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\begin{document}

\title{Water-saving techniques for restoring desertified lands: some lessons
from the field}



\author[1]{Vicenç Carabassa}%
\author[2]{Daniela Alba-Patiño}%
\author[1]{Sergio García}%
\author[3]{Julián  Campo}%
\author[4]{Harrie Lovenstein}%
\author[5]{Gertruud Van Leijen}%
\author[6]{Antonio Castro}%
\author[7]{Francisco González}%
\author[8]{Gustavo Viera}%
\author[9]{Dimitrios - Sotirios Kourkoumpas}%
\author[9]{Argyro Aliki Zioga}%
\author[9]{Christos Emmanouel Papadelis}%
\author[10]{Vicente Andreu}%
\author[3]{Eugenia Gimeno-García}%
\author[11]{Sven Kallen}%
\author[1]{Josep M. Alcañiz}%
\affil[1]{CREAF}%
\affil[2]{Universidad de Almeria}%
\affil[3]{Centro de Investigaciones sobre Desertificación}%
\affil[4]{Land Life Company}%
\affil[5]{Van Leijen Srl}%
\affil[6]{Universidad de Almería}%
\affil[7]{Cabildo de Gran Canaria}%
\affil[8]{Gobierno de Canarias}%
\affil[9]{Centre for Research and Technology-Hellas}%
\affil[10]{Centro de Investigaciones sobre Desertificacion}%
\affil[11]{Volterra}%


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  \date{May 25, 2024}


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\begin{abstract}
In the light of the current climate crisis, one of the most serious
ecological threats is the increase of desertification. In this context,
restoration projects are necessary for reverting land degradation, and
nature-based solutions could help them. The Cocoon has been designed as
a new ecotechnology for improving seedling establishment. The Cocoon
consists of a donut-shaped container made out of recycled cardboard that
provides water and shelter to the seedling, at least during its first
year, which is the most critical for plant establishment. The Cocoon was
tested on a variety of soils, Mediterranean mesoclimates, vegetation and
land uses that allowed testing the effectiveness of this ecotechnology
under different conditions. Six planting trials, five of them in Spain
(Canary Islands, Almer\selectlanguage{ngerman}ía, Catalonia and two in Valencia), and one in
Ptolemais (Greece), were performed. With the objective of studying its
functionality, the survival of the seedlings, their vigor and growth
were monitored along two years. In general, the Cocoon has proven its
effectiveness by increasing seedling survival compared to the
conventional planting system, especially under dry growing conditions
(low rainfall, soils with low water holding capacity). The Cocoon also
allowed for higher growth of some species (olive trees, olm oaks and
Aleppo pines). Moreover, a positive correlation between the rainfall on
the site and the degradation degree of the Cocoon device was observed.
Overall, the Cocoon becomes more efficient the more arid the climate or
the more difficult the growing conditions are.%
\end{abstract}\selectlanguage{ngerman}%



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