Preliminary results of studying the invasive flora fraction of the Rostov region are presented. The invasive fraction includes 69 seed plant species, among which acolyutophytes predominate according to the method of implementation, euneophytes predominate according to the time of implementation, and NorthAmerican plants predominate according to the native range plants are distributed; according to invasive statuses species are distributed as follows: 13 species – status 1 (transformer species), 19 species – status 2 (actively spreading and naturalizing in disturbed semi-natural and natural habitats), 20 species – status 3 (spreading and naturalizing in disturbed habitats, 17 species – status 4 (potentially invasive).

As a result of research on the distribution and syntaxonomic diversity of phytocenoses of petro- and psammophytic ecological-edaphic variants of steppe vegetation with dominance and subdominance of feather grass on the Donetsk Upland and in the Northern Cis-Azov region, we listed 331 associations of petrophytic steppe, petrophyton and psammophyton, which belong to 99 formations, 10 classes of formations and 3 types. As much as 290 rarity phytosystems have been registered in specially protected natural areas. Among them, 256 plant communities can be recommended for special protection. 91 phytosystems are regionally rare. The most associatively diverse and widespread formations are Stipeta capillatae, Stipeta grafianae, Stipeta lessingianae. The distribution of stenotopic formations Stipeta asperellae, Stipeta borysthenicae and Stipeta graniticolae are confined to specific ecological and phytocenotic conditions. Most of the formations of stenotopic communities are concentrated on the Cis-Azov Upland.

The material is a review of the monograph written by D.Sc., Professor, Academician of the Academy of Sciences ofAbkhazia Sergei Mikhailovich Bebia «Forests ofAbkhazia» (Sukhum:Academy, 2022. 589 p.)

The work of the Donetsk Botanical Garden is aimed at solving urgent problems in the field of plant introduction and selection, research on biodiversity in the steppe zone and the development of scientific foundations for its conservation, industrial botany, biological invasions in terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems. In 2023, the staff of the Donetsk Botanical Garden carried out scientific investigations in 4 directions. Based on the research results, scientists of the Donetsk Botanical Garden published 108 publications, 72 articles are contributions to scientific journals (among them are those indexed in the Web of Sciences and Scopus – 4, in RSCI – 5, RINZ – 49), and 36 works are included in the proceedings of scientific conferences.

We studied populations of the invasive species Lupinus polyphyllus Lindl. in different parts of the secondary distribution range. Molecular genetic analysis of 64 specimens showed that intrapopulation and interpopulation variability was observed in the secondary distribution range of lupin, but it could not be called very high. Based on nucleotide sequences of the high-variable non-coding intergenic spacer of chloroplast DNA rpl32-tmL, a phylogenetic tree was constructed using the maximum likehood (ML) method, in which two specimens from the Kaluga region were separated into a particular clade (closest to the outgroup of L. albus L.); the other individuals were divided into two subclades, one of which included most specimens from the Kaluga and Leningrad regions, the other- mainly specimens from the Moscow region. The highest projective coverage of L. polyphyllus is observed in phytocenoses of the central part of the middle zone under mild climate conditions. The data obtained indicate the presence of microevolutionary processes within L. polyphyllus populations and suggest that the range of the area may change taking into account climatic changes.

Complex studies of the coenopopulation structure of Manden. in the middle taiga of theH. sosnowskyi Komi Republic were carried out. The duration of vegetation of plants was 180–190 days. Coenopopulations were characterized by left-handed ontogenetic spectra and high recovery indices. The density of juvenile individuals was 1700 pcs/m², immature ones 4–7 pcs/m², virginial ones – 12–16 pcs/m², and generative ones – 1–3 pcs/m². Plants started flowering at the age of 2–6 full years. The main part of the assimilating surface of generative individuals was located in the upper layers and absorbed about 70 % of the incoming photosynthetically active radiation. The study of natural increase dynamics of H. sosnowskyi coenopopulation areas revealed the significance of anemochory for plant seed transport over long (up to 55 m) distances. Analysis of satellite images of model plots revealed an annual increase in the area of invasive coenopopulations by 20 %. The variability of invasion rate of the species depended on the initial conditions and stage of invasion, utilization regimes and ecological capacity of the plots.