Damage to black locust leaves (Robinia pseudoacacia L.) by the black locust gall midge (Obolodiplosis robiniae) (Haldeman, 1847) in the Włoszczowa-Jędrzejów Protected Landscape Area - research on strengthening and developing knowledge and awareness in environmental education

The prepared article by the team of authors aims to show research in the field of strengthening and developing knowledge and awareness from environmental education in the community of nature conservation services and the academic community. This paper is the result of research conducted in 2014–2015, in the Włoszczowa-Jędrzejów Protected Landscape Area, in the Świętokrzyskie Province. The material for the study was acacia robinia (Robinia pseudoacacia L.) leaves collected on two research areas, differentiated due to the influence of anthropogenic factors. As a result of the study, 5,000 black locust leaves were collected, 65% of which were found to be damaged. Research stands under the influence of strong anthropopressure were characterised by a higher number of lesions on leaves.

Stem embolism vulnerability curve depends on methods used: is there a fifth mechanism of cavitation?

A long-established ecological paradigm predicts a functional relationship determining vulnerability to cavitation: vulnerability increases with vessel hydraulic efficiency and vessel diameter. Even within a species, big vessels cavitate before small ones. Some centrifuge methods for measuring vulnerability are prone to artifacts due to nano-particles seeding early embolism, as the particles are drawn into vessels during measurements. Both the Sperry and Cochard rotors are prone to early cavitation due to nano-particles drawn into long and wide vessels in Robinia pseudoacacia and Quercus acutissima, whereas extraction centrifuge methods produce vulnerability curves more resistant to cavitation. Sufficient nano-particles pass through the stems to seed early embolism in all rotor designs. For several years, people have thought that early embolism is induced by nano-particles present in laboratory water. One new hypothesis is that the origin of nano-particles is from cut-open living cells but a much bigger study including many species is required to confirm this idea. This paper confirms the hypothesis in comparisons between short-vesselled Acer, and long-vesselled Robinia, and Quercus. Our new results and a review of old results justifies bigger study. Hypothetical nano-particles might explain why different methods for measuring vulnerability curves cause different T50 = tensions causing 50% loss of hydraulic conductivity. Hence the hypothesis for future research should be that the open-vessel artifact is consistent with 'long' vessels surrounded by cut open living cells.

Seed Germination and Seedling Growth of Robinia pseudoacacia Depending on the Origin of Different Geographic Provenances

Black locust (Robinia pseudoacacia) is recognised as a forest species of interest due to its multiple uses. The management of forest genetic resources and their efficient conservation suffer from variations in traits and start with seed germination. The aim of the current study was to investigate the germination of seeds obtained from plus trees selected in eight Romanian provenances, as well as to investigate the influence of the origin upon plants’ growth and development. Two experiments were undertaken to test seed germination: one treatment involved water-soaked seeds and heat/cold treatment, while the other treatment was based on sulphuric acid, at different concentrations (50, 70, 90%). The results were correlated with the morphological analysis of the seeds. Satu-Mare had the lowest germination rate within both treatments. Sulphuric acid did not improve seed germination as much as the heat treatment. The highest germination rate occurred for the water and temperature treatment on seeds from Bihor provenance (68.2%). The most distant provenance was Bihor, in inverse correlation with Bistrița Năsăud and grouped separately within the hierarchical dendrogram of cluster analysis based on the analysed parameters of the provenances investigated. The results demonstrated that the genotypes and environmental heterogeneity of the seed origin within the provenances may finally result in different performances.

Variation of phenotypic and physiological traits of Robinia pseudoacacia L. from 20 provenances

To select elite Robinia pseudoacacia L. germplasm resources for production, 13 phenotypes and three physiological indicators of 214 seedlings from 20 provenances were systematically evaluated and analyzed. The leaf phenotypic and physiological coefficients of variation among the genotypes ranged from 3.741% to 19.599% and from 8.260% to 42.363%, respectively. The Kentucky provenance had the largest coefficient of variation (18.541%). The average differentiation coefficients between and within provenances were 34.161% and 38.756%, respectively. These close percentages showed that R. pseudoacacia presented high genetic variation among and within provenances, which can be useful for assisted migration and breeding programs. Furthermore, based on the results of correlations, principal component analysis and cluster analysis, breeding improvements targeting R. pseudoacacia’s ornamental value, food value, and stress resistance of were performed. Forty and 30 excellent individuals, accounting for 18.692% and 14.019%, respectively, of the total resources. They were ultimately screened, after comprehensively taking into considering leaf phenotypic traits including compound leaf length, leaflet number and leaflet area and physiological characteristics including proline and soluble protein contents. These selected individuals could provide a base material for improved variety conservation and selection.

Modelling the artificial forest (<i>Robinia pseudoacacia</i> L.) root–soil water interactions in the Loess Plateau, China

Plant root–soil water interactions are fundamental to vegetation–water relationships. Soil water availability and distribution impact the temporal–spatial dynamics of roots and vice versa. In the Loess Plateau (LP) of China, where semi-arid and arid climates prevail and deep loess soil dominates, drying soil layers (DSLs) have been extensively reported in artificial forestland. While the underlying mechanisms that cause DSLs remain unclear, they hypothetically involve root–soil water interactions. Although available root growth models are weak with respect to simulating the rooting depth, this study addresses the hypothesis of the involvement of root–soil water interactions in DSLs using a root growth model that simulates both the dynamic rooting depth and fine-root distribution, coupled with soil water, based on cost–benefit optimization. Evaluation of field data from an artificial black locust (Robinia pseudoacacia L.) forest site in the southern LP positively proves the model's performance. Further, a long-term simulation, forced by a 50-year climatic data series with varying precipitation, was performed to examine the DSLs. The results demonstrate that incorporating the dynamic rooting depth into the current root growth models is necessary to reproduce soil drying processes. The simulations revealed that the upper boundary of the DSLs fluctuates strongly with infiltration events, whereas the lower boundary extends successively with increasing rooting depth. Most infiltration was intercepted by the top 2.0 m layer, which was the most active zone of infiltration and root water uptake. Below this, the percentages of fine roots (5.0 %) and water uptake (6.2 %) were small but caused a persistently negative water balance and consequent DSLs. Therefore, the proposed root–water interaction approach succeeded in revealing the intrinsic properties of DSLs; their persistent extension and the lack of an opportunity for recovery from the drying state may adversely affect the implementation of artificial afforestation in this region as well as in other regions with similar climates and soils.

Functional bread enreached with regional bioactive food additives

The scientific work presents materials of theoretical and experimental substantiation of the use of regional bioactive food additives, namely wild plants of the legume family (Fabaceae), permitted for use in the food industry: sweet clover (Melilotus officinalis), red meadow clover (Trifolium pratense), white acacia (Robinia pseudoacacia) in the production of functional foods [1]. Experimental studies of the safety indicators of food wild-growing plants (FWP) have been carried out. It was found that the studied FWP growing in ecologically clean areas of the North Ossetia-Alania are distinguished by a low mass fraction of toxic substances. Two fractions of cellulose were investigated: 1 - water-soluble (pectic acid, pectin, methylcellulose); 2 - water-insoluble (protopectin, cellulose, hemicellulose). The increased content of dietary fiber in WGP powders has been established, corresponding to the physiological norms of satisfying the daily requirement for FWP and, in this regard, indicating the expediency of using functional food in formulations for the prevention and treatment of diabetes mellitus, obesity, and atherosclerosis. The sorption capacity of WGP powders with respect to lead has been investigated. All studied powders of WGP modification products are characterized by high sorption capacity. The technologies of flour products with the addition of FWP powders have been developed. The results of clinical and preclinical studies of the developed functional bread show a corrective effect of glycemic blood parameters, as well as a decrease in the lead content in the blood of fed laboratory rat pups by almost two times, compared with the control.

Role of different types of protective forest stands in fodder productivity of rangeland in the Western Caspian region

Forest pastures with different tree crown cover were studied. The seasonal dynamics of the yield and nutritional value of grass and twig-leaf fodder of forest pasture was studied. The unsystematic use of pastures in arid territories has increased the process of degradation and has become one of the factors of depletion of their natural vegetation. The use of forest reclamation in the 70s and 90s on sandy lands and pastures in the Western Caspian region made it possible to create significant areas of forest pasture land with strip and massive stands of Ulmus pumila L. and Robinia pseudoacacia L. Different types of tree stands created on pastures not only improve the microclimate and form a comfortable environment for grazing animals, but also are an additional source of valuable twig feed. The aim of the research was to study forage productivity of forest pastures with different types of plantings on the sands of the Western Caspian region. The objects of the research were forest pastures with different species composition and tree crown cover. Studies on the forage productivity of forest-reclaimed pastures were conducted in 2018-2020 on the basis of the North Caucasus branch of Federal Scientific Centre of Agroecology, Complex Melioration and Protective Af-forestation of the Russian Academy of Sciences. The research was based on field experiments and laboratory analyses. According to the results of the study, forest-reclaimed pastures with unsystematic grazing had 1.52-fold increase in productivity compared to natural ones. The largest amount of twig-leaf feed was formed in broad-band Robinia stands in summer-autumn period. The total gross stock of natural pastures of the Western Caspian region did not exceed 0.30.4 t/ha of dry weight, the consumed stock was 0.20.3 t/ha. With the help of strip and massive plantings on degraded pasture lands, it is possible to increase significantly their productivity and quality with the achievement of 7 MJ of exchange energy and 0.260.29 feed units in 1 kg of elm and robinia twig-leaf feed during droughts.