A STUDY OF BIOINDICATIVE PROPERTIES OF QUERCUS CASTANEIFOLIA С.А.MEY IN NATURALAND URBANIZED SITES IN AZERBAIJAN

Abstract

The paper presents a study of indicative and remediative properties of chestnut-leaved oak Quercuscastaneifolia C.A.Mey found in the Republic of Azerbaijan.The study aimed to assess the prospects of using this plant in the management of environmental quality in Azerbaijan. Four test sites, which differ in the degree of environmental pollution, were selected for the study. Two test sites are located in Baku, the capital city that has a rather high level of pollution. The other two test sites are located in the country.The bioindicative propertiesof chestnut-leaved oak were investigated by analyzing the developmental stability of leaves morphogenesis. To determine the developmental stability of leaves, the method of fluctuating asymmetry was used. Thebioaccumulativepropertiesofthe plantwere investigated by elementalanalysisofleavesandsoil. For this, the methods of sampling, sample preparation and sample were used according to GOST RF. The analysis of the main chemical components in the leaf and soil samples was carried out using an inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometerand an atomic absorption spectrometer. The analysis of micro-components in the leaf and soil samples was carried out using an X-ray fluorescence spectrometer. It was found that there is a strong correlation between the degree of environmental pollution and the level of developmental stability of morphological characters of Quercus castaneifolia C.A.Mey. Environmental pollution increases the fluctuating asymmetry of the leaves.The results also showed that Quercus castaneifolia C.A.Mey hasremediative properties. Therefore, chestnut-leaved oak can be a monitored species in the integrated environmental monitoring system in Azerbaijan.