Variations in floristic composition of wild and cultivated species associated with Moringa oleifera Lam. in Egypt

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

1 Botany Department, Faculty of Science, Benha University, Egypt

2 Botany Department, Faculty of Science, Tanta University

3 Forestry and Wood Technology Department, Faculty of Agriculture, Alexandria University, Egypt

Abstract

The aim of this work is to study the cultivated and wild species associated with Moringa oleifera in different sites in Egypt. The cultivated species were 174 related to 145 genera and 67 families, while the wild species were 45 related to 39 genera and 21 families. Fabaceae was the most represented cultivated family (15 species), while Poaceae was the most represented wild family (8 species). Phoenix dactylifera and Portulaca oleracea were the most common cultivated and wild species, respectively. Phanerophytes were the most represented life form, regarding the cultivated species (79.5%), whereas therophytes were the most represented life form (62.2%). The application of Two Way Indicator Species Analysis (TWINSPAN) on the floristic composition of the sampled stands led to classify them into 7 vegetation groups at level 5 for the cultivated species, and 5 groups at level 3 for the wild species. The cultivated groups were named according to their dominant species as follows: Ficus elastica, Abutilon hirtum, Cordia myxa, Carya illinoensis, Azadirachta indica, Ficus benjamina and Ceiba speciosa. In addition, the wild groups were: Pancratium maritimum, Digitaria ciliaris, Cyperus rotundus, Lantana camara and Bidens pilosa.

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