Resistance of mosses from background and anthropogenically transformed territories to water deficit

The tolerance to water deficit protonema of vegetative and generative clones of mosses Bryum argenteum Hedw., Funaria hygrometrica Hedw. and Barbula unguiculata Hedw. from the background (Lviv city “Pohulyanka” forest park) and anthropogenically disturbed areas of the Yaziv sulfur deposit (Lviv region, Yavoriv district) and the waste dump of the Chervonograd mining and industrial district (ChGPK). The laboratory culture was grown on Knopp’s agar medium, creating a water deficit by adding 1–5 % polyethylene glycol (PEG) to the medium. It was established that the vegetative clones of the investigated mosses from different local vegetation in the background and anthropogenically transformed territories are more tolerant to lack of moisture than the generative ones. The most resistant were Bryum argenteum sods from the top of the southern slope of the sulfur mining dump, which on the medium with 2 % polyethylene glycol (PEG) had the largest diameter and the largest number of gametophores per sod compared to the samples from the wetter localities of the northern slope of the dump. Vegetative clones from different local vegetation from background and anthropogenically disturbed areas showed different sensitivity to water deficit. The plants from the dumps were characterized by a higher growth rate of regenerants and formed more gametophores on the medium with PEG than the samples from Lviv. It was established that the tolerance of vegetative and generative clones of mosses B. argenteum, F. hygrometrica and B. unguiculata to moisture deficit depends on the age of the plants, the concentration of PEG and the duration of its action, as well as the life strategy of the species. It is shown that mosses, due to successful vegetative reproduction with a short development cycle, which can partially replace generative reproduction in stressful conditions, in particular lack of moisture, better adapt to conditions of water deficit in post-technological territories of the Yaziv sulfur deposit and rock dump of coal mining of ChHPK.