Active condensation of the atmospheric moisture as a self-irrigation mechanism for the ground-covering plants

Abstract

Studies conducted at the Subtropical Botanical Garden of Kuban (Utch-Dere, Sochi) pretty much allow to explain the abnormally high drought resistance of Liriope graminifolia Lour. and Ophiopogon japonicus Ker.-Gawl., plants that naturally grow mostly in sufficient humidity. Quite low temperatures of the leaves’ surface allow to effectively condense the atmospheric moisture and to direct it along the leaf blade to the ground. The accumulation of condensation water leads to self-irrigation, a mechanism that ensures survival of plants in case of insufficient natural precipitation in the form of rain or fog. Combined with xeromorphic leaves with a thick cuticle and thick branch roots with fusiform bulb-shaped swellings, allowing to store water, makes the named plants extremely resistant to stress factors such as prolonged summer droughts accompanied by high daytime temperatures.

Keywords

• засухоустойчивость
• атмосферная влага
• конденсация воды
• температура листьев
• почвопокровные растения
• Liriope
• Ophiopogon
• Convallariaceae