Plants’ healthiness assessment as part of the environmental monitoring of protected mountainous area in the example of Karkonosze (Giant) Mts. (SW Poland)

Abstract

The aim of phytopathological monitoring is to check the healthiness of plants and observe the changes that occur in their populations. In the vast majority, these types of observations are conducted in agriculture and forestry. An interesting aspect of phytopathological monitoring is the assessment of the origin of the plant species. The research of fungal communities (including pathogens) in plants may, for example, indicate the relic nature of the plant species. Reduction of the occurrence or disappearance of fungi species associated with its host plant can evidence slow decline of their habitats. This applies mainly to arctic-alpine fungal species. On the other hand, for some plant hosts, colonization of their organs by polyphagous fungi is being recorded. One such example is the downy willow, on which six species of fungi were found in the Karkonosze Mts. In 2014, there were no fungi found on this plant. However, comparing the species composition of fungi associated with downy willow given by Schroeter (1908) to the contemporary one and to the study results of other researchers, a decrease in the number of fungi species is clearly visible. This may be related to the environmental pollution, which took place in the Sudetes in the second half of the twentieth century. For instance, the species of the genus Rhytisma colonize the leaves of trees and shrubs and are particularly sensitive to the concentration of SO 2 in the air, but nobody has looked for this fungus on this host in the past. Yet, presently, we were able to find Rhytisma fungus in Karkonosze Mts. Phytopathological monitoring was conducted in the years of 2014-2015 in the sub-alpine zone of the Karkonosze (Giant) Mts. It has been shown that, compared to similar studies conducted in the 1990s of the twentieth century, the species composition of fungi infesting Rubus chamaemorus and Betula carpactica has changed. Is this the beginning of changes that will occur in populations of plants?

Evaluation of health conditions of leaves of Japanese knotweed (Reynoutria japonica Houtt.) in selected locations of Tatra National Park and Wigry National Park

“…Najliczniej izolowanym z porażonych liści R. japonica był saprotrof, uważany także za wtórnego patogena -grzyb A. alternata (stanowił blisko 80% wszystkich wyizolowanych kolonii uzyskanych z Wigierskiego Parku Narodowego). Jest to takson często izolowany zarówno z żywych, jak i uszkodzonych tkanek, doprowadzający czasami do patogenezy i wystąpienia objawów chorobo wych u roślin (Pusz 2016). Interesujący jest fakt, że A. alternata dominował w mykobiocie porażonych liści rdestowca rosnącego na terenie Wigierskiego Parku Narodowego, natomiast na osobnikach pochodzących z Tatrzańskiego Parku Narodowego, stanowił nieco ponad 14%.…”

Species of fungi colonizing dying plants of Alpine lady-fern (Athyrium distentifolium Tausch ex Opiz) in the Karkonosze Mountains

“…Grzyb ten jest polifagiem, rozwijającym się w szerokim spektrum temperatury (Govrin i Levine 2000). Może powodować choroby zarówno roślin uprawnych, jak i dziko rosnących (Pusz 2016). O jego agresywności świadczy także fakt infekowania organów roślinnych w hodowli in vitro, a także gametofitów paproci (San Francisco i Cooper-Driver 1984).…”

Communities of Microscopic Fungi in Dead Spruce in Relation to the Season and Degree of Wood Decay in Poland’s Karkonosze Mountains

“…Only in fungi do the aforementioned factors determine the appearance of the colony and, in many cases, facilitate the production of distinctive morphological forms (such as fungal spores) that can prove useful in the identification process [36]. This is why the majority of the fungi analyzed using the classical method can be identified down to a specific complex, genus or section [37,38]. This is one of the reasons why most of the fungi sampled in this study were identified as belonging to a complex (e.g., the C. cladosporioides sp.…”

“…According to the existing Fungi Wood on decomposition scale Sampling location 1 2 3 4 5 I II III I II III I II III I II III I II III I II Wood on decomposition scale Sampling location 1 2 3 4 5 I II III I II III I II III I II III I II III I II [46]. These fungi may also constitute an element of the mycoflora that acts as an inhibitor of natural cycles of renewal, since they pose a threat to seedlings and young trees [9], as well as herbaceous plants [38]. Nevertheless, in environments that experience low human disturbance, Fusarium fungi are a regular component of plant communities and, unlike in agricultural crops or nurseries, their incidence is not of epidemic proportion [47].…”