Botanicheskii Zhurnal

The structure of the ontogenetic composition and density of two coenopopulations (CP) of the herbaceous oligocarpic Dracocephalum nutans L. in steppe communities of Siberia has been studied in different years. A variety of ontogenetic spectra has been established: centered (CP 1 – 2004), bimodal (CP 1 – 2007), and left-sided (CP 2 – 2004, 2022). During the study period, the accumulation of individuals of the pregenerative period and old generative plants occurs in the ontogenetic spectrum of CP 1; in CP 2, while maintaining the share of pregenerative individuals, an increase in the share of young and mature generative ones is observed. In all CPs, the density has decreased by 2.8 and 3.6 times. The determining factors influencing the values of density and demographic indicators in CP 1 was pasture load; in CP 2 – an increase in the total projective coverage in the phytocoenosis to 100%, the participation of sod grasses, as well as a high content of dead grass and the use of the phytocoenosis in the spring period for pasture. The main limiting factor for both D. nutans CPs is weather conditions. The recovery of the CP depends on the amount of precipitation and the temperature regime of spring, early and late summer. Fluctuations in the values of demographic indicators and indicators of the rate of development evidence a stable state of the studied CPs.

Trimonoecy has been identified to occur in the perennial polycarpic herbaceous Galium rivale growing in the Moscow Region. Its trimonoecious state is described in detail here for the first time. The studies, performed during 2022–2024, were carried out applying generally accepted methods. Each individual was found to produce three types of flowers: bisexual, staminate, and pistillate. In staminate flowers, styles and stigmas were completely absent, while pistillate flowers lacked an androecium. Bisexual and staminate flowers were generally larger than pistillate flowers. Pollen grain size and pollen fertility did not differ significantly between bisexual and staminate flowers. Bisexual flowers formed on the shoots of the I–VII orders, pistillate flowers on the shoots of the IV–V orders, and staminate flowers on the shoots of the VI–VII orders of branching. In synflorescences, bisexual flowers predominated, representing up to 96% of all flowers, while pistillate and staminate flowers accounted for up to 2–3% and 1–2%, respectively. The few reports of trimonoecy available in the literature are mentioned and discussed here.

The pollen of grasses (Poaceae) is one of the main causes of pollinosis in summer worldwide. The pollen of all grass species belongs to the same palynomorphological type and is identified only to the family level during routine pollen analysis. The periods of pollen dispersion in different grass species overlap significantly, while the allergenic properties of different pollen may vary. In this paper, we attempted to detail the grass pollen curve obtained during aerobiological monitoring based on phenological observations. The calculation of the phenological index (a combination of data on the phenological state of the species, its pollen production, and abundance) was used as a basis method. The research was conducted in Ryazan from 2020 to 2022. It was shown that the application of the phenological index has several limitations, and the reasons for the disagreement between phenological and aerobiological data were analyzed. The discrepancies are determined primarily by the difference in the research methodology: the phenological index reflects flowering at specific sites, and pollen traps installed on the roofs of buildings provide insight into a regional pollen spectrum over a large area. The phenological index can be used to assess the contribution of different species to the aerobiological spectrum’s composition and determine the pollen dispersion sequence. In Ryazan, Festuca pratensis, Dactylis glomerata, and Phleum pratense should be considered the most dangerous species as the main cause of pollinosis in midsummer.

Astragalus ferdowsi-toosii is described and illustrated as a new species from Zarnikh Mountain, Khorassan-Kopet Dagh Floristic Province, Iran. Based on a number of morphological features, such as bifurcated hairs, free stipules, imparipinnate leaves, and missing bracteoles, the new species belongs to the Astragalus sect. Dissitiflori. Notes on its taxonomy, distribution, and ecology as well as evaluation of conservation status are provided.

The article presents the results of field studies in 2023–2024, and the revision of herbarium specimens collected on the territory of “Smolenskoye Poozerye” (Smolensk Lakeland) National Park (NP) in 2019–2022. The list of lichen flora of the Smolensk Region is expanded by 26 taxa: 22 species of lichens, namely Arthonia dispuncta, A. exilis, A. vinosa, Athallia cerinelloides, Bacidia friesiana, Bryoria nadvornikiana, Chaenotheca phaeocephala, Cladonia bacilliformis, C. cariosa, C. carneola, C. squamosa, Diarthonis spadicea, Haematomma ochroleucum, Lecanora intumescens, L. stanislai, Micarea laeta, Mycobilimbia carneoalbida, M. epixanthoides, Myriolecis persimilis, Physcia alnophila, Rinodina efflorescens, and Violella fucata; 1 species of allied saprotrophic fungus Peridiothelia fuliguncta; and 3 species of lichenicolous fungi, namely Epicladonia sandstedei, Lichenoconium erodens, Lichenopeltella ramalinae. Another 27 lichen species are reported for the first time for “Smolenskoye Poozerye” NP, and three species are provided with exact localities and substrates which were not specified before. Five lichen species are excluded from the lichen checklists of the NP, and two species are considered questionable.