TAXONOMIC COMPOSITION AND STRUCTURE OF PLANTATIONS OF DENDROLOGICAL PARK OF BEREZNOVSKY FOREST COLLEGE

Abstract

Amid rapid climate changes, which are occurring in our planet, biodiversity
protection, especially in critical natural geographic regions, is gaining relevance.
In 2011 at the Ukrainian Polissya it was started extremely important for the
preservation of the environment of this region project "Enabling Climate Change
in the management of vulnerable ecosystems, natural protected areas of
Polissya, Ukraine".
One of the greatest centres of preservation and distribution of exotic
species of woody plants among dendrological parks of Ukrainian Polissya is a
dendrological park of Bereznovsky Forest College. This object is situated in
Rivne region, where as of 01.01.2015 there are 14 parks attractions of landscape
art, a zoo, but botanical gardens is no, so to explore and enrich of dendroflora of
Rivne region the research dendrological park is an important scientific and
educational base of preservation of wood plants.
The aim of the study was a retrospective analysis of the taxonomic
composition of its plantations, analysis of the their distribution of species
composition for systematic position, life forms, age and geographical origin.
According to the results of a retrospective analysis of the history of the
development of dendrological park of Bereznovsky Forest College, it was found
that planting of trees began in 1979 on an area of about 29.5 hectares according
to project by a group of specialists of Lviv Forestry Institute. Before this for 15
years, students and teachers college had been growing the planting material for
the park, but most exotic species was obtained primarily from seeds that came
from 88 botanical gardens and dendrological parks of USSR and 11 foreign

countries. In addition, some collections (Salix L., Populus L., and others) were
obtained from cuttings taken from old specimens in various botanical gardens of
Ukraine. Thus it was created a collection of woody plants, which included in 1533
taxa at species.
Analysis the results of the inventory years 1986-2013 revealed that during
the development of the park in the taxonomic composition of its plantations were
significant negative changes. Number of taxa at species fell by more than three
times - 511 taxa remained and they are belong to 95 genera and 32 families.
The reason for the quantitative reduction of the taxonomic composition of
plantations can be complex factors of natural and anthropogenic, that results in
reduction of resistance of woody plants, especially their cultivars to pathogens
and insects which common in the park plantations.
In a systematic structure of plantations of researched park the largest by
the number of families is the family Rosaceae Juss. (21%). The leading
collections are the Betula L., Salix L., Spiraea L. and others which include 30-38
taxa at the species. In the plantations dominated specimens of trees are that
were planted at the beginning of laying the park and which is now 30 to 50
years. In the park most species of trees are exotic species, a significant
proportion of which comes from North America (23%), Western Europe (16%)
and China (12%). The eight species of woody plants listed in the Red Book of
Ukraine is growing in the park: Betula obscura Kotula, Taxus baccata L., Pinus
cembra L., Fraxinus ornus L., Quercus cerris L., Syringa josikaea J.Jacq. ex
Rchb., Staphylea pinnata L. and Larix × polonica Racib.
At the present stage of the researched Arboretum there needs for
comprehensive monitoring of plantations, identifying the causes of degradation of quantitative and qualitative composition, developing of recommendations for
effective conservation of rare and exotic specimens of trees of the park, the
identification and use of resistant species for planting in terms of Polissya.