Natalia Lukina, Elena Filimonova, Margarita Glazyrina, Anton Uchaev, Maria Maleva*, and Galina Borisova

Ural Federal University named after the first President of Russia B. N. Yeltsin, 19 Mira str., 620002 Yekaterinburg, Russia. *E-mail: maria.maleva@mail.ru

The mineral deposits’ development is accompanied by significant disturbances of soil and vegetation in large areas. The study of initial stages of disturbed lands natural overgrowing makes it possible to assess patterns of vegetation formation. Forest phytocoenoses formation on serpentine substrates in the Middle Urals, Russia (taiga zone, subzone of southern taiga) was studied in this work. The research was carried out at four dumps of Anatol’sko-Shilovsky asbestos deposit. It was found that forest communities with the dominance of Pinus sylvestris L. are formed on dump sites with the predominance of overburden rocks. The herb-shrub layer of these phytocoenoses was dominated by Calamagrostis arundinacea (L.) Roth. The slopes of dumps and areas with compacted soil are overgrown with sparse undersized forest vegetation dominated by P. sylvestris and Betula pendula Roth. In herb-shrub layer of these areas, the most common were relict species Dendranthema zawadskii (Herbich) Tzvel. and rare for the Urals species, Epipactis atrorubens (Hoffm.) Besser (orсhid) and Thymus talijevii Klok. & Des.-Shost. The geobotanical and soil investigations have shown that all studied parameters (such as humidity, pH value, Mg:Ca ratio) influenced the formation of forest phytocoenoses. In general, the formation of forest vegetation on serpentine dumps is a very long process and it depends on specific climatic and soil conditions.

Аnatolii М. Zhezhkun

State Enterprise ‘Novgorod-Siverska Forest Research Station’, Ukrainian Research Institute of Forestry and Forest Melioration named after G. M. Vysotsky, 90 Ivana Bohuna str., Novgorod-Siverskyi, Chernihiv region, 16000, Ukraine. Е-mail: desna-90@ukr.net

Features of regeneration of Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) after shelterwood cutting in mature pine stands of Eastern Polissya of Ukraine (Chernihiv region) were studied. After the first stage of cutting, the density of stocking of pine stands of certain forest types was reduced to 0.2–0.6, and the natural regeneration of pine was supported by various methods of soil mineralization and seed sowing. Self-sown seedlings and young growth of tree species were recorded on accounting sites in strips on 2–5 % of the plot area. The most successful natural regeneration of Scots pine was found at fresh and humid oak-pine relatively poor forest types, with the density of stocking 0.4. The density of 3–4-year pine young growth was 9–34 thousand plants per ha, which corresponded to a successful regeneration rate. In the final stage of shelterwood cutting, more than 70 % of Scots pine and other species seedlings were preserved, which is sufficient for the formation of valuable stands of natural origin. Shelterwood cutting is an important system of measures for close-to-nature forestry.

Denis E. Rumyantsev* and Andrey V. Cherakshev

Mytishchi branch of Bauman Moscow State Technical University (National Research University), 1st Institutskaya Str., 141005 Mytischi, Moscow region, Russia. *E-mail: dendro15@list.ru

Most dendrochronological studies on conifers in Moscow region and on Russian plain in general focused to Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) and Norway Spruce (Picea abies (L.) Karst). This study is focused on the chronology analysis in non-native pines from Strobi section: Eastern white pine (Pinus strobus L.) and Macedonian pine (Pinus peuce Griseb.) in Moscow city, Moscow region and some neighboring regions, with particular attention to climatic signal in tree-ring chronologies. The study revealed climatic factors that significantly correlate with the growth dynamics of the tested trees. The studied chronologies contained a drought-associated climatic signal, and the nature of the signal differed among the species and among chronologies of the same species obtained from various geographical areas. The most important effect had the climate conditions in May, both for different locations and for different species. The cluster analysis showed similarities in chronologies of the white pine for sites located in a closer proximity to each other, thus proving that site-specific ecological conditions influenced the growth dynamics in a specific manner. This regular pattern can be used as a basis for developing methods of wood origin identification.

Krasimira Petkova (1)*, Nasko Iliev (1), Martin Borisov (2), and Martin Sattler (3)

1. University of Forestry, 10 Kliment Ochridski Blvd., 1797 Sofia, Bulgaria. E-mails: kpet@abv.bg*, ilievnasko@abv.bg
2. Hans-Watzlik Str.18, 89312 Günzburg, Germany. E-mail: mborisow@abv.bg
3. Fiberweb Geosynthetics Ltd, 12 – 14 Aberaman Park, Aberdare CF44 6DA, United Kingdom. E-mail: MartinSattler@berryglobal.com

The effects of tree shelters on the survival, height, and diameter growth of three deciduous tree species – common beech (Fagus sylvatica L.), sycamore (Acer pseudoplatanus L.) and sessile oak (Quercus petraea Matt. (Liebl.) were studied. The study was conducted in two experimenta plantations, established in the spring of 2018 in the Training and Experimental Forest Range Petrohan (North-Western Bulgaria). Four experimental variants with tree shelters – Tubex Ventex Classic, Tubex Ventex Clear, Layflat Shelterguard, Layflat Treeguard and a control one (without tree shelters) were used. Twenty to twenty-seven seedlings in three replications of each variant and tree species were planted. The experimental plantation-1 was established on an east-facing  flat terrain at an altitude of 600 m. The soil is Grey Luvisol mixture of sandy and clay, slightly stony, and very deep. The site class is medium rich to rich. The experimental plantation-2 is located in a high-density game area. The area is a meadow, aspect north, slope with gradient 8o and an altitude of 850 m. The soil is Dystric-Eutric Cambisol, mixture of sandy and clay, slightly stony and deep. The site class is medium rich to rich. In the autumn of the second and third year after the planting height, height increment and root collar diameter were measured. The survival in both experimental plantations was high but without any statistical significance of the tree shelter. The height growth of all tree species was better in tree shelter variants, with the highest average in that with Tubex Ventex Clear. The root collar diameter growth was not yet significantly affected by the use of tree shelters. As a result of research, ventilated tree shelters (Tubex Ventex Classic and Tubex Ventex Clear) may be recommended as suitable.

Hassana Ismaili Alaoui*, Bouchra El Asri, Souad Ghazi, Najiba Brhadda, and Rabea Ziri

Plant, Animal and Agro-industry Production Laboratory, Faculty of Sciences, Ibn Tofail University, BP.133, University Campus, Kenitra 14 000, Morocco. *E-mail: hassana.ismailalaoui@uit.ac.ma

This study was carried out in the Oued Beht watershed in Morocco, it aimed to inventory the wild medicinal and aromatic plants (MAPs) used and marketed in the study area and to calculate their economic value using the market price. The survey led with the local population in 2019, using face-to-face interviews and focus groups with 200 collectors and 5 cooperatives operating upstream of the sector of MAPs. This study used the Geographical Information System (GIS) tool to develop spatial maps covering medicinal plants prevalent in the Oued Beht watershed. The results permitted the identification of 23 species of MAPs collected, of which root and whole constitute the most used parts. Their economic value was estimated at 34,745,943 MAD∙yr-1 distributed between collectors and cooperatives. The profits of the cooperatives exceed 61 %, with a supply of MAPs of only 24.63 % (700 t∙yr-1). This important economic value encourages the local population to depend on these resources. For this reason, we propose sustainable exploitation of the MAPs to provide their sustainability.