Chestnut (Castanea Sativa Mill.) as an indigenous species in northern Italy

Abstract

The native status of the sweet chestnut (Castanea sativa Mill.) in N-Italy has been a controversial issue so far. Most Authors believed that it had disappeared during the Würm glaciation and that afterwards it had been introduced by man. In the present paper pollen records with radiocarbon dating of sediments and woods from N-Italy are reported, which give evidence that chestnut certainly survived the last glacial period in refuge areas. Therefore, chestnut has to be considered as an indigenous species.