Associations and communities of cereal cultivations of the Łukowska Plain. Part II. Associations of heavy soils

Abstract

A b s t r a c tThe paper is the second part of the work examining segetal communities of the Łuków Plain. It presents a description of phytocenoses establishing in cereal crops on heavy soils. Only Vicietum tetraspermae were found in these habitats. Neither patches of Consolido-Brometum nor communities representing the alliance Caucalidion lappulae were encountered. Floristic and ecological diversity of Vicietum tetraspermae was due to 8 syntaxonomic units distinguished in the study area: 3 subassociations (Vicietum tetraspermae typicum, V. t odontitetosum and V. t consolidetosum) and 6 variants within Vicietum tertaspermae typicum. Patches of Vicietum tetraspermae typicum were the most frequent in the study area whereas the remaining sub-alliances were much more rare. Of particular interest were species-poor patches of Vicietum tetraspermae typicum dominated by Vicia grandiflora found in the Łuków area which are indicative of the degradation of this alliance.