Current State of Populations of Althaea officinalis L. (Malvaceae) in the Atyrau Region

Global experience in applying medicinal agents shows the prospects for developing preparations based on plant raw materials, including wild plants. This requires field studies to assess the current state of medicinal plant populations for the rational use and preservation of biological diversity. For populations of Althaea officinalis, we have evaluated the botanical features, ontogenetic spectrum, and morphological parameters of plants. Structural indicators have been studied for four populations of A. officinalis in the valleys of the Aktolkyn, Uter, Sergek, and Koneu rivers (Kurmangazy district in the Atyrau Region). It has been revealed that the species composition of the communities includes 54 species from 50 genera and 26 families. The leading families by the number of species were Poaceae, Asteraceae, and Fabaceae. The most common species (category I) included 37 taxa, category II included ten taxa, category III included four species, and categories IV–V included two species. The ecological groups were dominated by mesophytes, mesoxerophytes, and xeromesophytes; herbaceous perennial and short-lived plants prevailed among the life forms. The maximum morphometric values for A. officinalis were recorded in the population from the valley of the Aktolkyn River, while the minimum values were in the floodplain of the Sergek River. An analysis of the age spectrum has shown that the population from the valley of the Aktolkyn River is characterized as stable medium-aged, the population from the floodplain of the Sergek River as stable young, the population from the floodplain of the Uter River as unstable aging, and the population from the valley of the Koneu River as young. The results of the field studies suggest measures for collecting medicinal raw materials from A. officinalis in populations from the valleys of the Aktolkyn, Koneu, and Sergek rivers. It is not possible to collect raw materials from the population in the valley of the Uter River; actions for restoring its structure are required.