Assessment of the species diversity of vegetation growing on the territories of linear infrastructure facilities in Central Russia

Abstract

When form protective forest stands along linear infrastructure facilities, the problem of subsequent spontaneous reproduction of trees and shrubs arises, littering the territories of the above facilities and creating a threat to the safety of their operation. Works on cleaning the territories of infrastructure facilities from unwanted tree and shrub vegetation are often organized without a sufficiently clear idea of the characteristics of the said vegetation to be removed, which negatively affects the quality of the performance of these works.The purpose of the research is to determine the species composition of undesirable plant communities that form on the territories of linear infrastructure facilities in order to increase the efficiency of their removal and draw up recommendations for the proper maintenance of these territories. It was revealed that most types of undesirable vegetation growing on the territories of linear infrastructure facilities in the Central part of Russia belong to Magnoliophyta (flowering, about 97 %) and Pinophyta (gymnosperms, about 3 %).It was revealed that most types of undesirable vegetation growing on the territories of linear infrastructure facilities in the Central part of Russia belong to Magnoliophyta (flowering, about 97 %) and Pinophyta (gymnosperms, about 3 %). About 54 % of the protection zones of power lines and right of way of roads, as well as about 33 % of the right of way of railways in the Central part of Russia have a similar species composition of unwanted vegetation, however, the maximum similarity is not ensured by the location of sections of infrastructure facilities in close proximity to each other. For the protection zones of power lines, it is possible to determine the species composition of growing undesirable vegetation in one of these areas, followed by dissemination of the results of the study to another nearby area. For railroad right of way, such dissemination of the study results is inappropriate. In fact, on each of the sections of the right of way of roads and railways, as well as the routes of power transmission lines in Central Russia, such types of unwanted vegetation grow as ash-leaved maple (Acer negundo L., with a share of participation in the studied plant communities from 6.3 % to 98.1 %) and smooth elm (Ulmus laevis Pall, with a share of 1.1 % to 41.1 %). Among the types of unwanted trees and shrubs most expected to grow in these territories, about 36 % are prone to their renewal by stump growth, about 42 % – by root offspring, about 22 % – by other means. To increase the efficiency of removing unwanted vegetation in order to properly maintain the territories of infrastructure facilities, it is recommended to apply methods and methods that provide for either mechanical removal of the specified vegetation along with its roots (for example, its uprooting), or a combined effect on it: removal of above-ground parts of vegetation in the fall with a mandatory subsequent spring herbicide treatment of emerging young stumps and root offspring.