SummaryThe medicinal and culinary properties of Angelica archangelica L. have been known and valued since the Middle Ages. Ingredients of essential oil and coumarins found in this plant are to a large degree responsible for its pharmacological activity. This study is a review of the literature of the most important biologically active compounds present in herbal raw materials: root (rhizome with roots) and angelica fruits. Research shows that the content of individual compounds of the essential oil and coumarin fraction is variable, which may point to a large intraspecific variation. Therefore, these compounds may be good markers for identifying taxa or chemotypes in chemotaxonomic research valuable for the herbal medicine and pharmaceutical industry.

Summary In this paper, diaspores and seedlings of Salvia przewalskii Maxim. were described. The three-year cycle of monthly germination analyses of seeds was carried out. The best germination of seeds was observed in the turn of spring and summer (June, July). It was found that the germination of diaspores of Salvia przewalskii in laboratory analysis does not depend on the influence of light and fluctuations of temperature within the range 20-30°C. After 5 years of storage in unheated room conditions, the diaspores of Salvia przewalskii germinated about 20%.

Summary Introduction: Angelica archangelica L. (Apiaceae) has a long history of use as a vegetable and medicinal plant. According to the European Pharmacopoeia, the angelica root (Angelica radix) of only one of the sub-species – Angelica archangelica subsp. archangelica (formerly known as Archangelica officinalis) – is used as a source of plant material with documented medicinal properties. Within this species, there are two subspecies that are difficult to classify unambiguously: subsp. archangelica and subsp. litoralis. Objective: The aim of this study was to provide a micromorphological and anatomical description of fruits of A archangelica and identify new diagnostic characters useful in subspecies identification. Methods: A comparative analysis of the sculpture and internal structure of fruits of the distinguished A archangelica taxa was conducted, using scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Results: Based on the taxonomic characters in the Apiaceae family, micromorphological and anatomical characteristics of A archangelica fruits were prepared. Some of the investigated characters, e.g. verrucose sculpture of the oil duct surface and the presence of hooked hairs, exhibited intraspecific differences. Among the anatomical characters, the variation was related to the number and size of the paraendocarpic oil ducts as well as to the thickness of dorsal and commissural mesocarp. Conclusion: SEM examination of fruits of A archangelica provided a detailed description of their sculptures and several micromorphological and anatomical characters of potential diagnostic value.

SummaryIntroduction:The inflorescence ofHelichrysum arenarium(L.) Moench shows anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, detoxifying properties and is traditionally used in liver and biliary tract diseases. Because of its difficult and expensive cultivation, the plant raw material is mainly harvested from natural sites.Objective:The research aimed to determine the local variation in yield and content of flavonoids and phenolic acids in the yellow everlasting inflorescence against the background of the layer structure of vegetation as the rate of plant succession.Methods:The plant raw material was collected from 30 plots of 1 m2, established for three separate populations developing on sandy fallows near Zielona Góra (western Poland). For each study area, percentage cover of the moss-lichen and herb layers, the height, cover and yield ofH. arenariumas well as the height and cover of other herbaceous plants were determined. Total contents of flavonoids (expressed as quercetin) and phenolic acids (calculated as caffeic acid) were measured spectrophotometrically, according to Polish Pharmacopoeia.Results:Everlastings reached a cover of up to 70% and the maximum air-dry matter yield of 46.42 g/m2. The height, coverage and yield ofH. arenariumwere correlated with the parameters describing the herb layer. The content of flavonoids ranged from 0.56 to 0.99%, while that of phenolic acids from 0.82 to 1.80%DM.Conclusions:Yellow everlasting is an important species of early fallows on poor sandy soils and these habitats constitute a rich natural source of herbal raw material. Inflorescences harvested from natural sites are distinguished by a high and similar content of polyphenols and usually meet the requirements of Polish Pharmacopoeia.

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