Quantification of some ornamental plant species carbon dioxide absorption for various moisture conditions

The Nikitsky Botanical Gardens – National Scientific Center of the RAS, 298648 Nikita, Yalta, Russian Federation

^* Corresponding author: korsakova2002@mail.ru

Abstract

The study of carbon dioxide gas exchange of leaves of Prunus laurocerasus L., Laurus nobilis L. and Viburnum tinus L. under various environmental conditions was carried out. The greatest resistance to drought and the ability to absorb CO₂ under hydrothermal stress was found in Viburnum tinus plants. It was determined that the inhibition of the processes of CO₂ absorption with increasing water scarcity begins in the studied species with a decrease in soil moisture to 35% field capacity. Under conditions of soil drought, the amount of CO₂ absorbed by Prunus laurocerasus leaves is reduced by 10 times, Laurus nobilis – by 7 times, Viburnum tinus – by 2 times. The positive carbon dioxide gas exchange of Prunus laurocerasus, Laurus nobilis and Viburnum tinus in the hot dry period, when the amount of CO₂ absorption exceeds its release during respiration by 1–5.1, 1.5–3.7 and 1.1–6.2 times, respectively, indicates a significant potential these species for optimizing the urban ecosystems of the southern regions of Russia. The developed predictive models allow us to perform a quantitative assessment of the ability of plants to absorb carbon dioxide under various environmental conditions.