Kryuchkov S.N., Solomentseva A.S., Yegorov S.A. IDENTIFICATION OF STABLE ECOTYPES OF HALOXYLON APHYLLUM (MINKW.) ILJIN. AND THE CREATION OF ITS SEED PLANTS // Arid Ecosystems. 2025. Vol. 31. № 2 (103). P. 154-166. | PDF

In this article we present the results of a study of the growth and development of Haloxylon aphyllum (Minkw.) Iljin. from different geographic origins, and its relationship with key environmental factors, in order to find the most promising climatypes for seed production. By testing 19 climatic ecotypes of saxaul, we discovered that in the first year after being planted at the experimental plot, the southern climatypes suffered frost damage due to insufficient lignification of annual growth. We also identified preliminary acceptable zoning limits for saxaul seed for the arid zone. We analyzed the main growth parameters of saxaul during the growing season, which helped us identify the earliest bud swelling time in Haloxylon ammodendron (Mongolian ecotype), as well as in the saxauls introduced from Kazakhstan, Baskunchak, and Kharabali (Astrakhan Region). Saxaul growth continues throughout the summer, but in the hottest years, it can continue to grow even in September. We found that its growth accelerates with increasing air temperature, which is especially noticeable in southern climatypes; however, we observed no dependence on precipitation for their shoot growth. The highest water regime indicators were observed in saxaul introduced from Dosang (Astrakhan Region), characterizing them as the most drought-resistant biotypes. Cultures created from northern reproduction seeds demonstrated the highest frost resistance. Saxaul adaptation to the new conditions is evident by good fruiting, vertical growth, increased trunk and crown diameter, and high biomass. Pest and disease damage to the experimental plants was observed only during dry and hot periods, primarily in climatypes from Kazakhstan and introduced types, while no damage was observed in the southern types. Observations of saxaul in the Astrakhan Trans-Volga region have shown a potential for developing its seed base in geographical crops.

Keywords: Haloxylon aphyllum, ecotypes, cultivation, propagation, protective afforestation, seed plantations.

DOI: 10.24412/1993-3916-2025-2-154-166

EDN: YTUOFD