Morphological variability and state of Delphinium pubiflorum (Ranunculaceae) populations in the Saratov region

Abstract

The article presents the results of studying the morphological state of three populations of Delphinium pubiflorum on the basis of quantitative traits measured over four years during the period of mass flowering of plants. The greatest difference in quantitative characteristics was shown by the populations from the Krasnoarmeisky and Tatishchevsky districts of the Saratov region. The differences between the populations are mainly associated with the overall size of the leaves and the quantitative indicators of the axial structure, in particular the length of the generative shoot, as well as the generative sphere – the length of the inflorescence and the number of flowers associated with the latter. In the field, with a visual assessment of the state of the populations, it was noted that plants in the best condition, were those from the Tatishchevsky district. As for the population from the Krasnoarmeisky district, the state of its individuals was the worst.