Change in species composition of vegetation on various-aged set-aside lands of the Volga Delta

Abstract

The object of the present research is set-aside lands of various ages. The study was aimed to identify the main biological groups of weed growing on set-aside lands of the Volga Delta, which were removed from production in different years. Within the study, species composition of set-aside lands’ vegetation was defined, which amounted to 28 species and 16 families. The plant community of set-aside lands includes such large families as Asteraceae (5 species), Poaceae (4 species), Brassicaceae (3 species). It was observed that quantitative species composition of set-aside lands’ flora has been changing depending on its age: the older a set-aside land is, the less species grow there. In spring and summer seasons, ephemeral, annual and biennial weeds prevailed, while in autumn perennial plants did: the latter were estimated of 75-80%, their wet weight amounted up to 70-92% of total weight due to the plentiful growth and development of a perennial rhizome plant named Phragmites australis (Cav.) Trin. ex Steudel. The research has lasted for 10 years and allowed observing a 14-32% increase in a number of plants belonging to a xerophyte group on longstanding set-aside lands with low level of soil moisture. Agro-ecosystems of various-aged set-aside lands hosted the development of flora having different vegetative weight that is capable of accumulating solar energy. Significant amount of accumulated energy reduced the entropy of the environment and improved its ecological state. On an old-aged set-aside land, corps of perennial plants vegetating for a long time have been maximally accumulating energy and gained 25712.42 MJ/ha.