Cephalaria gigantea (Caprifoliaceae), a new alien species in the flora of Ukraine

Abstract

Information about a locality of Cephalaria gigantea, a new for Ukraine alien species, is provided. It was found in the Podillya Botanical Garden, Vinnytsia city, in July 2016 during surveys of the spontaneous flora and vegetation of the garden and park landscapes of the Middle Pobuzhzhia area. The territory of the garden is currently rather neglected. We assume that the plant material for introduction of C. gigantea was probably collected during an expedition of the botanical garden staff to the Caucasus in the 1970s. The introduced species was cultivated in the collection of medicinal plants, which was abandoned in the late 1980s. The population of C. gigantea was found at a distance of more than 300 m from the former collection site at the forest edge, in the part of the botanical garden distant from the main recreational paths. Taking into account that this species is mentioned as alien for several countries of Europe, monitoring of its further dispersal in Ukraine, particularly of its cultivation sites, is recommended.

Keywords

• alien species
• cephalaria gigantea
• ergasiophyte
• floristic record
• naturalization
• ukraine