National Center for the Study and the Maintenance of the Forest Biodiversity of Peri

In the early seventies, the public administration responsible for the forests decided to build a new establishment for the production of forest seeds in the province of Verona, in the town of Peri. A public nursery, which had already been present in this area for decades, was then converted into the primary centre with the latest modern technology available. Over this first period it was used to regenerate mountain forests and the materials produced went to the nurseries of the alpine foresters.
The production of conifer seeds lost its importance and the attention was gradually redirected towards the need of tree replanting on the lowlands to the point that it became the most important activity. The Peri centre had to deal with new emergencies and had to, once more, adapt itself: it began to produce broad-leaved seeds for the plain territories, research new harvest areas and locate the species of the Po area thus no longer limiting its reseatch to alpine zones. The production line underwent some changes; it went from dealing with massive industrial quantities of few species to lesser quantities of many different species. The new productive reality enabled the selection of species present in nature in small quantities with a low seed yield.

In 2001, the centre was recognized as a National Centre for the study and conservation of the biodiversity of the forests (CNBF).
The study of the genetics of the forest species of the Po Plains was almost contemporarily adopted, thanks to the acquisition of a lab for molecular biology.

In 2005, it was accredited as a Forest Seed Analysis Laboratory by ISTA (International Seed Testing Association). The seed analysis certifications follow the ISTA (International Seed Test Association) guidelines.

The CNBF of Peri is a member of BIOFORV project research team promoting standard procedures related to the production of forest propagation (nursery). 

The areas of interest and the themes studied in this Centre concentrate on the understanding and on the evaluation of the genetic diversity of the forest species.
Most of the work and research is primarily focused on trees from the plains, more precisely, on the trees for which conservation is important since they are greatly tied to the preservation of the ecosystem.

With this objective in mind, it is important to emphasize the phylogeographical aspects of the species studied. In fact, the post-glacial reforestation (around 12,000 years ago) is the link between the genetic differences that are now observable within our forests. The reconstruction of the formation pattern of today's natural species allows us to locate possible areas containing relevant genetic peculiarity (e.g. refuge areas during the glacial era, areas with a consistent level of genetic variability, etc...). It is thus evident that the proper identification and conservation of these species represents a fundamental step for the study of intraspecific biodiversity

Some of our current projects are directed towards the understanding of the reproductive biology of the angiosperm and gymnosperm species. The objective of our researches is to understand the mechanisms and the processes that regulate the distribution of biodiversity within the natural specie formations. The outcome of these researches has enabled us to develop strategies regarding the collection of the propagation materials, taking also into account how the genetic diversity level is distributed throughout the forest, and, thus, enabling us to attain a more substantial evaluation of the total genetic diversity.
We also intend to clarify whether or not the obtainable data could be useful for the extrapolation of a seed harvest model that could then be adapted to forest formations of different structures or whether certain types of forest formations manifest such peculiarities that an ad hoc safeguarding plan could be implemented.

A third aspect to be considered when conducting research is the study and the diffusion of alien species, which are present in the natural environment. The objective of these researches is to monitor how an alien gene flow can influence the dynamism of the natural species of the forests. It will then be possible to obtain guidelines regarding the conservation strategies of specific natural environments previously submitted to a forest management plan that did not always exercise the necessary caution.