Control of meadowsweet Filipendula ulmaria through a change of management from grazing to mowing at an English floodplain meadow.

Floodplain meadow grassland is a diverse habitat which has become increasingly rare throughout Europe. Meadowsweet Filipendula ulmaria, is a characteristic species of its plant community, however it can become overly dominant in the sward resulting in detrimental effects on the community as a whole. High abundance can reduce both the diversity of the sward, by shading out low growing species, and the quality of the hay crop. An eight-year management trial (2011-2019) was undertaken at Fancott Woods and Meadows SSSI by the BCN Wildlife Trust and the Floodplain Meadows Partnership, to test whether it was possible to reduce the dominance of meadowsweet through an annual hay cut with aftermath grazing instead of grazing management only, across three blocks of experimental treatments. A secondary aim of the trial was to investigate whether a change in management could also increase the plant-species diversity. Three plots were cut in June and then aftermath grazed, compared to three control plots that were only grazed from July onwards. The study found that cover of meadowsweet decreased from 55% to 6% under the annual cut and aftermath grazing treatment compared to a decrease from 58% to 35% in the control (grazed only) areas. This was accompanied by an increase in plant-species diversity in the cut areas compared to control plots. The study concluded that annual cutting can be used to control coarse and dominant meadowsweet effectively, and that cutting followed by aftermath grazing in a floodplain meadow delivers greater botanical diversity compared to grazing alone.

ORGANIC SUBSTANCE IN THE SOILS OF TRANSPORTATION AND RECREATION ZONES OF YAKUTSK

The content of organic matter in the Yakutsk city soils of the recreational zones (squares, park of culture and rest, floodplain meadow) and transport zones (lawns along major transport routes) was studied. It is shown that the urban soils of Yakutsk under green spaces are characterized by low potential fertility. They are poor in humus and are moderately supplied with alkaline hydrolysable nitrogen.

A monopodial rosette model of shoot formation as a program of secondary-aquatic grasses appearing

On the basis of comparative morphological analysis of the structure of life forms the concept “key biomorph” is offered; it is a mien of a plant which reflects adaptation to the conditions of a definite habitat (a static aspect, a model) and a definite stage in evolutional changes of biomorphs (a dynamical / evolutional aspect). The paper shows a comparative morphological range of key biomorphs in accordance with a monopodial rosette model of shoot formation per gradient of moisture increase in the direction: a floodplain meadow – shores, shore fronts – the water line – a water body. Polygonum bistorta is considered the original key biomorph, changes in it could occur in three lines: 1) Polygonum bistorta – Butomus umbellatus – Nuphar lutea; 2) Polygonum bistorta – Scirpus lacustris – Eleocharis palustris; 3) Polygonum bistorta – Limosella aquatica – Stratiotes aloides. It seems that appearing of secondary-aquatic grasses with a monopodial rosette model of shoot formation was provided by the following modes of morphological evolution: deviation on the shoot level; abbreviation of the bud stage in shoot formation, in forming a part of the shoot (inflorescence), in the anatomic structure of the shoot and the ontogenesis of the original plant; prolongation of the bud phase in shoot development and ontogenesis of the genet.

Ecotoxicity of Pore Water in Meadow Soils Affected by Historical Spills of Arsenic-Rich Tailings

This study was carried out in Złoty Stok, a historical centre of gold and arsenic mining. Two kinds of soil material, containing 5020 and 8000 mg/kg As, represented a floodplain meadow flooded in the past by tailings spills and a dry meadow developed on the plateau built of pure tailings, respectively. The effects of soil treatment with a cattle manure and mineral fertilizers were examined in an incubation experiment. Soil pore water was collected after 2, 7, 21, 90, and 270 days, using MacroRhizon samplers and analyzed on As concentrations and toxicity, and assessed in three bioassays: Microtox, the Microbial Assay for Risk Assessment (MARA), and Phytotox, with Sinapis alba as a test plant. In all samples, As concentrations were above 4.5 mg/L. Fertilization with manure caused an intensive release of As, and its concentration in pore water of floodplain soil reached 81.8 mg/L. Mineral fertilization caused a release of As only from the pure tailings soil. The results of bioassays, particularly of Phytotox and MARA, correlated well with As concentrations, while Microtox indices depended additionally on other factors. Very high toxicity was associated with As > 20 mg/L. Despite an effect of “aging”, pore water As remained at the level of several mg/L, causing a potential environmental risk.

Soil modification in a chronosequence of postagricultural ecosystems of the intrazonal lithogenic matrix (Arkhangelsk region, Russia)

Processes of soil self-restoration and soil modification in the chronosequence of postagricultural ecosystems located within the intrazonal (floodplain) soils of boreal forests were studied. Successional changes in ecological features of the floodplain meadow soil properties in the postagricultural period were considered. We used arable land plots (22 model fields) in the Northern Dvina River delta (Primorsky District, Arkhangelsk region, Northwestern Russia) that have been removed from agricultural practice for the past 50 years and are currently at the self-overgrowing stage. Primary/secondary floodplain meadows with natural floodplain soils were used as reference plots. Changes in soil profiles and chemical properties in an old-arable horizon were observed during the restoration of abandoned fields. Floodplain soils of the Northern Dvina River basin occupied 4.8% of the area. These soils were characterized by high fertility and were actively used in agricultural production in the past. Postagricultural ecosystems of the Northern Dvina River floodplain tended to form natural waterlogged soils to varying extents. Ecosystems were characterized by a short period of soil restoration. The soil restoration process was slower than the vegetation cover restoration process. Soil fertility of the arable horizon persisted for 20 years. A cost-effective return of floodplain meadow lands to agricultural production is feasible over a period of 40 years. Then, soils return to natural floodplain soils, whereby they become waterlogged and lose their fertility.

Protection of Rare Plant Species during the Development of Oil Fields in the South of Western Siberia (Tyumen Region, Russia)

The article provides a description of the vegetation and information on the discovery of plant species subject to protection, as revealed during the examination of the territory of licensed oil production sites located in the Uvatsky district of the Tyumen region (Western Siberia). The vegetation cover of the territory is represented by a combination of plots of dark-coniferous grass-shrub-green-moss forests, derivative communities in their place, pine-shrub-sphagnum marshes and floodplain meadow-shrub vegetation. The localities of 7 rare species subject to protection at the state and regional levels were discovered, including 2 species of lycopods (Isoetes lacustris, I. echinospora), 2 species of ferns (Dryopteris filix-mas, Phegopteris connectilis), 1 species of angiosperms (Nuphar pumila), mosses (Neckera pennata) and lichens (Lobaria pulmonaria). To preserve the discovered habitats of protected species, the necessary changes were made to the layout of the oil production facilities.