Vegetation of the Dolines in Mecsek Mountains (South Hungary) in relation to the Local Plant Communities

This paper deals with the forest vegetation of the lower part of the dolines in Mecsek Mts. (South Hungary). In order to char-acterize this vegetation type, samples were compared to the 6 plant communities occurring in the neighbourhood of the dolines. Considering the vegetation texture and species com-position, the vegetation of the dolines resembles mainly the extrazonal beechwoods (Helleboro odori-fagetum) and local ravine forests (Scutellario altissimae-Aceretum) that preserve several mountain, subatlantic relict species in this area. Our study revealed that the plant communities characteristic of the karst surface of Western Mecsek are arranged along a moisture and nutrient gradient. In this system, the habitat conditions of the dolines are similar to those of the beech forests and the lo-cal ravine forests, fresh and relatively rich in nutrients. In the karst, dominated by oak-hornbeam and beech forests, effects of the thermal inversion are the most spectacular where beech forests follow turkey oak-sessile oak forests and oak-hornbeam forests on the lower part of the doline slopes. The described vegetation type of these depressions is developed by edafic fac-tors; its identification as a separate association is not supported by the analyses

The uses of Betula pendula Roth among Hungarian Csángós and Székelys in Transylvania, Romania

The aim of this work is to evaluate the ethnobotanical and ethnopharmacological use of Betula pendula Roth in various regions of Transylvania, in East and Central Romania. Silver birch is an important pioneer species in the country, which has traditionally been used in ethnomedicine, households and various customs. Among the ethnic groups, 55 informants from the Csángós and 68 from the Székelys were interviewed in six villages during field studies occurring between 2007 and 2012. Informants were asked questions about the medical and non-medical applications of B. pendula, focusing on the use of the leaf and woody parts in tools and customs, and on the collection and use of birch sap with its temporal change in local ethnomedicinal knowledge. Differences related to the use of birch among the studied areas were observed. The folk remedies prepared from the sap ("virics") and leaves were documented in local customs, with similar symbolic roles assigned to birch used in other countries. Sap collection was performed during interviews and by manual means. Four special section types on the trunk were presented, and data concerning the nutritional and ethnomedicinal use of the sap was recorded. Both the significance and use of birch sap have drastically decreased in Transylvania due to the appearance of new phytotherapeutical sources and to social changes caused by migration of young people. We found that this phenomenon is gradually leading to the disappearance traditional harvesting techniques, frequency of use and ethnomedicinal knowledge concerning B. pendula in the studied regions

The rock-heath association Helleboro odori-Spiraeetum mediae in the Villány Mts (South Hungary)

The rock-heath association Helleboro odori-Spiraeetum mediae has not been studied in the Villány Mts so far. In this article, we characterize the stands of the Szársomlyó Mt and compare them to the stands of the Mecsek Mts. In general, the stands are very similar in vegetation structure, ecological indicator spectra and social behaviour type spectra, although there are some differences in species composition