Title
East Moesian-west Pontic mixed sessile oak-hornbeam-silver lime forests (Tilia tomentosa, Carpinus betulus, Quercus petraea, Quercus dalechampii, Quercus polycarpa), partly with Carpinus orientalis, with Nectaroscordum siculum subsp. bulgaricum
Geographical distribution
Country/territory
Romania: plateau of north Dobrudscha; Bulgaria: insular above all in the northeastern part of the country (Ludogorie)
area frequency
12 polygons.
Scientific names of main plant communities and their most common synonyms (with author citation)
Tilio tomentosae-Carpinetum betuli DoniÛ| 1970, Nectaroscordo-Tilietum tomentosae DoniÛ| 1970, Galantho plicatae-Tilietum tomentosae DoniÛ| 1970, Fraxino orni-Quercetum dalechampii DoniÛ| 1970, Tilio-Quercetum dalechampii Sirbu 1978; Tilieta tomentosae Bondev 1991.Regionally limited regional association, described under different names due to local formations; in need of an extensive rearrangement and a moderate syntaxonomical revision.
Structural feature of the main community(ies) (layers, life-forms, etc.)
Mostly three-layered forests with a subdivided tree layer. In the upper tree layer oaks, limes and ashes, and in the lower Carpinus betulus (or Carpinus orientalis), Acer campestre, Fraxinus ornus, Sorbus torminalis, Malus sylvestris, Pyrus pyraster. Weakly developed shrub layer; herb layer with some Fagetalia species and many species of xerothermic forests; mainly herbaceous plants and grasses.
Dominant and most frequent species in different layers
Tree layer
Quercus petraea, Tilia tomentosa, Tilia platyphyllos, Fraxinus excelsior, Fraxinus excelsior subsp. coriariifolia, in the underwood Carpinus betulus, (locally Carpinus orientalis), Acer campestre, Fraxinus ornus, Sorbus torminalis, Malus sylvestris, Pyrus pyraster; locally Quercus dalechampii, in Bulgaria additionally Quercus cerris, Quercus frainetto, rarely Fagus sylvatica subsp. moesiaca
Shrub layer
Cornus mas, Crataegus monogyna, Ligustrum vulgare, Euonymus verrucosa, Euonymus europaea, Viburnum lantana, Corylus avellana, Staphylea pinnata
Herb layer
Galium odoratum, Mercurialis perennis, Cardamine bulbifera, Melica uniflora, Viola odorata, Viola reichenbachiana, Pulmonaria obscura, Dactylis polygama, Carex digitata, Bromus benekenii, Brachypodium sylvaticum, Poa nemoralis, Geum urbanum; thermophilous species: Polygonatum hirtum, Viola hirta, Lathyrus niger, Lithospermum purpurocaeruleum, Vincetoxicum hirundinaria, Potentilla micrantha, Melittis melissophyllum, Nectaroscordum siculum subsp. bulgaricum, Scutellaria altissima, Glechoma hirsuta, Cyclamen coum
Moss layer (incl. lichens)
Hypnum cupressiforme
Diagnostically important species
Tilia tomentosa, Quercus dalechampii, Quecus petraea, Carpinus betulus; Cornus mas, Euonymus verrucosa; Nectaroscordum siculum subsp. bulgaricum, Scutellaria altissima, Glechoma hirsuta, Carpesium cernuum; Bulgaria: Cyclamen coum, Melittis melissophyllum
Ecological variants
No details
Geographical variants (geogr. differential species)
in Bulgaria with Cyclamen coum, Melittis melissophyllum, Staphylea pinnata.
Natural accompanying vegetation (most important units in complex with the name giving mapping unit, scientific names)
thermophilous forests with Quercus dalechampii, Carpinus orientalis, Quercus cerris, Quercus frainetto.
Adjoining climax and permanent vegetation (with numbers of mapping units)
sessile oak-hornbeam forests (F67), species-rich beech forests (F109), Balkan oak-bitter oak forests (G21, G22), Oriental hornbeam-downy oak forests (G58, G60), alluvial forests (U18).
Land use, substitute communities
forestry (substitute communities, plantations of economic tree-species, scrub)
Middle and low forests, Pinus sylvestris plantations.
grassland (meadows, pastures, herb-rich communities)
Dry shortgrass meadows: Cynodonti-Poetum angustifoliae (Rapaics 1926) Soó 1957.
arable land (characteristic weed communities)
Vineyards, orchards, cereal fields; syntaxonomically, the weed communities have hardly been studied.
settlements (typical ruderal vegetation)
Xeranthemum annuum community.
Site conditions of the mapping unit
Landscape type, geomorphology
Plateaus and hilly country
Altitudinal belt and/or altitudinal range
colline; 250-450 m
Geology (bedrock)
lime-sandstone (Cretaceous, Triassic); bluff formation above Cretaceous
soil type, also the depth of fine textured earth (soil), stone content; (international nomenclature)
brown soils, leached black earths, parabrown soils, here and there rendzines; (eutric cambisols; petrocalcic haplic and luvic chernozems; luvisols; rendzic leptosols)
soil texture
loamy, partly stony
soil moisture, water balance
fresh to moderately dry, locally periodically dry
soil reaction
weakly acidic to neutral
soil fertility
mesotrophic to meso-eutrophic
Climate incl. local climate
climate type (following Walter & Lieth)
VI2a, VII
average annual temperature
10-12 EC
average annual precipitation
500-600 mm
average temperature of the warmest month
July 20-23 EC
average temperature of the coldest month
January -1 to 3 EC
local climate or other climatic peculiarities
Warm, moderately continental climate (Tiškov 1982).
Importance for nature protection
Present state and development trend of natural vegetation (degree of endangerment)
Few semi-natural stands remain preserved.
endangered communities, species worthy of protection in natural vegetation
All nearly-natural remnant forests are severely endangered and worthy of protection.
causes of endangerment
Clearing, timber harvesting, grazing, agricultural cultivation.
required measures for protection and restitution
Establishment of protected conservation areas.
Localities of representative stands (loci typici) with state of protection
of the natural vegetation
Bulgaria: Grodñevo, Rusenskij okrug.
of characteristic substitute communities worthy of protection
No details
Most important references (author, year)
Bondev 1991; Doniţă 1970; Ivan, Doniţă, Coldea, Sanda, Popescu, Chifu, Boşcaiu, Mititelu & Paucă-Comănescu 1993
Compiled by
Z. Neuhäuslová referring to D. Ivan et al. 1993 and documents by I. Bondev
