaptability to various conditions. The volatile oils, obtained during the different stages of development, did not show any statistical differences in yield with maximum yields obtained at the end of flowering.

Constituents of the essential oil of Artemisia coerulescens L. var. palmata Lam

Abstract The essential oil obtained by hydrodistillation from the aerial parts of Artemisia coerulescens L. var. palmata Lam. collected in Tuscany (San Rossore, Pisa, Italy), has been analyzed by GC and GC/MS. The main constituents, α-thujone and β-thujone, represented altogether 77.6% of the oil; all the other compounds were present only in small or trace amounts. A comparison with oils from other subspecies or varieties reported in literature shows important qualitative and quantitative differences.