Theflora of Italy is all theplant life present in the territory of theItalian Republic. Theflora of Italy was traditionally estimated to comprise about 5,500vascular plant species.[3] However, as of 2019[update], 7,672 species are recorded in the second edition of the flora of Italy and in its digital archivesDigital flora of Italy.[4] In particular, 7,031 are autochthonous and 641 are non native species widely naturalized since more than three decades. Additionally, further 468 exotic species have been recorded as adventitious or naturalized in more recent times.
Geobotanically, the Italian flora is shared between theCircumboreal Region andMediterranean Region. According to the index compiled by the Italian Ministry for the Environment in 2001, 274 vascular plant species were protected. Italy has 1,371endemic plant species and subspecies.
Italy is one of the richest European countries in both plant and animalbiodiversity, with a population very rich inendemic forms,[5] and has the highest level of biodiversity of both animal and plant species within theEuropean Union.[6] During thePleistoceneglaciations, the Italian territory remained largely free of ice, which allowed theflora andfauna to survive, something that did not happen in the central-northern areas of the continent, and the retreat of the great glaciers has left glacial relict fauna in some mountain locations.[7]
The Italian territory extends over about 10° oflatitude, therefore, while remaining in the context of temperate climates without extremes of heat, cold or aridity, the climatic difference between the north and the south of the country is not at all negligible, going from thenival climates of theAlpine peaks, to the cool semi-continental temperate climate of thePo Valley, to theMediterranean climate of the central-southern coasts and the islands.[8] Italy is predominantly hilly and mountainous in nature of the territory, which has caused a proliferation ofecological niches, close in space but very diversified.[9]
Italy consists of a 1,000 km (620 miles) long peninsula extending out into the central Mediterranean, together with a number of islands to the south and west. TheApennines run north-south through the peninsula connecting theAlps in the north to Etna and thePeloritani mountains inSicily in the south. The geology is diverse.
Northern Italy is dominated by the Alps and an extensive valley of thePo river which is extensively agricultural and industrialised. Central Italy includes the regions ofTuscany,Umbria,Marche andLazio. It is dominated by the Apennines, from which a few major rivers flow. There are few natural plains. A process of land reclamation has replaced the coastal swamps and marshes with agricultural land.
Southern Italy includes the regions ofAbruzzo,Molise,Apulia,Basilicata,Calabria andCampania. Agriculture and industry are less developed. The main islands areSicily,Sardinia and theAeolian Islands.
Because of the length of theItalian Peninsula and the mostly mountainous hinterland, theclimate of Italy is highly diverse. In most of the inland northern and central regions, the climate ranges fromhumid subtropical tohumid continental andoceanic. In particular, the climate of thePo Valley geographical region is mostly continental, with harsh winters and hot summers.[10][11] The coastal areas ofLiguria,Tuscany and most of theSouth generally fit theMediterranean climate stereotype (Köppen climate classification). Each region has a distinct flora.
Anecoregion is an ecologically and geographically defined area with characteristic natural communities and species. Different ecoregions are distinguished by different vegetation features. Most of the Italian territory is included in theMediterranean Basin. Important Italian terrestrial ecoregions include theIllyrian deciduous forests, theItalian sclerophyllous and semi-deciduous forests, theSouth Apennine mixed montane forests, theTyrrhenian-Adriatic sclerophyllous and mixed forests,Apennine deciduous montane forests, theDinaric Mountains mixed forests and thePo Basin mixed forests.
In Italy Carlo Blasi et al. identified and mapped two divisions (Temperate and Mediterranean), 13 provinces, 33 sections and approximately 80 subsections. Each unit has an alphanumeric code that indicates its hierarchical level and a full name that indicates its geographic location and main diagnostic factor.[12]
The native vegetation of Italy reflects the diversity of the physical environment: the differences in geology, the differences of altitude above sea level and the diversity of theclimate between the continental and the peninsular Italy, that give rise to various phytoclimatic areas.
The peninsula and islands are dominated by the characteristics of theMediterranean climate, with mild and rainy winters and very warm and dry summers. On the contrary, the north of Italy has lower temperatures in winter and a more uniform distribution of rainfall during the summer.
The species of plants present in Italy belong to the flora of the continental Europe or to the Mediterranean flora. In some cases Western species can be distinguished (e.g. thePortuguese oak, limited to Western Europe) and eastern species (e.g. thedowny oak, present in Eastern Europe).
Thelast ice age, the Würm Glaciation, in the Alps ended about 12,000 years ago, and one can still recognize its influence on vegetation, in particular by means ofglacial relict species. A well known example is the Etna birch (Betula aetniensis), driven inSicily at a time when the climate was much colder.
Broadly there are three different vegetational zones of forests or bushes in Italy:
In the Po Basin can be found mixed forests that include mixed deciduous oak/hornbeam forests (Quercus robur,Quercus cerris,Carpinus betulus,Ulmus minor,Fraxinus ornus) andRiparian forest, as well as flood-plain vegetation of thePo Basin (Fraxinus oxycarpa,Salix alba,Alnus glutinosa,Ulmus minor,Populus alba,Populus nigra,Quercus robur).
There are alsoplant associations almost treeless:grasslands,pastures,deserts. In the mountains, gradually, the forest turns in mountain pastures, scattered in various shrubs (e.g.Pinus mugo,rhododendrons,junipers) and dotted with small colorful flowers. Higher up are the montane grasslands and even areas similar to a desert because they have no or almost no vegetation (rocks,glaciers).
Italy has around 6,711 (6,759) species of vascular plants (Conti et al., 2005An inventory of vascular plants endemic to Italy), preceded only by the Iberian Peninsula and Balearic Islands with around 7,500 vascular plant taxa (species and subspecies) (Castroviejo 2010Flora Iberica). In Greece, the number of species is around 5,700 (Strid and Tan, 1997Flora Hellenica) and in France, there are 4,630 species (Walter and Gillett, 19981997 IUCN red list of threatened plants). Per unit area Greece is the country with the highest concentration of native plant species.
Italy has 1,371endemic plant species and subspecies (18.9% of the total vascular flora).[13] Endemic species includeAbies nebrodensis,Allium agrigentinum,Anthemis cupaniana,Calendula maritima,Erysimum etnense,Galium litorale,Petagnaea,Sicilian Fir,Silene hicesiae,Viola ucriana,Zelkova sicula,Aquilegia barbaricina,Aquilegia nuragica,Centaurea gymnocarpa,Centranthus amazonum,Cerastium utriense,Dianthus rupicola,Gagea chrysantha,Galium baldense,Galium glaucophyllum,Genista aetnensis,Hieracium lucidum,Iris benacensis,Iris bicapitata,Iris marsica,Iris pseudopumila,Ophrys calliantha,Orchis brancifortii,Polygala sinisica,Ribes sardoum andSantolina pinnata.
Habitat loss,fragmentation and degradation are the most significant threats to plant species that occur in Italy. Also changing water flow patterns and over-extraction, increasingdroughts due toclimate change,pollution and theintroduction of alien species threaten the flora. Other threats come from farming (as a result ofagricultural expansion and intensification),urbanization andtourism.[14]
The cultivation of plants that give textile fibers (Cannabis sativa,Linum usitatissimum), the cultivation of sugar beet (Beta vulgaris), cereals, potatoes, orchards, vineyards and olive groves have almost replaced the natural vegetation.
The actions of man since Roman times have resulted in the destruction of most of the lowland forests and hills, the expansion of pastures, and the extinction of many species and in the introduction of exotic species which are then naturalized. For example, the Indian fig opuntia (Opuntia ficus-indica), is now common in the warmer parts of the Southern Italy. Also, the invasive false Acacia (Robinia) is widely spread.
Italy is a signatory to theBerne Convention on the Conservation of European Wildlife and Natural Habitats and theHabitats Directive both affording protection to Italian fauna and flora.National parks cover about 5% of the country,[15] while the total area protected by national parks,regional parks and nature reserves covers about 10.5% of the Italian territory,[16] to which must be added 12% of coasts protected bymarine protected areas.[17]
The following table includesherbaria located inItaly.
The Department of Biology of theUniversity of Trieste houses the National Data Bank for the Italian Flora and Vegetation.
The most importantbotanical gardens andarboretums in Italy are:[19]
TheItalian garden is stylistically based on symmetry, axial geometry and on the principle of imposing order over nature. It influenced thehistory of gardening, especiallyFrench gardens andEnglish gardens.[20] The Italian garden was influenced byRoman gardens andItalian Renaissance gardens. The most important historicgardens in Italy are:[21][22]
