Home – Home – Jornals – Flora and Vegetation of Asian Russia 2023 number 3

Phytocoenotical behaviour of 21 arctic-alpine and arctic vascular plant species is analyzed in different subzones of the taiga zone in comparison with that in tundras, based upon the set of 2234 relevés made in European Russia in 1996-2007 (see Table 2; Figure). Species prefer rich (mainly carbonate or sulfate) but cold soil in the taiga zone of European Russia. The climate continentality regime affects them less valuably, although the affiliation of some species to different bedrock types may depend on the area longitudinal position. Many arctic-alpine species occur under the canopy of light-coniferous forests on limestone or gypsum but only in treeless communities on silicate bedrock. The main part of the arctic species is restricted to salinized seashore soils. The three floristic elements are distinguished within the arctic fraction of a taiga zone flora, namely the periglacial-karst (the Dryas flora core in the Late Pleistocene), the maritime, and the mire-riverside ones, with several subelements each. Both the ecological and phytocoenotical differences between species and the historical-climatical events which caused different waves of migration lead to species subdivision into elements and subelements. Those of the periglacial-karst element are distinguished according to species occurrence on limestone and gypsum outcrops only (the karst subelement with Dryas octopetala, D. punctata, Salix reticulata etc.) or on silicate rock (the rock subelement with Saxifraga spp.), in low-herb meadows (the rock-meadow subelement with Poa alpina), or in Scots pine forests on sand (the rock-redwood element with Arctous alpina and Oxytropis sordida) as well. The arctic-alpine species which migrated in the Middle and/or Late Dryas and then in the second half of the Praeboreal comprise the bulk of the element. Subelements of the maritime element are defined according to species affinity to either littoral (Carex subspathacea) or supra-littoral (C. glareosa) belts, or maritime crowberry heath (Loiseleuria procumbens), also according to species oceanicity/continentality which determined the vectors of their migration. The arctic species which migrated in the Middle Dryas and then in the Little Ice Age prevail. Subelements of the mire-riverside element are distinguished according to species affinity to mires of different mineral richness (Carex rariflora, Tofieldia pusilla) or to silt/gravel banks (Caltha arctica, Arctophila fulva). The Upper Pechora riverside subelement comprises the arctic hygrophytes and probably has the Riss-Würm interglacial or Early Würm glacial origins. In the meantime, the arctic-alpine Eriophorum scheuchzeri (the mire-riverside subelement) continues migrating nowadays.

The results of vegetation classification of protective forest stands in the southern and central regions of the Rostov region using the method are presented J. Baun-Blaquet. The syntaxonomy is based on 75 complete geobotanical descriptions obtained during route surveys of the territory. As a result, 7 associations were identified, including 3 new ones: Padello mahaleb-Fraxinetum excelsioris - unites communities of protective and priovrazhy protective forest plantations (ZLN) in the southern districts of the Rostov region, with dominants in the first tree tier Fraxinus excelsioris and Padellus mahaleb - in the shrubby, as part of the Chelidonio majoris-Robinion pseudoacaciae; Elytrigio repentis-Ulmetum minoris - communities of ZLN bordering the bayrach forests of the southern and central regions of the Don region, the first tree tier is dominated by Ulmus minor, a sodominant in the herbage of Elytrigia repens; Elytrigio repentis-Fraxinetum excelsioris - communities of wide (up to 40 m) ZLN along federal highways, shore-strengthening ZLN of the central and southern regions of the studied region. The peculiarity of the last two associations is the predominance of natural flora species in the stand, however, all the described communities artificially created plantings in the 60-70s, they are attributed to the alliance Chelidonio majoris-Acerion negundi. Validation of the alliance Chelidonio majoris-Acerion negundi and association Chelidonio majoris-Aceretum negundi was also carried out.

Global warming over the past few decades is causing a reduction of the area of glaciers and a rise of the upper forest line in the Mountain Altai. Therefore, it is important to study the biology of mountain species in order to determine their adaptive potential. Phlomoides alpina is one of the permanent species of subalpine communities. The study was conducted on the territory of Katun Nature Reserve (Altai Republic). Using the terms of discrete description of ontogeny, we studied the ontogeny of P. alpina and the age structure of its cenopopulation. It has been established that P. alpina is a polycarpic monopodial-rosette short-rhizome plant. Ontogeny of individuals is complete and complex with late non-specialized morphological disintegration: a mature generative individual is fragments into non-rejuvenated ramets. The species reproduction by means of seeds. The first flowering occurs at the 20-25 years age. The middle-aged generative state is the longest (25-40 years) compared to other ontogenetic states. The complete individual’s ontogeny lasts 70-90 years. Two variants of the functioning of the apical bud of the skeletal axis of the generative plant were revealed, when either vegetative-generative buds or developed vegetative buds are formed on the annual shoot. The development of vegetative-generative buds is a necessary condition for the flowering of an individual and contributes to the seed renewal of the coenopopulation. The appearance of large vegetative buds on a one-year shoot predetermines a interruptions (pauses) in flowering, but at the same time, skeletal axes are branched due to them. Due to this, multi-shoot large mature bushes are formed in the middle-aged generative state, which occupy the territory for a long time. The young normal cenopopulation of P. alpina has a left-sided multi-top ontogenetic spectrum in the subalpine meadow. The main peak on the group of juvenile individuals indicates successful seed reproduction of the species; two local peaks on virginal and mature generative individuals are associated with an increase in the duration of these states.

The purpose of this work is to summarize information about the distribution of the rare species of Oxytropis growing in the Republic of Uzbekistan to clarify their ranges, to start an inventory of their locations and to study the demographic structure of their coenotic populations. To assess the condition and conservation of rare plants, it is necessary to study their biological characteristics, as one of the primary tasks of the population ecology, the study of populations of rare, endangered and protected plant species is required for elaborating effective measures to maintain their stable existence. The structure of the habitats of 10 rare species of Oxytropis growing on the territory of the Republic of Uzbekistan was studied on the basis of herbarium samples and of a review of literary and electronic sources. Herbarium collections of rare species of Oxytropis date from 1924 to 1987, with only tenth of the collections made later than 2000. Such species as O. maidantalelsis, O. schachimardanica, O. tyttantha and O. vvedenskyi were not collected at all in the 21st century. Therefore, revision of the existing habitats and detailed evaluation of the status of rare and endemic species of Oxytropis is very relevant at the present time. As a result of the conducted studies, it was found that the studied species live in mountainous areas, at altitudes from 820 to 3400 m above sea level, on steep 20-35° rocky slopes of different exposures in phytocoenoses with low projective coverage from 15 to 50 %, while the projective coverage of Oxytropis is small and amounts to 1 % or less. The populations of the studied species are small (100-400 plants) and isolated. Data are presented indicating that most of the coenopopulations of the rare species of Oxytropis persistently have existed in their habitats for a long time. As a rule, these are populations that are protected on the territory of nature reserves and national parks or are located in hard-to-reach places. Those populations which are located outside protected areas are subjected to strong, uncontrolled grazing, up to their complete destruction. All the investigated coenopopulations (CP) of Oxytropis species are normal, definitive, the CP of O. fedtschenkoana and O. kamelinii are full-fledged, the other CP of the remaining studied species are incomplete. In incomplete cenopopulations, plants of the postgenerative period are most often absent, less often - those of the pregenerative period. The CP O. kamelinii, O. lasiocarpa, O. pseudoleptophysa and O. pseudorosea are with a left-sided ontogenetic spectrum (pregenerative and young generative individuals predominate), the CP O. fedtschenkoana are with a centered type of spectrum. In general, in the coenotic populations of Oxytropis, a high proportion of generative plants was noted - from 36.9 to 96.2 %. In all of those, with the exception of O. lasiocarpa CP (3.8 %), the percentage of individuals of the pregenerative period is high - from 32.9 to 60.5 %, indicating successful seed renewal in these coenopopulations. A large proportion of pregenerative plants makes it possible to predict successful replenishment of the generative fraction of the plants in the near future. The fraction of plants of the post-generative period in the CP is insignificant - up to 6.3 %, suggesting that the plants remain in the generative state for almost the entire life cycle. The rare species of Oxytropis of Uzbekistan are mountain species with a narrow-locality range and a narrow ecological amplitude, with a small number of populations within the range. The number of their populations is small, and the trends of its changes have not been established. The analysis of the state of coenotic populations has shown that overgrazing, leading to destruction of seedlings, juvenile and immature individuals, as well as to a decrease in the vitality and seed productivity of generative plants due to their partial or complete eating, is one of the main limiting factors. It can be concluded that all the species of Oxytropis studied by us are vulnerable due to the peculiarities of biology (exclusively seed reproduction), stenotopy, the small size of their populations and the decrease in their numbers as a result of the anthropogenic impact. An in-depth study of the biological features of rare species of Oxytropis of Uzbekistan, the state of coenotic populations, further inventory of known habitats and search for new ones are necessary. The main condition for the conservation of currently rare species, especially such species as O. pseudorosea and O. kamelinii, consists in organizing protection of all the populations and regular monitoring of their condition at the places of the most intense anthropogenic impact. The results obtained can be used in the next edition of the Red Book of the Republic of Uzbekistan and for organizing effective measures for protection of the species.

Two new taxa, Myosotis pospelovae O.D. Nikif. and M. nemorosa subsp. putoranica O.D. Nikif. from section Myosotis, which are listed in “Flora Putorana”, as M. scorpioides L. var. pusilla Meinsh. and M. scorpioides var. nemorosa (Besser) Schmalh are described from the the Krasnoyarsk Territory. Both taxa differ significantly from the known species of the type section in the presence of thickened rhizomes with numerous flower-bearing shoots, the pubescence of the leaves, and the shape and size of the eremocarps. M. pospelovae relatives M. nemorosa Besser, plants 5-10 cm high, stems shiny, without pubescence, crowded in a clump, leaves bare on underside. M. nemorosa subsp. putoranica is more similar to M. nemorosa in its leaf and stem pubescence, differing from the latter in its multi-stemmed life form and leaf pubescence. It differs from M. palustris in the shiny stems and in the presence of downward pointing bristly hairs on the lower surface of the leaves and in the number of chromosomes 2n = 22, instead of 2n = 44, 66. The drawings show the peculiarities of the pubescence of the leaf plate, as well as the shape and size of the eremocarps in comparison with the related species M. palustris and M. nemorosa. The issues of the priority name of the variety of the Linnaean species M. scorpioides β-palustris, as well as the relationship of M. nemorosa subsp. putoranica with the European species M. nemorosa. For new taxa, a list of studied specimens (paratypes) and photographs of type specimens are given.

This message begins a series of notes on the study of the chromosome numbers of plant species grown on the collection “Rare and endangered plant species of Siberia” in the Central Siberian Botanical Garden (CSBS SB RAS). The collection includes 429 specimens (99 % representatives of natural populations) from 278 taxa (species, hybrids), 127 genera, 58 families. 33 species are included in the list of the Red Book of the Russian Federation, 162 species in the regional Siberian Red Books. In addition to the species included in the Red Book lists, plants of species of scientific significance are grown - endemics, relics. Most species have been cultivated for more than 10 years, many of them for more than 30 years. The numbers of chromosomes of endangered species, endemic are represented insignificantly in the literature. This study is part of the certification of introducers and is necessary for the comprehensive study of rare and endangered species. Two types of roots were studied. The first type is roots in plants of vegetatively mobile species (Cruciata glabra subsp. krylovii (Iljin) E.G. Naumova), also of plants formed by self-seeding Tridactylina kirilowii (Turcz.) Sch. Bip. The second type is the roots of sprouted seeds. We used the methodological recommendations of the Central Committee of the CSBS SB RAS. The chromosome numbers have been determined: Cruciata glabra subsp. krylovii (Iljin) E.G. Naumova (2n = 22, 33, 44), Saposhnikovia divaricata (Turcz.) Schischk. (2n = 16), Sibiraea laevigata (L.) Maxim. (2n = 14), Tridactylina kirilowii (Turcz.) Sch. Bip. (2n = 18), Viola dactyloides Schult. (2n = 24); Viola jooi Janka (2n = 24); Viola mauritii Tepl. (2n = 20); Viola uliginosa Besser (2n = 20). All voucher specinems are presented in the herbarium NSK.

Chromosome numbers (2n) for 17 rare, endemic plant species (25 populations) from the families: Alliaceae, Apiaceae, Asparagaceae, Asteraceae, Fabaceae, Linaceae, Papaveraceae, Valerianaceae are reported on the material from the Republic of Buryatia. For Allium udinicum Antsupova (2n = 16) the chromosome complement was examined for the first time. Chromosome numbers of Allium vodopjanovae N. Friesen (2n = 16), Ferulopsis hystrix (Bunge) Pimenov (2n = 40), Heteropappus altaicus (Willd.) Novopokr. (2n = 54), Kalimeris integrifolia Turcz. (2n = 36), Saussurea salicifolia (L.) DC. (2n = 26), Caragana pygmaea (L.) DC. (2n = 16), and Oxytropis triphylla (Pall.) Pers. (2n = 16) from Buryatia were determined for the first time. New hexaploid cytotypes for Aster alpinus L. s.l. and Heteropappus altaicus (Willd.) Novopokr. (2n = 54) were studied. For each species the distribution area and published data on karyology are given.

May 22, 2023 marks the 100th anniversary of the birth of a talented botanist-introducer, Doctor of Biological Sciences Elena VikentievnaTyurina. The whole scientific life of E.V. Tyurina was associated with the Central Siberian Botanical Garden. The main direction of her research was the biology of medicinal and aromatic plants in nature and during introduction.

The article is dedicated to the 120th anniversary of the birth of the famous Russian breeder and scientific gardener Michael Nikolaevich Salamatov.

The article presents a brief overview of the results of the IX School of Young Scientists on Plant Introduction conducted in the Central Siberian Botanical Garden of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences (Novosibirsk) with the participation of 43 people from Siberia, the European part of Russia and Kazakhstan. There were 8 lectures on classical and modern methods of plant introduction and conservation ex situ, acquaintance with botanical collections and practical classes on molecular genetical and biochemical methods, and biotechnologies, as well as practical techniques of plant introduction and landscape design. The participants noted the importance of the acquired knowledge for their future work. Such schools are needed in the future as platforms for professional communication and exchange of experience.