DYNAMICS OF OVERGROWING OF AGRICULTURAL LANDS WITH WOODY AND SHRUBBY VEGETATION IN THE KARELIA SUBZONE OF MIDDLE TAIGA

Abstract

Inventory of lands and determination of the agricultural lands area overgrown with trees and shrubs is one of the important stages of measures to return former arable lands to their original state. Using the example of reclaimed agrolandscapes of the Pryazhinskiy and Prionezhskiy districts of Karelia, their overgrowth was analyzed. Based on on-site investigations of agrogenic lands with an area of more than 1000 hectares, as well as an analysis of departmental materials, territories excluded from active agricultural use from 2004 to 2024 were identified. During this period, heterogeneity of overgrowth processes was observed, the total area of the studied agrolandscapes decreased by 15.44%. The territory under arable land decreased by 13.0% of this category of land, pastures – by 7.8%. The greatest successional changes were noted on lands intended for haymaking: 54.0% of the total area of hayfields was not used due to overgrowing. Evaluation of the transformation of the phytocenoses species composition in terms of soil types revealed that 30.0% (15.65 ha) of lands located on the most fertile soils of the region and suitable for the forage agrophytocenoses formation of drained humus-peat developed lowland swamps soils were overgrown with forest undergrowth. Along with peat soils, secondary succession processes were also noted on sod-podzolic cultivated soils – from 6.09 to 22.33% (6.22 - 102.90 ha). Determining the type and stage of overgrowing valuable reclaimed agricultural lands with woody and shrubby vegetation will determine the options for using former arable lands and, accordingly, the financial and time costs required for their implementation. Carrying out measures to return lands to their original state will allow activating production turnover on valuable lands and ensuring an increase in the country's food security.