Urban green areas contain numerous non-native tree species that may escape from cultivation and potentially become invasive. Climate change is expected to exacerbate this risk by creating favourable conditions for species that are currently climatically restricted. Here, we provide a comprehensive risk screening of 34 non-native urban tree species in continental Europe under current and projected future climate scenarios using the Terrestrial Plant Species Invasiveness Screening Kit (TPS-ISK). Under current conditions, 10 species (29.4%) were categorized as high risk, 23 (67.6%) as medium risk, and one (2.9%) as low risk. Under the projected climate change, 11 species were classified as high risk, including seven categorized as very high risk. Ailanthus altissima, Diospyros virginiana, and Quercus rubra consistently ranked among the highest-risk species, while Acer tataricum subsp. ginnala, Koelreuteria paniculata, Magnolia kobus, Phellodendron amurense, Pseudotsuga menziesii, and Robinia pseudoacacia showed an increased invasion potential under future climate conditions. These findings indicate that climate change may facilitate the establishment and spread of several currently cultivated urban tree species. Our study provides the first comprehensive TPS-ISK screening of non-native urban trees for mainland Europe and identifies priority species for early detection, monitoring, and management.

Under the increasing threat to native ecosystems posed by non-native species invasions, there is an urgent need for decision support tools that can more effectively identify non-native species likely to become invasive. As part of the screening (first step) component in non-native species risk analysis, decision support tools have been developed for aquatic and terrestrial organisms. Amongst these tools is the Weed Risk Assessment (WRA) for screening non-native plants. The WRA has provided the foundations for developing the first-generation WRA-type Invasiveness Screening Kit (ISK) tools applicable to a range of aquatic species, and more recently for the second-generation ISK tools applicable to all aquatic organisms (including plants) and terrestrial animals. Given the most extensive usage of the latter toolkits, this study describes the development and application of the Terrestrial Plant Species Invasiveness Screening Kit (TPS-ISK). As a second-generation ISK tool, the TPS-ISK is a multilingual turnkey application that provides several advantages relative to the WRA: (i) compliance with the minimum standards against which a protocol should be evaluated for invasion process and management approaches; (ii) enhanced questionnaire comprehensiveness including a climate change component; (iii) provision of a level of confidence; (iv) error-free computation of risk scores; (v) multilingual support; (vi) possibility for across-study comparisons of screening outcomes; (vii) a powerful graphical user interface; (viii) seamless software deployment and accessibility with improved data exchange. The TPS-ISK successfully risk-ranked five representative sample species for the main taxonomic groups supported by the tool and ten angiosperms previously screened with the WRA for Turkey. The almost 20-year continuous development and evolution of the ISK tools, as opposed to the WRA, closely meet the increasing demand by scientists and decision-makers for a reliable, comprehensive, updatable and easily deployable decision support tool. For terrestrial plant screening, these requirements are therefore met by the newly developed TPS-ISK.

In Croatia, there are three Satureja species groups (tSsg) within the Satureja L. genus that are most widely used as medicinal and melliferous plants: the Satureja montana complex, S. subspicata complex and S. cuneifolia. Due to the high melliferous and medicinal potential of these taxa, our objective was to comparatively assess the habitat suitability of the tSsg to estimate their cultivation potential in the eastern Adriatic region. In addition, we assessed their overlaps in geographic and environmental space and investigated the occurrence of the putative hybrid taxon S. x karstiana in the areas of overlap between the two parental taxa (S. montana and S. subspicata). Finally, the differences in the environmental preferences of these three related species groups were investigated. The species distribution models were built using the maximum entropy method (MaxEnt) based on the occur-rences of the tSsg, obtained from our field research in 2018-2021 and partly from the Flora Croatica Database. Six environmental variables (three bioclimatic and three topographic) were selected as predictors. The potential habitat suitability of the tSsg under current conditions showed high predictive model performance, with AUC values ranging from 0.890 to 0.910 +/- 0.025. The environmental predictors with the highest mean percent contributions to the models were annual temperature range (Bio 7) for S. montana (74.3%) and S. subspicata (65.9%) and downwards surface solar radiation (Srad) for S. cuneifolia (40%). Majority (>90%) of the known S. x karstiana hybrid occurrences were found within the areas of habitat suitability overlap between the two parental taxa, confirming the model accuracy and efficiency in the discovery of putative hybrids. Finally, the niche overlap in environmental space between the investigated taxa pairs was the highest between S. montana and S. subspicata, enabling their hybridization, and lowest between S. cuneifolia and S. subspicata. Due to the widest potential distribution and broadest environmental niche, our results suggest that S. montana has the highest potential for cultivation for medicinal and melliferous purposes in the eastern Adriatic, particularly in light of ongoing climate change.

Non-native aquatic plants are amongst the major threats to freshwater biodiversity and climate change is expected to facilitate their further spread and invasiveness. To date, in Croatia, no complete list of non-native extant and horizon aquatic plants has been compiled nor has a risk screening been performed. To address this knowledge gap, 10 extant and 14 horizon aquatic plant species were screened for their risk of invasiveness in the Pannonian and Mediterranean regions of Croatia under current and predicted (future) climate conditions. Overall, 90% and 60% of the extant species were classified as high risk for the Pannonian and Mediterranean regions, respectively, under both climate scenarios. Of the horizon species, 42% were classified as high risk under current conditions and, under climate change, this proportion increased to 78%. The ‘top invasive’ species (i.e. scored as very high risk) under both climate conditions and for both regions were extant Elodea nuttallii and horizon Lemna aequinoctialis. The horizon Hygrophila polysperma was very high risk for the Mediterranean Region under current climate conditions and for both regions under projected climate conditions. Azolla filiculoides, Elodea canadensis, Egeria densa and Utricularia gibba were also classified as high risk under current climate conditions and, after accounting for climate change, they became of very high risk in both regions. Further, Gymnocoronis spilanthoides and Lemna minuta were found to pose a very high risk under climate change only for the Pannonian Region. It is anticipated that the outcomes of this study will contribute to knowledge of the invasiveness of aquatic plants in different climatic regions and enable prioritisation measures for their control/eradication.

Stirovaca is located in Croatia, in the south-east part of Velebit National Park; it consists of dense forest stands and several meadow openings. The flora of the Stirovaca meadows has never before been systematically studied. Here, we report the results of a floristic study of plant diversity of the Stirovaca meadows. It was established that there were 134 species of wild vascular plants (132 species and 2 subspecies), classified into 97 genera and 38 families. The families with the greatest number of species and subspecies were Asteraceae (13.4 %), Poaceae (8.2 %), Lamiaceae (5.9 %) and Rosaceae (5.2 %). In the lifeforms spectrum Hemicryptophyta prevailed (66.4 %) which is characteristic of meadowland flora in areas with continental climates. An analysis of the floristic elements showed the greatest presence of Eurasian (35.0 %) and South European floristic elements (23.1 %). Vegetation succession in the last 60 or so years has progressed very considerably, at the expense of meadowland. The results of this research show that the Stirovaca meadows are an essential enrichment of plant and landscape diversity, indicating the need to preserve and protect the area investigated.

Samonikla flora i fauna nisu u potpunosti iskorištene u ljudskoj prehrani. U ovom radu prikazani su rezultati terenskih botaničkih istraživanja uglavnom zeljastih vrsta i podvrsta suhih mediteranskih travnjaka i šumskih rubova područja Ćićarije. Tijekom više vegetacijskih sezona od proljeća do jeseni floristički je istraživano područje Natura 2000 zaštićenih staništa (habitat 62A0). U cilju povećanja mogućnosti proizvodnje hrane i raznolikosti poljoprivrednih proizvoda, ovdje je izdvojeno i opisano 106 svojti. Od 32 vrste koje se koriste kao hrana (npr. Artium lappa, Scorzonera hispanica, Capsella bursa-pastoris, Diplotaxis tenuifolia, Rumex acetosa i dr.), najviše je samoniklog povrća (19 svojti), 9 vrsta se koristi kao samoniklo voće i 4 vrste kao baza za izradu pića. Od 46 vrsta koje se koriste kao hrana za životinje, većina ih spada u porodicu trava (Poaceae), među njima nalazimo 3 vrste koje se koriste kao samoniklo povrće (Portulaca oleracea, Trifolium incarnatum i T. aureum) i 3 kao arome (Elymus repens, Melilotus officinalis i Trifolium pratense). Također među njima nalazimo 8 medonosnih biljaka (npr. Marrubium vulgare, Melilotus officinalis). U kategoriji materijala odnosno tvari nalazimo biljke poput Hyssopus officinalis, Juniperus communis, Salvia officinalis i dr. Povećanje proizvodnje hrane od samoniklih biljaka koje nas okružuju, kao i povećanje prerade u određene proizvode (npr. začina i dodataka hrani) je moguće, pri tome imajući u vidu potrebu zaštite okoliša i aktualne klimatske promjene.

Tijekom istraživanja samonikle vaskularne flore kamenjarskih pašnjaka sjevernojadranskih otoka Krka, Cresa i Paga utvrđeno je 59 ljekovitih i aromatičnih biljaka. Od ustanovljenih 59 vrsta, prema načinu korištenja, najviše vrsta − njih 43 − može se koristiti u ljekovite svrhe, aromatičnih biljaka ima 4 vrste, dok 12 vrsta istovremeno pripada u ljekovite i aromatične biljke. Analizom ekoloških indikatorskih vrijednosti utvrđeno je da su istraživane ljekovite i aromatične biljke većinom prilagođene uvjetima umjereno toplih i suhih staništa izloženih suncu. S obzirom na indikatorske vrijednosti za reakciju tla (pH), proučavane vrste imaju vrlo različite vrijednosti, odnosno podjednako su zastupljene vrste koje mogu rasti na kiselim, kao i one koje mogu rasti na alkaličnim tlima. Među istraživanim ljekovitim i aromatičnim biljkama, najzastupljenije su vrste koje su prilagođene tlima siromašnim hranjivima

The aim of this study was to determine the chemical composition and nutritional value of the dominant species and subspecies of the grassland community Scorzoneretalia villosae. The research was carried out on the grasslands of the Cicarija plateau. In the collected samples of 17 dominant plants, the content of the dry matter (DM), crude protein (CP), ash, neutral detergent fiber (NDF), acid detergent fiber (ADF), acid detergent lignin (ADL), in vitro digestibility of DM (IVDMD) and net energy for lactation (NEL) were determined. According to the spring content of CP and IVDMD, Hippocrepis comosa (CP 181 g/kg DM, IVDMD 63.5%), Scorzonera villosa (CP 121 g/kg DM, IVDMD 61.5%) and Satureja montana ssp. variegata (CP 83 g/kg DM, IVDMD 60.4%) were the most nutritious and very palatable for sheep while the most unfavorable chemical composition had Stipa pennata ssp. eriocaulis (NDF 790, ADF 396 and ADL 112 g/kg DM) and Brachypodium pinnatum ssp. rupestre (NDF 789, ADF 483 and ADL 86 g/kg DM). A high IVDMD was determined for Salvia pratensis (up to 70.6%) and Teucrium chamaedrys (67.1%), generally hepatotoxic species, but not toxic for the local herd. In this paper, nutrition indicators of collected species and subspecies are presented for the first time.

The Herbarium ZAGR of the Faculty of Agriculture, University of Zagreb is one of the youngest in Croatia.The international acronym ZAGR was assigned by Index Herbariorum in 2013 when it was founded.Recently, in addition to the wild vascular flora, a collection of cultivated plants has been added to the herbarium material stored in the Herbarium ZAGR.Analysis has shown that 1737 herbarium specimens belong to the collection of cultivated and wild useful plants.There are 499 species and subspecies of useful plants, which are classified in 315 genera and 104 families.In total, the Herbarium ZAGR holds 18 useful species with cultivars.According to their employment, most taxa (326) can be used as medicine, 254 taxa can be used as food (166) or food additives (88), while bee plants include 172 taxa.The collection of cultivated and wild plants is available at http://herbarium.agr.hr/.

Herbarium ZAGR of the Faculty of Agriculture (Zagreb) is the youngest registered herbarium in Croatia. Currently the collection has estimated from 7.500 to 10.000 herbarium sheets of vascular plants, especially rich in specimens from the Adriatic part of Croatia, Balkan territories and other Mediterranean areas. Currently the ZAGR collection has 1275 plant taxa and covers 25% of Croatian national flora. The families with the largest number of herbarium specimens are Poaceae, Fabaceae and Asteraceae. A total of 1655 herbarium sheets are digitalised and are accessible online throughout ZAGR Virtual Herbarium database http://herbarium.agr.hr/. The particular interest of ZAGR collection are 26 type specimens of recently described new taxa to science from Croatia, Albania and Greece. Of important value in ZAGR herbarium are specimens of rare and endemic plants (435 sheets) out of which 101 belong to endemic taxa, which is 26% of total recorded Croatian endemic taxa. In total 1254 sheets of weed taxa and 31 invasive species are stored in herbarium. ZAGR collection contains more than 100 sheets of different specimens of agricultural important traditional and modern cultivars.

Zahvaljujuci svojem specificnom zemljopisnom položaju Hrvatska je s gledista bioloske raznolikosti jedna od najbogatijih zemalja Europe. Velika bioloska raznolikost mora, kao i velika raznolikost otoka i priobalja, daju hrvatskom obalnom podrucju međunarodni znacaj. Usprkos dobroj ocuvanosti prirode u Hrvatskoj neke su biljne vrste jako rijetke i ugrožene. Nadamo se da ce ova knjiga pridonijeti boljem poznavanju rijetkih biljaka hrvatskog priobalja, a sve u uvjerenju da to vodi ne samo k ocuvanju i zastiti prirodne ljepote i bioloske raznolikosti Hrvatske nego i njezinu održivom razvoju. U tom je smislu Jadransko more s priobaljem osobito važno za Hrvatsku, jer pruža mnogo prednosti za uspjesan razvoj poljoprivrede, turizma, ribarstva i marikulture.

The aim of this study was to determine grassland flora (Tab. 2) and vegetation, and frequency of occurrence of woody and herbaceous species of the forest edge at different grassland management localities (Tab. 6, see Tab. 5). The field research of flora and grassland vegetation (2008-2010) was conducted at 27 localities (Tab. 1, Fig.1). A total of 103 releves using the Braun-Blanquet (1964) method amounting to 100 m(2) was made, while the description of habitats included geographical coordinates, altitude, inclination, exposure, land forms, and grassland management. Woody species and herbaceous transgressive species from the Trifolio-Geranietea sanguinea class (according to Kaligaric 1997) were selected from the releves (Vitasovi6 Kosic 2011) and are hereinafter referred to as "herbaceous species of the forest edge". The presence and frequency of each taxon in relation to the type of grassland management were determined. For each taxon, Braun-Blanquet's values were calculated as percentage of ground cover (%) on a particular grassland type and classified according to grassland management type. From a total of 103 releves, 35 releves were abandoned pastures (NP), 23 releves abandoned meadows (NL), 20 releves used pastures (KP) and 25 releves used meadows (KL). The diversity of environmental grassland parameters and grassland management type was determined using modified Ellenberg indicator values (EIV) adjusted for the Mediterranean (Pignatti et al. 2005). The descriptive statistical analysis of environmental variables (Box & Whiskers diagrams) was conducted using the STATISTICA software package (StatSoft Inc. 2005). A total of 624 plant taxa classified in 275 genera and 62 families was recorded whereas the top six families according to number of taxa (Asteraceae, Fabaceae, Poaceae, Lam iaceae, Liliaceae and Rosaceae) encompassed more than half (51.28 %) of the total recorded flora (Tab. 3). According to phytogeographical analysis (Tab. 4), the nearly equal representation of the Mediterranean floral, element (31.15 %) and Eurasian floral element (29.97 %) indicated that the studied area is located at the tran: sition between the sub-Mediterranean and Mediterranean-mountain vegetation belt. Prevalent life forms include hemicryptophytes (53.83 %), which are typical for the grassland flora of pastures and meadows and indicate anthropogenic influence reflected in the form of grazing and burning. The relatively high prevalence of woody plants in the grassland habitats (N and P, 5.59 %) indicated processes of succession at some of the localities (Fig. 2). The Cicarija grasslands belong mostly to the Scorzonero-Chrysopogonetalia order (pastures) and partially to the Arrhenatheretalia order (meadows) (Poldini 1989, Kaligaric 1997, Poldini & Kaligari6 1997, Vitasovic Kosic. et al. 2011, 2012). A syntaxonomical interpretation of these associations is shown below. From the total flora, 35 woody species (5.61 %) and 74 herbaceous species of the forest edge (11.86 %) from the class Trifolio-Geranietea sanguinei were singled out, indicating processes of vegetation succession at some of the localities (Tab. 5, Tab. 6). Among the endangered species, Gentiana symphyandra (EN) and the vulnerable Lilium bulbiferum (VU) should be noted. According to grassland management, the largest number of woody and herbaceous species of the forest edge was detected within abandoned areas: NP - 58 taxa and NL - 28 species, while the used areas KL_(16 taxa) and KP (7 species) contained significantly less. The analysis of ecological indicator values (EIV) for woody and herbaceous species of forest edges (Fig. 3) showed that KP distinguished among the grassland management types, as can be seen by EIV nutrients, continentality, and light. Used pastures are generally homes to species that grow in poor soil nutrients (e.g., Genista sylvestris and Inula hirta), subcontinental (e.g., Asparagus tenuifolius), and continental species (e.g., Chamaecytisus hirsutus). As for the EIV of light, used pastures have more half-shade species, some of which cannot grow under full light (e.g., Helleborus multifidus subsp. istriacus). Contrary are used meadows where generally full-light species appear (Orobanche minor, Scabiosa columbaria, Rhinanthus aristatatus, etc.). It is known that grassland management acts as a driving force in the diversity of the plant community (MacDonald et al. 2000, Kahmen et al. 2002, Wilson et al. 2003). During the last six decades, the abandonment of the traditional way of raising sheep resulted in different succession changes and significantly influenced biodiversity (Zupancic and Zagar 2002, de Bello et al. 2007). The main overgrowth of vegetation occurred in the contact zones between inadequately mowed and grazing plots. Other means of spreading woody species may include forest edges and shrub communities that occur as a phase in the very dynamic process of re-overgrowth, which most often has an anthropogenic origin (Carni et al. 2002). Immediately after a plot ceases to be mowed or used for grazing, the occurrence of a high percentage of successional species is almost instant (Poldini 1989, Kaligaric & Poldini 1997, see Tab. 6). Due to the low usage intensity of grasslands, the colonizing grass Brachypodium rupestre spread across the entire plot (Catorci et al., 2011, 2012). In this study B. rupestre appeared at a large frequency (<40 %) on KL and KP, and with an even greater frequency (>40 %) on NL and NP (see Tab. 5, compare Vitasovk Kosk et al. 2012). The occurrence of B. rupestre in Cicarija is consistent with several studies, all of which emphasize the role of B. pinnatum and B. rupestre in the invasion of unmanaged grasslands through processes of competition and related problems of conservation (During & Willems 1984, Bobbink & Willems 1987). According to Grime (1973, 2001), B. rupestre possesses dominant features such as large size, strong vegetative reproductive capacity (with marked lateral spreading), growth from basal meristems (Stebbins 1972), and high phytomass production (Catorci et al. 2012). Moreover, its silica-rich leaves render this species poorly palatable for sheep (Grime et al. 1988), thus enabling the formation of a large amount of plant litter and a consequent decrease in floristic diversity (Bonanomi and Allegrezza 2004; Bonanomi et al. 2009). Under-grazing and irregular mowing (i.e., low disturbance) lead to the floristic homogenization of a system (Vitasovk Kosk et al. 2011), which ultimately leads to a reduction in plant diversity. Meadows are subjected to the invasion of B. rupestre to a larger extent and, as stated by Bennie etal. (2006), they are more vulnerable to the loss of floristic diversity than pastures after regular management ceases. For this reason, regular mowing should be maintained and intensified. As for dry pastures, a solution for more efficient management could be in using very low selective herbivores, such as cows, donkeys or horses, for grazing. In conclusion, particular attention in the protection and preservation of grasslands should be given to certain management measures (grazing and mowing) in order to maintain biodiversity, prevent grassland succession, and maintain control of the spread of B. rupestre. The results of this research can provide the basis for the development of new management plans, which will require specific knowledge on the preservation of biodiversity, particularly in Special Protected Areas (SPA) within the Natura 2000 network.