Spontaneous flora of the Rila Monastery (Bulgaria)

Abstract

The spontaneous flora of the largest and most popular Rila Monastery, symbol of Bulgaria, included in the UNESCO World Heritage list was investigated during 2008–2012. The objectives of the study were to explore species composition and to characterize the plants spontaneously spread in the inner court of the monastery. The total number of the found vascular plants is 110 species from 43 families and 94 genera. The analysed group included predominantly native species, perennial plants – hemicryptophytes (61 species; 58.65%). The most common species were classified into three groups: (1) species, typical for the rocks flora; (2) common species with wide ecological amplitude and high colonization possibilities; and (3) species, typical for the flora surrounding the monastery. Frequently found species were Sclerochloa dura, Poa annua, Polygonum aviculare, Plantago major, Trifolium repens, Agrostis capillaris, Geum urbanum and Stellaria media. The distribution of the species is a result of specific ecological conditions, such as soil moisture and quantity, lightening of the site area during the day, exposition and intensity of use. The anemochoric woody species (Acer pseudoplatanus, Acer heldreichii, Fraxinus excelsior, and Ulmus glabra) found in the court as seedlings were also observed on the walls and roof of the Hrelyo's Tower, which can cause severe damage to the buildings and problems for the conservation of the archaeological monuments.