Methodological Approaches in Population Botany and Plant Ecology

Abstract

In the article presents a new Concept “Polycentric Model of Plant” in addition to the generally accepted in botany Concept “Morphologic Model of Plant”. The basis of the development is laid by my many years of experience in conducting a population study of plants from different categories of the life form in different regions. Concept “Polycentric Model of Plant” allows a new structure of the body of the plant. Elements of the model are not organs, but functional centers: Shoot-formation center, Mineral-nutrition center, Organic-nutrition center, Generation center. Metric characteristics of each of these centers are indicators by which the researcher can simulate the direction of development of the plant population system in each of surveyed habitats. Presented new methodological approaches to solving pressing environmental problems within Population Botany and Plant Ecology, developed on the basis of Concept “Polycentric Model of Plant”. These are: 1) Universal Scale of Vegetation Elements and Diagnostic Key for determining Vegetation Elements by a set of metric indicators of the most developed hypothetical individual of species in the composition of the plant community was developed; 2) Formula for calculate Coefficient Digression of Steppe Vegetation; 3) Scale of Digression Steppe Vegetation and Diagnostic Key to determining 5 stages on this scale; 4) Hypothetical Lifecycle of Plant from the category of life forms “Shrub” and Diagnostic Key to determining 7 stages in this cycle; 5) Diagnostic Key for structuring Plant Population System from the category of life forms “Stoloniferous” by Morph-function groups. Presented also: 1) Elements in “Polycentric Model of Plant”, the functional role and the likely participation of one or another element in the formation of the product of vegetative and generative reproductions; 2) Hypothetical Lifecycle of Plant from categories of life forms “Terrestrial-stoloniferous” and “Soboliferous shrub” by example Potentilla anserina L. and Amygdalus nana L. (Rosaceae); 3) the complete set of Morph-functional groups of individuals as part of a plant population system, the functional role of each group and the likelihood of an individual falling into each group in Hypothetical Lifecycle of Plant from the category of life forms “Stoloniferous”; 4) results of a 3-year experiment with P. anserina, which reflecting population response to the climatic factor and the different of individual disposition presented in Concept “Polycentric Model of Plant”; 5) basic principles of plants population research and points of research on which it is expedient to involve gifted children.