Development Features of the Medicinal Plants Introduced to the Moscow Region

Regular long-term phenological observations of new cultivating plants allows for the conclusion on their possible successful cultivation in new conditions. The article presents the results of phenological observations of 19 domesticated species of medicinal plants from 10 families: Asteraceae (Klasea quinquefolia (Willd.) Greuter et Wagenitz, Klasea radiate (Waldst. et Kit.) Á. Löve et D. Löve ssp. Gmelini (Tausch) L. Martins, Serratula tinctoria L., Centaurea scabiosa L.), Campanulaceae (Platycodon grandifloras A. DC.), Crassulaceae (Phedimus aizoon (L.) ‘t Hart), Datiscaceae (Datisca cannabina L.), Fabaceae (Desmodium canadense (L.) DC.), Lamiaceae (Lycopus exaltatus L., Lycopus europaeus L., Monarda fistulosa L., Scutellaria baicalensis Georgi), Onagraceae (Epilobium angustifolium L.), Papaveraceae (Macleaya×kewensis Turrill), Ranunculaceae (Pulsatilla patens (L.) Mill.) and Rosaceae (Potentilla megalantha Takeda, Potentilla alba L., Geum rivale L., Sanguisorba officinalis L.). The weather and climatic conditions over a period of observation (2016—2023) were diverse, which made it possible to deduce stable average periodic indicators of the phenological cycles of the studied species for the Moscow region. The ranges of the effective accumulated temperatures (EAT) at the o of onset of vegetation, the onset of flowering and massive seed maturation are determined. The duration of the interstage periods has also been established, which is a stable parameter characterizing the dynamics of seasonal plant development. In most introduced species, the onset of flowering is 36—56 days, the flowering duration is 21—50 days, the seeds technical ripeness is 21—53 days and the growing season duration is 130—166 days, which fits into the frost-free period in the Moscow region: the plants have time to bloom and form full-fledged seeds. The combination of indicators: “the timing of the onset of vegetation”, “the duration of interphase periods” and “the EAT range at the time of the onset a certain phenophases” allows not only to assess the degree of adaptation of the introduced species to new growing conditions, but also to predict with high probability the fruiting of the species in a particular growing season.