Living ground cover dynamics at initial stages of forest crops formation in middle taiga subzone

Abstract

The growth of artificial origin stands in the clear-cut areas of the taiga zone is closely related to the development of herbaceous vegetation. The aim of the study was to study the dynamics of the species composition and structure of the ground cover of forest plantations at the early stages of formation in the conditions of the middle taiga subzone, as well as to identify the most competitive species in terms of phytocenotic activity. In the course of field studies, the taxonomic composition and ecological and coenotic structure of the living ground cover of experimental pine and spruce crops of the 1st and 2nd age classes were determined, depending on the tillage with plows PLP-135 and PLD-1.2. Species abundance ranges from 32 to 39 species in crops aged 15 years, and from 16 to 36 species in crops aged 23 years. The typological structure of the plant community naturally changes over time. The similarity coefficients for the composition of families in 15-year-old crops vary from 0,48 to 0,89 depending on tillage. Plant communities of forest crops with soil cultivation with the PLP-135 plow and reconstruction of deciduous young growth are the closest to each other in terms of family composition (R = 0,89). Plant communities of the ground cover of forest crops with tillage with the PLD-1.2 plow differ in family composition (0,48…0,58). As a result of phytocenotic analysis, we came to the conclusion that the structure of the ground cover of forest plantations naturally changes over time: the group of highly active species of the ground cover is quite numerous in 15-year-old crops and includes 15 species (33 % of the species composition of the flora). In 23-year-old forest plantations, only four species from the group of highly active plants were identified.