APTITUDE FOR THE CHESTNUT TREE IN ORENSE (SE OF GALICIA, SPAIN) FOREST SOILS

The chestnut tree is one of the most traditional crops of the area of Monterrei (SE Orense, Galicia, Spain). Also one of the rare crops of that zone that maintains a strong commercial vocation and in fact in the present moment, is consolidating as one of the best agronomic options available in that sector.
The Monterrei area encompass three major physiographic regions: mountains, piedmont and T-mega Valley.
The predominants forest types are pine (Pinus pinaster) and oaks (Quercus robur and Qpyrenaica). In all sectors prevail acid soils developed from acid crystalline and metamorphic rocks.
Mean annual rainfall is 900 to 1,500 mm, and mean annual temperature ranges from 8,3° to 12,9°C. The chestnut tree normally appears above all in the piedmont, that is to say in the slopes that connect the mountains with the T-mega Valley, between the 400 and the 900/1.000 m of altitude.
In this region of Galicia, the chestnut tree normally appears forming “soutos” (antropic formations destined to fruit production). It is a very characteristics agroforestry system that in many cases has several hundred of years of age and constitute the most singular element of the landscape.
Superficial and subsuperficial soil physical and chemical characteristics of 16 “soutos” have been analized and compared with the chestnut growth requirements, in order to establish the several degrees of chestnut aptitude.

III International Symposium on Mineral Nutrition of Deciduous Fruit Trees

J.G. Queijeiro

https://doi.org/10.17660/ActaHortic.1997.448.54