Preservation

Quercus pubescens found at 1 - 500m elevation

This large fast-growing oak is native to southeast Europe and Turkey. It has a broad crown, rugged bark and long lobed, dark green leaves turning yellow-brown in autumn.

It is specially adapted to heavy acidic soils that can be very dry in summer or waterlogged in spring.

Propagation:

• Seed - it quickly loses viability if it is allowed to dry out. It can be stored moist and cool overwinter but is best sown as soon as it is ripe in an outdoor seed bed, though it must be protected from mice, squirrels etc. Small quantities of seed can be sown in deep pots in a cold frame. Plants produce a deep taproot and need to be planted out into their permanent positions as soon as possible, in fact seed sown in situ will produce the best trees. Trees should not be left in a nursery bed for more than 2 growing seasons without being moved or they will transplant very badly.

Photo Credit: This photograph was taken by Dr Stamatis Zogaris, and is reproduced here with permission. It originally appeared in the Athens Nature Journal.

Alder Trees Alnus glutinosa

Propagation:

• Seed - best sown in a cold frame as soon as it is ripe and only just covered. Spring sown seed should also germinate successfully so long as it is not covered. The seed should germinate in the spring as the weather warms up. When large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots. If growth is sufficient, it is possible to plant them out into their permanent positions in the summer, otherwise keep them in pots outdoors and plant them out in the spring. There are about 700,000 - 750,000 seeds per kilo, but on average only about 20 - 25,000 plantable seedlings are produced. Seeds can remain viable for at least 12 months after floating in water. Seeds germinate as well under continuous darkness as with normal day lengths. Air-dried seeds stored at 1 - 2°C retained their viability for two years. Seeds can however be sown immediately as soon as ripe.

If you have sufficient quantity of seed, it can be sown thinly in an outdoor seed bed in the spring. The seedlings can either be planted out into their permanent positions in the autumn/winter, or they can be allowed to grow on in the seed bed for a further season before planting them.

Cuttings:

• Cuttings of mature wood, taken as soon as the leaves fall in autumn, outdoors in sandy soil.

Photo Credit: This photograph was taken by Dr Stamatis Zogaris, and is reproduced here with permission. It originally appeared in the Athens Nature Journal.

Kermes Oak Quercus coccifera Found at elevations of 240 – 550m

Propagation:

• Seed - it quickly loses viability if it is allowed to dry out. It can be stored moist and cool overwinter but is best sown as soon as it is ripe in an outdoor seed bed, though it must be protected from mice, squirrels etc. Small quantities of seed can be sown in deep pots in a cold frame. Plants produce a deep taproot and need to be planted out into their permanent positions as soon as possible, in fact seed sown in situ will produce the best trees. Trees should not be left in a nursery bed for more than 2 growing seasons without being moved or they will transplant very badly.

Quercus dalechampii Found at elevations 540 – 1160m

Oak woodlands and dehesa-like stands on Samothraki (Fig. 7), as Mediterranean Dehesas in general, “[…] are facing a number of environmental and socioeconomic challenges that put risks on the future of this diverse and valuable land-use and ecosystem. Outstanding among these challenges is the failure of oaks to regenerate in sufficient numbers (Plieninger 2007).

Existing oak stands in dehesas are mostly aged, while oak seedlings or saplings are almost nonexistent. The consequences of the skewed age structure of oak stands may be hidden for many decades, but in the long run the changes may impact landscape structure considerably. pg 9 Markus Löw Spatial Patterns of Land Cover Dynamics on Samothraki Island - 2017

Holm Oak - Quercus ilex elevations 200 and 500 m

This tree was once dominant in the lowland areas of the island.

"The present status of Samothraki’s last remaining natural woodlands is endangered. “Even the two communities of sub-Mediterranean thermophilous oak woodland (Quercetalia pubescenti-petraeae) are degraded states of potential deciduous oak forest. Quecus ilex can only be found scattered on the northern foothills of Saos ridge, often in macchie” (Biel & Tan 2014, p.44). Ongoing investigations reasonably suggest that there are signs of creepily but constantly withdrawing woodlands on the whole island (Fig. 8). The main cause for this is the absent possibility for natural rejuvenation, due to permanently and freely browsing ruminants." - pg 10 Markus Löw

Spatial Patterns of Land Cover Dynamics on Samothraki Island - 2017

Propagation:

The seeds of this tree species contain no natural dormancy and they will begin to grow whenever the conditions are right for germination, if they are not sown immediately the real problem is how to store them without rapid deterioration occurring.

Oak - Quercus petraea subsp. polycarpa

Ash Trees - Fraxinus excelsior

• The seed is best harvested green - as soon as it is fully developed but before it has fully dried on the tree - and can then be sown immediately in a cold frame. It usually germinates in the spring. Stored seed requires a period of cold stratification and is best sown as soon as possible in a cold frame. Approximately 5% of stored seed will germinate in the first year, the remainder germinating in the second year. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots when they are large enough to handle and grow them on in a cold frame for their first winter. Plant them out into their permanent positions or a nursery bed in late spring or early summer of the following year. If you have sufficient seed then it is possible to sow it directly into an outdoor seedbed, preferably in the autumn. Grow the seedlings on in the seedbed for 2 years before transplanting either to their permanent positions or to nursery beds.

• Cuttings of mature wood, placed in a sheltered outdoor bed in the winter, sometimes strike.

Plane Trees - Platanus orientalis

• Seed - two months cold stratification improves germination. Sow spring in a cold frame in light shade. Home grown seed is often of poor quality and low viability. It is best to harvest the seed in late winter or spring and then sow it immediately in a cold frame. When they are large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and grow them on in the greenhouse for their first winter. Plant them out into their permanent positions in late spring or early summer, after the last expected frosts.

• Cuttings of mature wood of the current years growth, 20 - 30 cm with a heel, autumn in a cold frame. Easy. Layering of stools in spring or autumn. Takes 12 months

Turpentine Tree - Terebinth Tree

Propagation:

• Pre-soak the seed for 16 hours in alkalized water, or for 3 - 4 days in warm water, and sow late winter in a cold frame or greenhouse. Two months cold stratification may speed up germination, so it might be better to sow the seed in early winter. The germination is variable and can be slow. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots when they are large enough to handle and grow on the plants for at least their first winter in a greenhouse. Plant out into their permanent positions in early summer and consider giving some protection from winter cold for their first year or two outdoors.

• Cuttings of half-ripe wood from juvenile trees, July in a frame

Photo Credit: This photograph was taken by Dr Stamatis Zogaris, and is reproduced here with permission. It originally appeared in the Athens Nature Journal.

Yew - Taxus Baccata - one of the rarest trees in Greece, is found growing on Mount Saos.

Propagation:

• Seed - can be very slow to germinate, often taking 2 or more years. It is best sown as soon as it is ripe in the autumn when it should germinate 18 months later. Stored seed may take 2 years or more to germinate. 4 months warm followed by 4 months cold stratification may help reduce the germination time. Harvesting the seed 'green' (when fully developed but before it has dried on the plant) and then sowing it immediately has not been found to reduce the germination time because the inhibiting factors develop too early. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots once they are large enough to handle and grow them on in pots in a cold frame. The seedlings are very slow-growing and will probably require at least 2 years of pot cultivation before being large enough to plant out. Any planting out is best done in late spring or early summer, after the last expected frosts.

• Cuttings of half-ripe terminal shoots, 5 - 8cm long, July/August in a shaded frame. Should root by late September but leave them in the frame over winter and plant out in late spring. High percentage.

• Cuttings of ripe terminal shoots, taken in winter after a hard frost, in a shaded frame

• More information on propagation by cuttings.