GIS-Based Geopedological Approach for Assessing Land Suitability for Chestnut (Castanea sativa Mill.) Groves for Fruit Production

The identification of mountainous areas suitable for chestnut stands for fruit production (CSFP) is raising increasing interest among researchers. This work aimed to (i) identify the areas suitable for CSFP shown in a land suitability map easy to read by land planners, and (ii) propose a remote-sensing-based methodology able to identify the lands currently under cultivation for CSFP. This study was conducted using the QGIS software for the Municipality of Castel del Rio, Emilia-Romagna Region, Italy. To obtain the land suitability map, topographic, lithological, and pedological data were acquired, and the areas located between 200 and 1000 m of altitude, with north exposition, a slope < 20°, sandstone-based lithology, and soils with dystric features were selected. The currently cultivated areas for CSFP were identified through remote-sensing images of the early spring period, which were delineated and georeferenced. The findings showed that only 10% of the whole study site area can be considered suitable for CSFP. Further, most of the currently cultivated CSFP (59%) are in non-suitable areas characterised by high slope gradients. The methodology applied in this study can easily provide detailed information about the suitable areas for CSFP and the areas currently cultivated with chestnut, thus allowing accurate land-use planning and land conservation.