Plant communities of the lower reaches of the Volga River on soils with strongly seasonal dynamics of salinization

Resumo

The database EU-RU-002 of the Lower Volga valley vegetation plots has been analyzed. The database contains the characteristics of 15029 relevés located in the region in the period from 1924 to 2013. Two associations, Alismato‒Salicornietum Golub 1985, and Crypsido aculeatae‒Salsoletum sodae ass. nova, have been discovered. These associations include halophytes and glycophytes on the same sample plots. Analysis of water extracts from soil samples made it possible to determine significant dynamics of the toxicity of a soil solution during the year. These changes are related to the hydrological regime of the Volga River.