Biological indices of Bashkir Lombardy poplar (Populus nigra L. Populus nigra var. italica Du Roi) in urban landscapes

Georgiy Odintsov, Elvira Khanova, Ildar Sabirzyanov, Maria Martynova, Rida Sultanova, Liliya Ishbirdina, Azat Timeryanov, Svetlana Konashova, Svetlana Muftakhova, Liubov Blonskaya

Abstract: Bashkir Lombardy hybrid poplar (Populus nigra L. × Populus nigra var. italica Du Roi) is an ornament woody plant. It is used in landscape architecture. The hybrid poplar tends to grow rapidly. The average height increases in trees aged 30 years or less makes up 0.95 m. The tree is very resistant to atmospheric toxicants. Its vegetative season makes 190 days, while the same period of Berlin poplar is 153 and of Sverdlovsk Lombardy poplar, it is 174 days. All vegetation phases of hybrid poplar follow each other in strict sequence. However, the calendar dates of the beginning (swelling, bud opening) and of their ending (leaf blooming and leaf fall) of the vegetation phases are strongly affected by temperature conditions and precipitation during the prevernal period. In all urban plantings, the hybrid showed high tree ornament qualities. These are vigorous trees with strait timber and dense crown. In the zone of low pollution high sanitary and hygienic points, life status and aesthetic landscape assessment of the trees are observed (I). However, the Student’s test (t) which was made to compare these indicators in other pollution zones (II and III) showed a statistically unreliable difference, which also confirms the tolerance of this hybrid to environmental conditions. There was made a research of forest and landscape valuation of hybrid poplar (Populus nigra L. × Populus nigra var. italica Du Roi). The results of the research as well as long phenological observations prove that widespread plantation of this tree can be very perspective for urban landscapes.

Keywords: assessment; climatic factors; ecology; live status; phenology; poplar hybrid; resistance; technogenic pollution; urban environment

Date published: 2019-12-10