Reclamation efficiency of forest shelterbelts with Prunus armeniaca L. in the Rostov Region

Prunus armeniaca L. is a promising species for agroforestry. Apricot forms shelterbelts with Fraxinus pennsylvanica Marsh. in the Rostov Region on an area of 550 hectares. The ameliorative efficiency of the stands is due to their aboveground phytomass, but the role of tree greenery in the wind shade formation has not previously been studied. Four-row wind-regulating shelterbelts, 50 years old, 13-18 m wide, with a dense structure were studied from 2005 to 2025. In the Priazovsky, Dono-Donetsky and Nizhne-Donskoy forest reclamation districts (FRD), apricot grows at the edges of four-row wind-regulating shelterbelts and occupies the second forest tier. Its survival rate is 48%, height is 6.3 m – 9.0 m, Kav is 2.7. Ash forms the first forest tier with a height of 13 m – 10.2, survival rate of 58% and Kav of 3.0. In the Salsko-Manychsky FRD, apricot dries out. Its survival rate is 5%, height is 5.3 m. Ash height here is 8.0 m, Kav is 4.0. The studies were carried out on 20 test plots according to general methods of agroforestry. The fraction of wood greenery in the wet growing state was collected from model trees. The phytosaturation of shelterbelts was calculated with dry matter mass determination by the thermogravimetric method. In the Priazovsky, Dono-Donetsky and Nizhne-Donskoy FRDs, the phytosaturation of the first forest tier is 0.03 kg/m³ – 0.02 kg/m³, of the second forest tier is 0.05 kg/m³ – 0.03 kg/m³. The phytosaturation content of the second forest tier, increasing the biophysical density of the first tier, acts as an additional barrier, forming a wind shadow of 18 H – 22 H, which is greater than in pure ash stands (11 – 14 H). The shelterbelts of the Salsko-Manychsky FRD, with a phytosaturation content of up to 0.01 kg/m³, have no meliorative effectiveness; the wind shadow is 5 H. The stands reclaim 7249 hectares of arable land. The potential additional winter wheat yield is 1600 tons, valued at 22.7 million rubles. Apricot is recommended for agroforestry in the Rostov Region, with the exception of the Salsko-Manychsky forest management district, where the shelterbelts are subject to reconstruction.