The aim of this study is to reveal the resource values that the rural areas host, and with a very disciplined approach, to discuss opportunities to benefit from those values in terms of ecotourism practices specific to Papart Valley. As a first step in this study, we took an inventory of natural and cultural assets of Papart Valley in Eastern Black Sea Region, Artvin province. Then, a Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats (SWOT) analysis was conducted with the participation of all stakeholders and the current situation was analyzed in terms of ecotourism practices. In light of SWOT results, along with observed natural resource assets in the region, the traditional wooden houses were seen to have potential in terms of ecotourism and it was detected that there were a large number of wooden homes and home plans suitable for both the settlement of the local people and accommodation of guests. On the other hand, it was determined that there was a lack of information for sufficient protection and care of wooden houses, and despite their potential, there was a lack of regulations and positive attitudes towards accomodation businesses in traditional wooden houses. In order to eliminate these deficiencies, proposals for the protection of traditional building stock were developed, by first determining the causes of material degradation in the wooden houses. Also, to emphasize the worth and importance of these structures, dendrochronology studies were conducted in order to determine the antiquity of the structures and potentially to make them more attractive for eco-tourism.

Particleboard and medium density fiberboard (MDF) panels were produced using stone pine (Pinus pinea) cones, which were mixed with either wood particles or fibers from pine and beech wood at various ratios. Specimens from the panels were subjected to AWPA E10-06 soil-block tests using two brown-rot fungi, Gloeophyllum trabeum and Postia placenta and two white rot fungi, Trametes versicolor and Pleurotus ostreatus for 12 weeks. Specimens were also subjected to subterranean termites, Coptotermes formosanus, according to the JIS K 1571 standard test method for 3 weeks. Pinecone material in the furnish had no considerable effect on the decay resistance of particleboard and MDF specimens subjected to the brown-rot fungi; however, mass losses in the specimens exposed to the white-rot fungi were gradually decreased as the pinecone ratio in the furnish increased. No increased resistance was observed in the specimens exposed to the termites. In some cases, the specimens containing pinecone furnish had greater mass losses compared to the control specimens.

In the Kozak Basin, which is the most important pine nut production and trade center in Turkey, there has been a significant decrease in production recently. In this study, the perspectives of the farmers in this area were investigated, specifically about reasons for the decrease in yields. For this purpose, a face-to-face survey was conducted with 378 pine nut farmers from the Kozak Basin. It was determined that the average age of the farmers is high, their educational achievement level is low, they generally also work in alternative sectors and almost all of them grow pine nuts in their own pine groves. The farmers’ perception of cooperatives was found to be negative. In general, the local people continue to produce pine nuts in their own pine groves, but nearly half of the participants also worked in other sectors to maintain their standard of living. Farmers attribute the low yield in the Kozak Basin to both abiotic and biotic factors. Mining activities, which are increasing, are seen as a threat to the future of production in the area. Also, there is a growing perception of biotic harm, especially from Western Conifer Seed Bug, Leptoglossus occidentalis. Climate change and air pollution are other prominent factors.

Bu çalışmada, Türkiye’nin kestane üretim ve ticaret potansiyeli ortaya konulmuş ve kestaneden faydalanmanın sosyoekonomik boyutu bölgesel farklılıklar temelinde karşılaştırmalı olarak değerlendirilmiştir. Kestane, odun hammaddesi ve odun dışı orman ürünü olarak faydalanmanın geniş bir coğrafyada gerçekleştiği, önemli bir gelir ve besin kaynağı niteliği taşımaktadır. Kestaneden faydalanma, yüzyıllardır kuşaktan kuşağa geçerek günümüze taşınan geleneksel ekolojik bilginin ve kadim bir kültürün oluşmasını sağlamıştır. Anadolu’da farklı ekolojik özelliklere sahip coğrafi bölgelerde geniş bir yayılış gösteren kestanenin odunu ve meyvesinden faydalanmanın yarattığı ekonomik değer farklı kestane yönetim yaklaşımlarının uygulanması sonucunu doğurmuştur. Türkiye dünya kestane üretiminde Çin’den sonra ikinci sırada yer almaktadır. Türkiye’nin kestane üretim miktarının değişkenlik gösterdiği beş farklı dönem söz konusudur. Türkiye’de kestane üretiminde Aydın, İzmir, Sinop, Kastamonu ve Bartın illeri öne çıkmaktadır. Kestane, yurt içi üretimin yurt içi talebi karşılaması açısından yüksek bir yeterlilik derecesi göstermektedir. Kestane konusunda giderek artan düzeyde coğrafi işaret korumasından yararlanıldığı görülmektedir. Aydın Kestanesi, Buldan Kestanesi, Simav Kestanesi, Sinop Kestane Balı, Düzce Kestane Balı ve Şile Kestane Balı coğrafi işaret tescili alan ürünlerdir. Ayrıca, Türkiye’de Avrupa Birliği nezdinde tescil süreçleri tamamlanmış coğrafi işaretli ürünlerinden biri Aydın Kestanesi’dir.

The European chestnut population is enduring multiple compounding exotic pest and disease outbreaks across Turkey. The deeply held value of the chestnut species for the Turkish public is reflected in substantial government conservation programming. Chestnut is predominantly found on state land managed by Turkey’s General Directorate of Forestry (GDF), which generally upholds restrictive policies for chestnut-related livelihood practices other than nut collection and beehive placement. Such policies are justified by a government position that human activities and presence is likely to worsen disease dynamics. Conversely, a growing body of research findings testify that small-scale livelihood practices maintain biological diversity and, furthermore, that this traditional maintenance of diversity has been correlated with decreased pathogen pressure within agroecosystems. However, few studies have investigated this phenomenon in the context of agroforestry systems. At a global ecological moment of increasingly pervasive and severe exotic forest pathogen impact, this paper investigates the influence of diverse small-scale livelihood practices and knowledge on chestnut tree health across the highly heterogenous geography of Turkey. We conducted ethnobotanical questionnaires with 96 chestnut-utilizing households, and chestnut tree health evaluations in georeferenced forest areas they identified, throughout Turkey’s Black Sea, Marmara, and Aegean regions. Using data from 1500 trees, we characterized the effects of subsequently recorded environmental, physiological, and anthropogenic factors on tree health using multiple correspondence analysis (MCA), multiple factor analysis (MFA), and mixed models. Our results show that the traditional human management of tree physiology and ecology has a significant positive effect on tree health, especially through the acts of grafting and culling as well as the maintenance of diversity. We argue that conceptualizing such livelihood systems as human niche construction and maintenance can help forest management agencies to better understand and conserve valuable landscapes, even in increasingly common periods of severe pathogenic pressure.

Exotic pathogens, within the center of genetic diversity for the species, compromise European chestnut populations in Turkey. In Turkey today, the species is of tremendous economic, ecological and cultural importance. At this time of severe exotic pathogenic pressure on a highly-valued forest species, we ask, how does awareness of diseases and treatments as well as value for chestnut trees affect the efforts of households to manage pests and diseases of chestnut trees in Turkey? We conducted 96 surveys in 34 villages in 10 provinces across Turkey to investigate awareness of diseases and other challenges to the chestnut population, chestnut harvesting habits, family value for chestnuts and efforts to mitigate pest and disease pressure. We analyze our results using cluster and regression analysis. Our results show that based on analysis of all observed characteristics, our research sites in Turkey break cleanly into groups based on production level. Further, results demonstrate significant correlation between amount of chestnut-derived income and awareness of pests and diseases as well as the likelihood of households enacting disease mitigation measures. These results also demonstrate correlation between observed awareness of diseases and pests and the likelihood of households enacting disease mitigation measures.