Comprehensive assessment of the adaptive capability of representatives of the genus Quercus under arid climate

Abstract

Woody plants that are promising for agroforestry and protective afforestation in the arid zone are increasingly exposed to the strongest abiotic factors, such as drought and high soil salinity. This influence leads to the weakening or death of woody plants, both native and introduced species. Based on a comprehensive assessment of the adaptive capacity, the pigment system of woody plants changes depending on the species specificity and the intensity of the impact of abiotic factors. Representatives of the genus Oak are widely distributed in the sparsely forested region of the dry steppes of the Volgograd region. In this regard, the aim of the work was to conduct a comprehensive assessment of the adaptive ability of representatives of the Oak genus and to identify the relationship between the integral indicators of the success of introduction and the content of photosynthetic pigments in an arid climate. For the study were selected: two forms of pedunculate oak - sprawling and pyramidal and red oak. Conducting a comprehensive assessment of the success of adaptation showed that the introduced red oak has a good adaptive ability to arid conditions, while the forms of English oak, being aborigines, showed excellent results. The study of the content of pigments of the photosynthetic system made it possible to determine that in two forms of pedunculate oak, the content of pigments is 2-4 times higher than in the introduced red oak (p<0.05). It can be concluded that abiotic factors affect the content of pigments and, in general, the adaptive capacity of woody plants in arid climates. The study made it possible to reveal the existence of a relationship between the adaptive capacity and the content of pigments of the photosynthetic system in representatives of the Oak genus, which are promising introducers of arid territories for solving the problems of agroforestry and protective afforestation.