Peculiarities of the development of certain bulbous species under the climatic conditions of the steppe zone of Ukraine (a case study of Kryvorizhzhia)
Year: 2025
Type: article
Abstract: The ecological and biological development characteristics of species from the families Asparagaceae (Camassia leichtlinii, Hyacinthoides hispanica, Muscari heldreichii, Scilla litardieri, S. sardensis), Iridaceae (Crocus tauricus, C. tommasinianus, Juno bucharica), and Liliaceae (Tulipa neustruevae, T. turkestanica, T. urumiensis) were studied under the climatic conditions of the steppe zone of Ukraine, using Krуvorіzhzhiа as a model area. The research was based on the living collections of the Kryvyi Rih Botanical Garden of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine. The climatic conditions are typical of the steppe zone, characterized by low air and soil moisture and high summer temperatures. Annual precipitation ranges from 350 to 450 mm, with a moisture deficit during the summer months. The study used materials collected from 2017 to 2024, with particular attention paid to the onset and duration of flowering.The results indicate that under the climatic conditions of the steppe zone of Ukraine, the introduction of plants to Krуvorіzhzhiа leads to changes in their generative development. Between 2017 and 2024, the onset of flowering became more stable, as evidenced by a decrease in the range of variation: from ±11–18 days in 2017–2020 to ±6–10 days in 2021–2024. The flowering phase in most species occurs in April, which is the most climatically favorable time. Such results are also confirmed by the value of the average daily air temperature at the beginning of flowering – at the initial stages of introduction it varied from 2.5 °C to 22 °C. In recent years, Tulipa turkestanica, T. neustruevae, T. urumiensis began to bloom at temperatures of 10–18 °C; Crocus tauricus and C. tommasinianus – at 4–7 °C, Juno bucharica – at 8–13 °C; Hyacinthoides hispanica, Scilla sardensis, Muscari heldreichii – at 7–15 °C, Scilla litardieri, Camassia leichtlinii – at 15–20 °C. The average duration of flowering of species in the climatic conditions of Krуvorіzhzhiа does not exceed 12–15 days, regardless of genus. The longest flowering period (up to 20 days) was observed in Camassia leichtlinii – a species with high ecological plasticity – and in Juno bucharica, whose native range closely resembles the introduction region in terms of climate. Despite the relatively short flowering period, the use of a wide range of species, varieties, and forms of the studied genera makes it possible to create a decorative effect in the urban landscapes of the steppe zone of Ukraine for two months – from mid-March to the end of May
Authors: Tetiana Chypyliak, Viktoria Akhmedova
Institution: National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine
Language: English
Subfield: Plant Science
Domain: Life Sciences
SDG: Zero hunger
Open Access status: diamond
OpenAlex ID: W4413338079