Flower Abundance Research Articles

Marrubium Türlerinin Mersin Arıcılığındaki Yeri ve Önemi

Beekeeping; It is a livestock activity that uses bees and plants as a source of nectar, pollen and secretions. As a result of beekeeping activities; valuable bee products that can be used in many fields such as honey, pollen, royal jelly, bee bread, propolis and bee venom are produced. Beekeeping is an important activity that ensures the pollination of plants and the increase of fruit yield, as well as obtaining various bee products. This natural association established between bees and plants pollinated by bees is essential for the survival of the two living groups. Turkey has an important place in the world with its honey plant diversity. This wealth and geographical structure advantages have made Turkey a suitable area for beekeeping. Marrubium members of the Lamiaceae family, which are common in the Mediterranean region where beekeeping is intense, are; It is among the plants preferred in beekeeping due to its abundant flowers and abundant nectar. It is known that Marrubium species have a very important role in the vital activity of bees and some insect species. In this study, the place and importance of Marrubium species, which grow intensively on the foothills of the Taurus Mountains, in Mersin province beekeeping were examined. In the results of working; It was concluded that the plants of the genus Marrubium L. are considered very valuable by beekeepers in terms of honey potential and quality, and the plant density in high altitude areas is effective in the selection of the areas where the hives will be placed. As a result of field studies in the area, face-to-face interviews with beekeepers and examination of previous studies, 8 taxa, 5 of which are endemic, belonging to the genus Marrubium have been identified in Mersin.

Seasonal development of Philadelphus cultivars in the Mari El Republic

Species of the genus Philadelphus L. (mock orange) are among the most popular ornamental shrubs. They are valued for low maintenance, abundant flowering, exceptional aroma of flowers and a prolonged flowering period during high summer, by when many shrubs already fade. The results of phenological observations of 2018-2020 are presented in the article. The objects of the research were the plants of 8 cultivars of mock orange selected by N. K. Vekhov in the Botanical Garden-Institute of VSUT (Yoshkar-Ola, Mari El Republic). The vegetation of plants lasts from the beginning of May to the end of September and has a duration of 177-189 days.  The 'Airborne force' (Vozdushny desant) cultivar was characterized by the longest growing season.  The full leafing occurred in the first decade of June, the growth of scions ended in the first half of August. Flowering began in the third decade of June and lasted on average for 13-28 days. The cultivar 'Vosdushny Desant' has the earliest beginning of flowering, 'Arktika' has the latest one. The plants of 'Elbrus' were characterized by the longest flowering, 'Yunnat' – by the shortest one. There was no connection between the duration of flowering and the structure of flowers.

An Image of the Cosmos: Repetition and Temporality in Sciarrino’s Instrumental Sillabazione Scivolata

An Image of the Cosmos: Repetition and Temporality in Sciarrino’s Instrumental Sillabazione Scivolata Antares Boyle (bio) Introduction: Sillabazione Scivolata in Sciarrino’s String Music Salvatore sciarrino’s recent music is characterized by a special type of repetition in which brief, distinctive melodic figures are minutely and unpredictably varied across their many recurrences. Example 1 shows a family of utterances from String Quartet No. 8 (2008) that loosely resemble each other in rhythm, pitch, melodic contour, and dynamic shape. These statements have been aligned vertically in the figure, with the precise duration of each initial long glissando removed, in order to make the varied repetition visually apparent. The excerpts are typical of a style of writing that has come to dominate Sciarrino’s recent work, which the composer once termed sillabazione scivolata, or “gliding syllable articulation.”1 My analyses of three passages from the Quartet will demonstrate how the distinctive features of this style can shape temporal experience by creating a [End Page 129] dynamic tension between the immediacy of familiar gestures and more elusive long-range continuities. But first, a preliminary description of the sillabazione scivolata technique, its transferal from the vocal to the instrumental realm, and its implications for periodization and analysis of Sciarrino’s output will provide context and motivation for this analytical claim. Click for larger view View full resolution Example 1. A FAMILY OF UTTERANCES IN THE SILLABAZIONE SCIVOLATA STYLE, STRING QUARTET NO. 8, MM. 85–100 Sciarrino has said that sillabazione scivolata, originally conceived as a vocal style, imitates the rhythms and inflections of natural speech.2 It involves melodies performed by an individual voice or by multiple voices in unison or octaves. Although consecutive melodic statements may overlap somewhat, they are only rarely presented in harmony or counterpoint—Sciarrino has called the style “absolute monody.”3 Its identifying features are listed in Example 2. [End Page 130] Click for larger view View full resolution Example 2. FOUR ESSENTIAL FEATURES OF SILLABAZIONE SCIVOLATA The extensive varied repetitions of the style establish families of utterances such as those in Example 1, and these excerpts can be considered paradigmatic instances of the technique.4 Such families are often defined by the position of specific pitches within a recurring series of gestures—such as, in Example 1, the F♯4 and F4 that end the first and last glissando of each excerpt—rather than by intervallic consistency. Canonical post-tonal operations such as transposition and inversion seem to play little to no role in this music. Although scholars have described the style as “modular,” repeated gestures are not reordered entirely freely: complexes like those in Example 1 are defined by a basic series of event types, although recurrences are subject to variation.5 The sillabazione scivolata style was originally developed for the vocal parts in Sciarrino’s operas of the 1990s; the composer first used it in Perseo e Andromeda (1990) and perfected it in Luci mie traditrici (1996–98).6 He began to apply the technique to his string writing shortly thereafter. String Quartet No. 7 (1999)—the composer’s first full-length quartet—repurposes a significant amount of material from Luci mie traditrici, and might even be considered a kind of overture to the opera, although Sciarrino makes no mention of this in his program note.7 String Quartet No. 8, from which the three analytical examples in this article are drawn, is written in a similar style but without any clearly recycled material. However, because sillabazione scivolata generates particular kinds of musical gestures, which are then subject to extensive variation, the line between self-referentiality and new [End Page 131] composition (or between “content” and “style”) is blurred in these works. Quotation and allusion have always been part of Sciarrino’s aesthetic practice—his published output includes homages to artists ranging from Hoagy Carmichael to Mozart—and his recent sillabazione scivolata works might be variously interpreted as a new frontier in intertextuality, an abundant flowering of a highly distinctive style, a strategy for compositional efficiency (one that has taken Sciarrino’s oft-noted productivity to new levels), or some mixture of the above. The composer himself does...

Induction of CAM Photosynthesis in Hylotelephium triphyllum (Haw.) Holub (Crassulaceae) under Climatic Conditions of the European Northeast of Russia

Seasonal and diurnal changes in cell sap titratable acidity, the content of organic acids, and phosphoenolpyruvate (PEP) carboxylase activity in leaves of orpine (purple stonecrop) Hylotelephium triphyllum (Haw.) Holub were examined. During reproductive plant development, the cell sap acidity increased in morning hours in parallel with an increase in malate content and the activity of PEP-carboxylase increased in evenings on the background of the decreased malate concentration. These changes provide evidence for the transition from C3 photosynthesis to the crassulacean acid metabolism (CAM photosynthesis). The β-carboxylation of PEP was most pronounced at the phase of abundant flowering when the monthly average air temperature rose along with the decrease in water availability. The contribution of CAM photosynthesis to carbon balance and plant productivity was insignificant, as evidenced from discrimination of 13C isotope in the organic matter of leaves (δ13C of approximately –27‰) and other organs. These δ13C values are typical for the isotopic signature of C3 species. The functioning of CAM photosynthesis during flowering and fruiting periods protects the photosynthetic apparatus and promotes the reproductive potential of H. triphyllum plants inhabiting sandy loamy soils that easily lose moisture in the humid climate of the taiga zone of northeastern Europe.

Flower color digitizing and pigment distribution in garden pansy

The garden pansy (Viola × wittrockiana) is a large hybrid flower and most popular for its abundant flower colors. The flower colors of 12 pansy accessions were measured by using colorimeter and the pigments distribution within their petal cells were investigated. The result indicated a vast majority of the visual color of flower was consistent with the result surveyed by colorimeter in pansy. The pigments were mainly distributed in the upper and dorsal epidermal cells and most of them show the similar colors to those measured using colorimeter. The red pigment was found to be distributed in the visual blue petals and yellowish brown or khaki pigment in visual white petals. The results suggested the flower color of pansy can be objectively and accurately measured with colorimeter, and investigating pigment color and distribution in petals can help understanding pansy flower color better.

Features of seasonal rhythms of growth and development of species of the genus Rebutia K. Schum. (Cactaceae Juss. family) in a greenhouse

The article presents the results of studying the growth and development of 17 representatives of the genus Rebutia K. Schum. of Cactaceae Juss. Family (R. albipilosa F. Ritter., R. arenaceae (Cardenas) F. Ritter, R. cajasensis F. Ritter, R. donaldiana A.B. Lau & G.D. Rowley, R. flavistyla F. Ritter, R fiebrigii (Gurke) Britton & Rose ex L.H. Bailey, R. fulviseta Rausch, R. krainziana Kesselring, R. knizei (Rausch) Sida, R. kieslingii Rausch, R. marsoneri Werdermann, R. minuscula K. Schum., R. neocumingii (Backeb.) D.R. Hunt, R. pygmaea var. pectinata (Backeb.) Sida, R. senilis Backeb., R. tiraquensis Cardenas, R. xanthocarpa Backeb.) in the conditions of the Nikitsky Botanical Gardens’ greenhouse, and the influence of the microclimate on the seasonal rhythms of plant growth and development is evaluated. It is established that the studied representatives of the genus Rebutia go through all phases of seasonal development. The key values of the biological minimum of air temperatures for early - (+7,0–+8,0 °C), average (+13,0–+15,0 °C) and for late-growing (+20,0–+25,0 °C) of the species required for the onset of vegetation. The amounts of active air temperatures accumulated by the beginning of the phases of "vegetation" (from 335,2 to 1593,5 °C), "budding" (from 558,3 to 2285,0 °C), "flowering" (from 1067,8 to 2271,8 °C), "fruiting" (from 2374,8 to 3099,0 °C) are established. The following features of plant growth and development are revealed: for the transition of Rebutia species from the phenological phase "vegetation" occurring in the spring-summer period, to a state of physiological rest, which continues in the autumn-winter period, it is necessary to reduce the air temperature from +17,0–+28,0 °C to +6,0–+13,0 °C; humidity from 35,0-90,0 % to 32,0-65,0 %. Taking these measures will ensure a long and abundant flowering of Rebutia species at an air temperature from +15,0 to +40,0 °C, humidity from 43,0 to 95,0 % in a greenhouse.

Conservation of endangered and rare plants requires strategies additional to deer‐proof fencing for conservation of sub‐alpine plant diversity

AbstractQuestionsDeer‐proof fencing is an essential conservation tool to protect and recover plant species diversity in deer‐overbrowsed ecosystems, including species‐rich sub‐alpine grasslands. However, community‐level conservation tools (such as fencing) may be insufficient for single‐species conservation, particularly for non‐target endangered or rare species that are sparsely distributed. We examined whether fencing that can protect and recover total plant species richness also benefits non‐target endangered or rare species.LocationA sub‐alpine semi‐natural Kirigamine grassland in Nagano Prefecture, Japan.MethodsWe conducted two complementary plant surveys (typical vegetation survey using 1‐m2 sampling units and flowering survey using 150‐m2 sampling units) to account for scarce species. We examined the community‐level responses (species richness, flowering species richness, and flowering abundance) of all species and endangered or rare species and the species‐level responses (occurrence and flowering abundance) of each species to deer fences.ResultsFencing benefited not only the community‐level response of all species, but also that of endangered or rare species. As species‐level responses, about half of 43 endangered or rare species had greater flowering abundance inside the fences than outside, but only three of them showed a positive effect on their occurrence. These results suggest that once an endangered or rare species has disappeared, it may be difficult to recover.ConclusionsContinued placement of deer fences is necessary to protect community‐level plant species richness of sub‐alpine endangered and rare species in deer‐overbrowsed ecosystems. We also highlight the necessity of additional strategies focusing on non‐target individual species across broad areas outside fences.

Bee communities in restored prairies are structured by landscape and management, not local floral resources

Restored habitats require long-term management to maintain biodiversity and ensure ecosystem functions. Management strategies are often developed for plant communities, including through seeding and disturbance management, but these actions are taken with a focus on plant dynamics and with little knowledge of the effects on non-plant organisms. Wild bees are often expected to respond to such management actions via their effects on local floral resource availability, but management may also affect bees by altering survival and nesting independently of plant community responses. Working in restoration plantings within a large, actively managed tallgrass prairie preserve, we separated the effects of management and landscape context on bee community abundance and richness from the effects of these covariates on bees mediated through the abundance and richness of the local flowering plant community. We found that bees responded primarily to disturbance management (via bison) and the amount of prairie and forest habitat in the landscape, indicating that across landscapes with relatively abundant flowers and nest-sites, these landscape-level resources are more important than local floral resources for structuring bee communities. In contrast, floral communities responded to restoration age and prescribed burning. Because bees respond to different factors and at a different landscape scale than local plant communities, we conclude that management designed for plants is not sufficient for pollinators. Landscape level restoration may therefore require targeted habitat design and management to successfully restore functionally important animals.

Оценка декоративности насаждений

The issue of biodiversity and sustainability of tree and shrub plantations in large cities is relevant both in Russia and abroad. Their ornamentality is an indicator of adaptation and ability to fully perform their functions. It is relevant to create plantations, decorative throughout the calendar year. The research purpose is to develop a scale for assessing the ornamentality of plantations in urban conditions. This procedure is based on scoring the following characteristics of green spaces: sanitary state; decorative qualities of trunk and crown; characteristics of flowering (according to duration, abundance, color and size of flowers); characteristics of leafing (variety of summer and autumn colors, total duration of leafing). There are 5 most common types of plantations: single-breed arboreal; single-breed shrub; mixed wood; mixed shrub; and woodshrub groups, in which the research was carried out. A mixed group of blue spruce (Picea pungens Eng.), bird cherry (Padus racemosa Lam.) and Hungarian lilac (Syringe josikae Jacg.) has the highest degree of ornamentality in northern conditions (24.8 points). A single-breed plantation of common ninebark (Physocarpus opulifolius L.) has the least ornamentality score (13.1 points), which is due to its sanitary state. The total score depends not only on the species assortment, but also on the plantation sanitary state. The ornamentality score increases with distance from the road, which is due to the improvement in the sanitary state of trees and shrubs (22.8 points at a distance versus 21.4 points near the road). Among all the studied types of plantations in the cities of the Arkhangelsk agglomeration, 50 % have a high degree of ornamentality, 45 % – medium and 5 % – low. Single-breed plantations are generally less decorative than mixed (20.5 points versus 23.4 points). Urban plantations are more or less decorative throughout the entire calendar year. The proposed scheme of the procedure assumes an assessment of decorative effect during all seasons of the year. So, the following should be recorded: the beginning of the period of leafing and flowering in spring; the sanitary state, flowering (duration, abundance, color and size of flowers) in summer; the color scheme of the leaves, the total duration of leafing in autumn; the decorative qualities of trunk and crown (architectonics of crown, coloring of branches) in winter.

Non-rotational set-aside fields improve reproductive success of cavity-nesting bees and wasps at the landscape scale, but have no effect on other wild bees and hoverflies in mid-summer

Wild bees, hoverflies and wasps are valuable ecosystem service providers in agricultural systems through pollination and biological control, and their species richness, abundance and reproductive success well indicate ecosystem health. However, they are often limited by foraging and nesting resources that are major drivers behind their steep decline. Although agri-environmental measurements improve resources for these groups, their wider landscape-scale impacts are basically unknown. Here, we questioned whether 2–3 years old, sown set-aside fields could have a potential in enhancing pollinator and predatory wasp communities at the landscape scale in a Central European agroecosystem. We measured reproductive success and parasitism of cavity-nesting bees and wasps by trapnests throughout the vegetation period, and sampled bee and hoverfly communities by colored pan traps in mid-summer, comparing landscapes with and without set-aside fields. We measured the effects of increasing distance from set-aside fields, the effects of share of different habitats and flower resources, and the effects of increasing set-aside field percentage area at landscape scale. The landscape scale effects of set-aside fields varied among taxa and/or at different time scales. Reproductive success of cavity-nesting bees and wasps was positively related to the presence of set-aside fields in the landscape and together with the number of cavity-nesting bee and wasp genera increased with the proportion of set-aside fields. Species richness or abundance of bees or hoverflies showed no difference between landscape plots with or without set-aside fields in the mid-summer period according to the pan trap samples, and flower abundance and distance from the set-aside fields had only a limited effect. Set-aside fields had no effect on either the most abundant wild bee species or on composition of species of intermediate abundance. Our results suggest that reproductive success of cavity-nesting bees and wasps can be enhanced by additional flower resources and nesting habitats through set-aside fields at the landscape scale. Other wild bees and hoverflies can be less sensitive to the presence of set-aside fields according to our results that might need different conservation approaches. But this might also suggest that such landscape-scale benefits of set-aside field management might be measureable only with samplings covering the whole vegetation period. We argue that well-defined measures specific to spatial scale and target groups are mandatory and should be adapted to the different histories and local contexts of agricultural landscapes in Europe to strengthen ecosystem service provider insects and have the highest benefit for agricultural production.

Increased Flower Production of Calibrachoa x hybrida by the Soil Fungus Mortierella elongata1

Abstract Calibrachoa (Calibrachoa x hybrida) is a highly valued solanaceous flowering ornamental plant, characterized by its drought-hardiness, abundant flowering, and diverse flower colors. Recently, the saprobic soil fungus Mortierella elongata was isolated as a root endophyte from eastern cottonwood (Populus deltoides) and identified as a potential biological amendment for bioenergy and food crops. Two greenhouse experiments were conducted by transplanting rooted cuttings of Calibrachoa cv. ‘Kabloom Deep Blue' into a potting media mixture amended with 1 or 2% volume mix ratio of millet seed colonized with one of four isolates of M. elongata. Plants were assessed weekly for flower production and 86 days post inoculation for leaf/stem, root, and total dry weight. M. elongata strain 624- significantly increased flower production compared to the non-inoculated millet seed controls at 6 and 7 wk post amendment in both experiments. Above and below ground vegetative dry weight for plants grown in potting media mixture amended with M. elongata isolates varied across isolates, fungal amendment concentrations, and experiments. Our results suggest that potting media mixture amended with M. elongata strain 624- can increase flower production of Calibrachoa during peak marketable periods. Index words: Calibrachoa, plant growth promotion, plant reproduction, biological amendment. Species used in this study: Calibrachoa (Calibrachoa x hybrida); Mortierella elongata Linnem.

Оценка перспективности интродукции каштана конского обыкновенного (Aesculus hippocastanum L.) в условиях г. Вологды

The increase in the number of cities of modern Russia makes new demands to the organization of green spaces. Important species able to withstand high anthropogenic load while maintaining its decorative qualities. In the landscaping of the Northern cities occupy a special place plants, which are exotic in appearance and usually have a high resistance to the built environment. One such species is the Aesculus hippocastanum L. In a comprehensive assessment of this species in urban conditions of the city of Vologda were made assessment of the prospects for further introduction it in the European North. The Aesculus hippocastanum L. is a full cycle of seasonal development. Beginning of the vegetation observed in the first decade of may. In the third decade of may — first decade of June it is observed abundant flowering annual. In the city of Vologda, Aesculus hippocastanum L. is a moderately frosted over (not more than 30 % of the length of annual shoots). Mostly, the frosting is due to the fact that the plant finishes late in the growing season and at the onset of negative temperatures do not have time to travelnet shoots. The species produces viable seeds of high quality. Laboratory seed germination is 64 %, while above ground the germination — 92 %. This allows germination to seed reproduction of better adapted individuals in subsequent generations. The degree of decoration of Aesculus hippocastanum L. high. The flowers form large racemes, which stand on the branches vertically upwards and exude a pleasant aroma. The fruit also have an attractive look. The vital condition is assessed as healthy in 73 % of the trees. The range of indicators the promise of the Aesculus hippocastanum L. is estimated at 78 points, which characterizes it as a kind of perspective.

Reducing Flower Competition for Assimilates by Half Results in Higher Yield of Fagopyrum esculentum.

Despite abundant flowering throughout the season, common buckwheat develops a very low number of kernels probably due to competition for assimilates. We hypothesized that plants with a shorter flowering period may give a higher seed yield. To verify the hypothesis, we studied nutrient stress in vitro and in planta and analyzed different embryological and yield parameters, including hormone profile in the flowers. In vitro cultivated flowers on media with strongly reduced nutrient content demonstrated a drastic increase in degenerated embryo sacs. In in planta experiments, where 50% or 75% of flowers or all lateral ramifications were removed, the reduction of the flower competition by half turned out to be the most promising treatment for improving yield. This treatment increased the frequency of properly developed embryo sacs, the average number of mature seeds per plant, and their mass. Strong seed compensation under 50% inflorescence removal could result from increased production of salicylic and jasmonic acid that both favor more effective pollinator attraction. Plants in single-shoot cultivation finished their vegetation earlier, and they demonstrated greater single seed mass per plant than in control. This result suggests that plants of common buckwheat with shorter blooming period could deliver higher seed yield.

Features of the use of cultivars of the genus Canna L. in landscape construction of cities in Udmurtia

A striking element in the floral design of green spaces is Canna×generalis. One of the reasons for the low prevalence of this crop is the complexity of preserving planting material and its high cost. To solve the problem of preservation of Canna×generalis rhizomes grown in the Middle Urals, studies were conducted with the storage of large rhizomes (bud diameter from 2.6 cm to 4 cm) and small fractions (bud diameter from 1.0 cm to 2.5 cm) in various ways - open (air-dry) and in sand. The analysis of amylase activity, starch and sugar content at the beginning and end of the rhizome storage period, and the number of sprouted buds at the end of the storage period was performed. Open storage of C.×generalis rhizomes was found to be the optimal storage method, which was evaluated by a total of 24 points. During this storage, there was a high activity of awakening the buds before planting in the ground (more than 50%) and getting a more even seedling. This storage method is suitable for small-flowered tall cultivars of C.×generalis that form large rhizomes. Large-flowered C.×generalis must be stored with a lump of earth, since their rhizomes do not have large reserves of starch and dry up when stored in an air-dry way. Of the 9 cultivars of C.×generalis studied in the collection of the Department of introduction and acclimatization of plants, in the conditions of the Middle Urals, 4 cultivars have proved themselves well: 'Diamond’ ‘' Rosemond Coyles’ ‘ 'Richard Wallens’,' Red king Humbert’ and the old small-flowered and tall sample ' Yunnatsky’, which have an annual abundant and long flowering. As a result of the monitoring of flower design in the cities of Udmurtia, it was found that C.×generalis is more widely used in the city of Sarapul, less often in Izhevsk, and in Glazov and Votkinsk it is not used.

Introduction research of Iris species in the Stavropol botanical garden

In the process of plant introduction, the main task is to study the features of their biology and ecology, and as a result, their adaptive capabilities in specific climatic conditions. In nature, species of iris ( Iris L.) are widely distributed from the Northern regions to the subtropics and have a great ecological plasticity. In the conditions of the Stavropol upland, it is possible to successfully grow representatives of the genus iris from different parts of its range. The collection of irises in the Stavropol Botanical garden has 19 species. Species of Iris furcata, I. notha, and I. pumila that are common in grass-turf and meadow steppes, and I. pseudonotha that are common in wet meadows, have a stability in the conditions of culture, and they have an annual abundant flowering and fruiting. The timing of the beginning of generative phases of I. pumila development in culture and natural populations of the Stavropol upland varies within 5-7 days. In comparison with other species of local flora in the collection I. pseudonotha is most susceptible to diseases, for species I. halophila flowering is not observed every year. Some of the species in the collection are of Far Eastern Asian origin: I. domestica, I. ensata, I. lactea, I. laevigata, I. oxypetala, I. sanguinea and North American - I. versicolor. Among them, I. domestica shows the least frost and drought resistance, the flowering of the species occurs during the hottest period - the third decade of July, however, in some years, high seed productivity was observed for the species. Irregular flowering in the I-II decade of May was observed for I. lactea and I. oxypetala. The species I. ensata blooms in early June, a month earlier than in natural populations. Most of the Iris species in the collection are stable, and to a lesser extent adaptive potential is shown by species with a narrow ecological and phytocenotic affiliation - I. domestica, I. scariosa, I. halophila, and I. lactea . Species I. pseudonotha, I. domestica, and I. graminea do not reach their natural values in terms of habitus.

Field Performance of Backcross (BC1) Blueberry Hybrids of Vaccinium padifolium (Section Hemimyrtillus) with V. corymbosum/V. angustifolium

There is ongoing interest in transferring new characteristics into commercial blueberry from other blueberry species. Vaccinium padifolium is a species distantly related to commercial blueberry that has traits of notable value to conventional blueberry development. Among these traits are upright structure, strong growth, abundant flowering and fruiting, superior self-fertility, fruit-cluster structure suited to mechanical harvesting, and repeat/continuous flowering. Previously produced F1 hybrids of V. padifolium × V. corymbosum were used in crosses with a variety of conventional blueberry selections to generate 13 backcross (BC1) families. The backcross families were evaluated under field conditions to determine their performance and to guide further use of this germplasm. The offspring varied considerably, but most families produced several individuals of acceptable commercial quality. The recovery of V. padifolium characteristics varied. Many plants bore evidence of V. padifolium plant structure, but none showed indications thus far of continuous or repeat flowering. The best selections from these families have been saved and will be intermated to generate the next cycle of this material. These clones will also be crossed to hybrid combinations of V. arctostaphylos and V. cylindraceum to further diversify and recombine this germplasm.

Differential effects of fertilisers on pollination and parasitoid interaction networks

Grassland fertilisation drives non-random plant loss resulting in areas dominated by perennial grass species. How these changes cascade through linked trophic levels, however, is not well understood. We studied how grassland fertilisation propagates change through the plant assemblage into the plant-flower-visitor, plant-leaf miner and leaf miner-parasitoid networks using a year's data collection from a long-term grassland fertiliser application experiment. Our experiment had three fertiliser treatments each applied to replicate plots 15m2 in size: mineral fertiliser, farmyard manure, and mineral fertiliser and farmyard manure combined, along with a control of no fertiliser. The combined treatment had the most significant impact, and both plant species richness and floral abundance decreased with the addition of fertiliser. While insect species richness was unaffected by fertiliser treatment, fertilised plots had a significantly higher abundance of leaf miners and parasitoids and a significantly lower abundance of bumblebees. The plant-flower-visitor and plant-herbivore networks showed higher values of vulnerability and lower modularity with fertiliser addition, while leaf miner-parasitoid networks showed a rise in generality. The different groups of insects were impacted by fertilisers to varying degrees: while the effect on abundance was the highest for leaf miners, the vulnerability and modularity of flower-visitor networks was the most affected. The impact on the abundance of leaf miners was positive and three times higher than the impact on parasitoids, and the impact on bumblebee abundance was negative and double the magnitude of impact on flower abundance. Overall, our results show that while insect species richness was unaffected by fertilisers, network structure changed significantly as the replacement of forbs by grasses resulted in changes in relative abundance across trophic levels, with the direction of change depending on the type of network. Synthesis. By studying multiple networks simultaneously, we were able to rank the relative impact of habitat change on the different groups of species within the community. This provided a more holistic picture of the impact of agricultural intensification and provides useful information when deciding on priorities for mitigation.

Pollen transfer networks reveal alien species as main heterospecific pollen donors with fitness consequences for natives

Abstract The ecological dynamics of co‐flowering communities are largely mediated by pollinators. However, current understanding of pollinator‐mediated interactions primarily relies on how co‐flowering plants influence attraction of shared pollinators, and much less is known about plant–plant interactions that occur via heterospecific pollen (HP) transfer. Invaded communities in particular can be highly affected by the transfer of alien pollen, but the strength, drivers and fitness consequences of these interactions at a community scale are not well understood. Here we analyse HP transfer networks in nine coastal communities in the Yucatan Mexico that vary in the relative abundance of invasive flowers to evaluate how HP donation and receipt varies between native and alien plants. We further evaluate whether HP donation and receipt are mediated by floral traits (e.g. display, flower size) or pollinator visitation rate. Finally, we evaluated whether post‐pollination success (proportion of pollen tubes produced) was affected by alien HP receipt and whether the effect varied between native and alien recipients. HP transfer networks exhibit relatively high connectance (c. 15%), suggesting high HP transfer within the studied communities. Significant network nestedness further suggests the existence of species that predominantly act as HP donors or recipients in the community. Species‐level analyses showed that natives receive 80% more HP compared to alien species, and that alien plants donate 40% more HP than natives. HP receipt and donation were mediated by different floral traits and such effects were independent of plant origin (native or alien). The proportion of alien HP received significantly affected conspecific pollen tube success in natives, but not that of alien species. Synthesis. Our results suggest that HP transfer in invaded communities is widespread, and that native and alien species play different roles within HP transfer networks, which are mediated by a different suite of floral traits. Alien species, in particular, play a central role as HP donors and are more tolerant to HP receipt than natives—a finding that points to two overlooked mechanisms facilitating alien plant invasion and success within native co‐flowering communities.

Floral traits are associated with the quality but not quantity of heterospecific stigmatic pollen loads

BackgroundIn flowering communities, plant species commonly share pollinators and therefore plant individuals receive heterospecific pollen (HP). However, the patterns of HP transfers can deviate from patterns of plant-pollinator visitations. Although flower-visitor interactions are known to be mediated by floral traits, e.g. floral size or nectar tube depth, the explanatory power of these traits for HP transfer patterns remains elusive. Here, we have explored pollen transfer patterns at three sites in Southern Germany on three dates (early, mid and late summer). At the plant level, we tested whether flower abundance and floral traits are correlated with HP reception and donation. At the community level, we determined whether flower and bee diversity are correlated with network modularity and whether floral traits explain the module affiliation of plant species. We collected the stigmas of flowering plant species, analysed HP and conspecific pollen (CP) loads and measured floral traits, flower and bee diversity.ResultsOur results show that the degree and intensity of HP reception or donation at the plant level do not correlate with floral traits, whereas at the community level, the module affiliation of who is sharing pollen with whom is well-explained by floral traits. Additionally, variation in network modularity between communities is better explained by plant diversity and abundance than by bee diversity and abundance.ConclusionsOverall, our results indicate that floral traits that are known to mediate flower-visitor interactions can improve our understanding of qualitative HP transfer but only provide limited information about the quantity of HP transfer, which more probably depends on other floral traits, flower-visitor identity or community properties.

Assessment of decorative features of representatives of the genus narcissus l. in the South-Ural botanical garden-institute of UFRC RAS

The article presents the results of the primary introduction study of nine new varieties of the genus Narcissus L. (‘Apricot Whirl’, ‘Candy Princess’, ‘Green Eyes’, ‘Mon Cheri’, ‘Peach Cobbler’, ‘Slim Whitman’, ‘Sunlover’, ‘Sunny Girlfriend’, ‘Sunny Side Up’) on the basis of the South-Ural Botanical Garden-Institute of Ufa Federal Research Centre of Russian Academy of Sciences. It is shown that more than half of these cultivars from the SUBGI UFRC RAS collection are represented by plants registered in the last century. According to the international classification, introduced species were assigned to four groups. The maximum number of varieties is presented in groups: large-crowned narcissus and narcissus with a split crown. It was revealed that in two years of study, all cultivars reached the flowering phase. The main biomorphological parameters of introduced varieties (plant height, leaf length and width, flower diameter, length and width of the crown and perianth lobes) were studied. It has been determined that most varieties are characterized by a two-tone color and an average flower size. Phenological observations were carried out. It was revealed that spring regrowth in all studied varieties is observed aft er snow melt in the second decade of April. By the timing of flowering, cultivars are divided into early (flowering in the III decade of April) and early middle (flowering in the I decade of May). The duration of the flowering phase varied on average from 6 to 12 days. The decorative qualities of the studied varieties have been investigated. On a 100-point scale, five cultivars scored over 90 points (‘Mon Cheri’, ‘Sunlover’, ‘Candy Princess’, ‘Apricot Whirl’, ‘Sunny Side Up’). They have large and beautifully shaped flowers, with a clean bright color of the perianth and crown, strong and tall peduncles, long and abundant flowering, pleasant aroma. These varieties are the most promising for inclusion in the zonal assortment of cultivated plants recommended for use in green building in the Republic of Bashkortostan.