<p class="first" id="P1">
<i>Robinia pseudoacacia</i>, invaded many countries a long time ago and is now a common
part of the Central European
landscape. Positive economic but negative environmental impacts of
<i>Robinia</i> result in conflicts of interest between nature conservation, forestry,
urban landscaping,
beekeepers and the public when defining management priorities. Because current legislation
will determine the future distribution of
<i>Robinia</i> in the landscape, a comprehensive view of this species is necessary.
Although this
species is well studied, most of the scientific papers deal with the economic aspects.
Other information is published in local journals or reports. Therefore we reviewed
the ecological and socio-economic impact of
<i>Robinia</i> placing particular emphasis on the species’ history, vegetation ecology,
invasiveness
and management. In Central Europe,
<i>Robinia</i> is limited climatically by late spring frost combined with a short
vegetation period,
soil hypoxia, shade and frequent major disturbances. The long historical tradition
of using
<i>Robinia</i> for afforestation has resulted in its popularity as a widespread forest
tree and
it being an important part of the economy in some countries. The main reasons are
its fast growth, valuable and resistant wood, suitability for amelioration, reclamation
of disturbed sites and erosion control, honey-making and recently dendromass production.
On the other hand, a side-effect of planting this nitrogen-fixing pioneer tree, very
tolerant of the nature of the substrate, is its propagation and spread, which pose
a problem for nature conservation.
<i>Robinia</i> is considered invasive, threatening especially dry and semi-dry grasslands,
some
of the most species-rich and endangered types of habitat in the region, causing extinction
of many endangered light-demanding plants and invertebrates due to changes in light
regime, microclimate and soil conditions. Other often invaded habitats include open
dry forests and shrubland, alluvial habitats, agrarian landscapes, urban and industrial
environments and disturbed sites, e.g. post-fire sites, forest clearings or degraded
forestry plantations. Without forestry, black locust abundance would decrease during
succession in forests with highly competitive and shade tolerant trees and in mature
forests it occurs only as admixture of climax trees. The limited pool of native woody
species, lack of serious natural enemies and a dense cover of grasses and sedges can
suppress forest succession and favour the development of
<i>Robinia</i> monodominant stands over 70 years old. A stratified approach, which
combines both
tolerance in some areas and strict eradication at valuable sites, provides the best
option for achieving a sustainable coexistence of
<i>Robinia</i> with people and nature.
</p>