Introduction

The economy and industry of Kazakhstan should develop on country’s own resource base. The flora of the Republic of Kazakhstan includes more than 5.500 vascular plants [1], many of which have medicinal properties [2] and can find practical application in medicine and pharmacy. The study of the distribution and productivity of medical herbs allows planning efficient use of the reserves.

Common licorice (Glycyrrhiza glabra L., Fam. Fabaceae) is widely used among the pharmacopeial medical herbs. Its underground organs are used as the expectorate cough mitigating and emollient remedy in diseases of the upper respiratory tract [3-5]. Licorice root is prescribed in peptic ulcer disease of stomach and duodenal ulcers, at chronic inflammatory conditions of the gastrointestinal tract, especially at high acidity of gastric juice. Licorice root serves the basis when producing expectorant, anti-inflammatory and viral inactivating agents [6-10].

The Republic of Kazakhstan is one of the exporters of licorice root. Previously the main reserves of licorice root were extracted in the territory of South Kazakhstan (valley of the Chu River) [11-14], however, significant thickets of this herb exist in other regions as well.

Reconnaissance survey has shown that natural thickets of common licorice vegetate in the territory of Atyrau and West-Kazakhstan regions.

The goal of the present work is to identify marketable reserves of common licorice in the territory of Atyrau and West Kazakhstan regions (Western Kazakhstan) and estimate licorice raw reserves.

Methodology

The studies were conducted in the vegetation period of 2014-2015 employing semistationary methods [15].

Resource determination of species was carried out according to established recommendations [16-20]: definition of total area (in hectares); setting up 10-15 model plots with an area of 1 m² each. The following was determined for each model plot: a) yield of underground organs (kg/m²) in humid and air-dry conditions; b) floristic composition of plant association indicating the abundance by Drude scale; c) the phenological development stages of species growing in the territory under study; d) the calculation of exploitable volume of licorice raw and the amount of possible annual collection of raw reserves (tons), d) the total plant cover (hereinafter TPC). Calculation of the amount of possible annual collection of licorice raw reserves was made subject to a 10% of exploitable volume [21].

Results and discussion

In the territory of Atyrau Region common licorice is described for the following sites: the Oyl River valley, the village of Karabau in the floodplain of the Oyl River, sand of Taisoigan, floodplain of the Ural River, Zharipshykan, the flat areas between the villages of Mukur, Sagyz, and Miyaly, the floodplain of the Aktolkyn, Uter and Sergek rivers, clay plains and sand hills in the vicinity of the Kulsary village. Marketable thickets are noted also in sand of Taisoigan and floodplain of the Uter River.

In the Taisoigan Sands, common licorice inhabits as part of the licorice-wormwood (Glycyrrhiza glabra – Artemisia arenaria) association. Common licorice with an abundance of cор1 and vitality of 2-3 points is dominating plant, while sandy wormwood with an abundance of sp-cop and vitality of 2-3 points is codominant (Table 1, Fig. 1). The vitality of the species, which are components in the association, is 1-3 points. Species composition of the associations is not rich – about 12-14 species with TPC of 60-75%.

Table 1: The species composition of licorice-wormwood association in the Taisoigan Sands

Species are ranged in 2 tiers of high and low herbs. The upper tier (30-40 cm high) is composed of species such as Artemisia arenaria – sp-cop, Achnatherum splendens – sol, Syrenia siliculosa – sol, Dianthus ramosissimus – sol, and Agropyron desertorum – un. The lower tier (up to 25 cm high) is composed of Glycyrrhiza glabra – cop1, Cynodon dactlylon – sol, Achillea micrantha – sol, Poa bulbosa – sol, Jurinea tenuiloba – sol, and others.

Thickets of the common licorice are situated not in compact, but in the individual sites in topographic lows between the bumpy sand. Area covered by the licorice associations is 78.2 ha. The yield of underground organs in terms of air-dry weight amounted to 18118 kg/ha. Exploitable volume of underground organs is estimated at 1416.8 tons, the amount of possible annual collection of licorice raw reserves – 141.7 tons (Table 2).

Figure 1: Appearance of common licoricein the Taisoigan Sands.   Click here to View figure

Table 2: Raw reserves of common licorice underground organs in the territory of Atyrau and West Kazakhstan regions (air-dry weight)

In the valley and the floodplain of the Uter River, common licorice grows within the composition of sedge-forb meadow (Carex diluta + Carex vulpine – Herba varia) association. Total plant cover amounts to 90-95%. The territory is characterized by light brown loamy soils and is rich in herbs. The floodplain areas are aligned with a small difference in height and development of the micro-relief. The expansion zone is used as pastures and hayfields. The transformation amounted to 30-35%. The moistening of the association is due to the high precipitation, close-lying groundwater and river floods.

Licorice is a component with an abundance of sp dominated by Carex diluta, codominant – Carex vulpine. Other species are components with an abundance of sp-sol-un. Species composition is quite significant – about 45-50 species (Table 3).

Table 3: Floristic composition of sedge-forb meadow association

Species are ranged in 3 tiers (Fig. 2).

Figure 2: Harvestable plants of common licorice in the valley of the Uter River.   Click here to View figure

Top wood tier (450-500 cm high) is formed by Elaeagnus angustifolia, Salix alba. Medium, bushy tier (120-150 cm high) is composed of Tamarix elongata. The third grassy tier consists of 3 sub-tiers: juncaceous (120-150 cm high); medium-grown herbs, 40-65 cm high (Calamagrostis epigeios, Onopordon acanthium, Leonurus glaucescens, Gypsophila patrinii) and low-growing herbs, 30-35 cm high (Plantago major,Rumex crispus, Bidens cernua, Inula caspica, Xanthium strumarium and others). Association has horizontal structure occasioned to the decrease to the watercourse of the river.

The thickets area amounted to 52.8 ha (Table 2). The yield capacity of underground organs is estimated at 25365 kg/ha, exploitable volume – 1339.3 tons, and the amount of possible annual collection of licorice raw – 133.9 tons.

Common licorice thickets in the territory of the West Kazakhstan Region are identified in the vicinity of the Zhambyl village, natural landmark of Balyktinsk spills, in 10 km from the Ural River floodplain, in the vicinity of Ushtobe village, in the Syrymbet tract, on the plain of Zhanakalinsk district, in floodplain forests of the Ural river, and in the territory of Ordinsk forestry.

Marketable thickets are observed in the Naryn Sands in the vicinity of the Zhambyl village within the composition of grass-herb association (Herba varia – Elytrigia repens + Melica transsilvanica) (Fig. 3, Table 4). The area is represented by the gently rolling hills with loamy sand soils. The hydrological regime is formed by precipitation, groundwater, and natural runoff. In spring, moistening is added due to the floods of the lake. The aspect is gray-green, TPC amounts to 30-80%, TPC on the elevated areas is lower, while in depressions – higher.

The territory is slightly used for grazing livestock. Degradation is not more than 5%. On the sands common licorice grows in separate spots sized from 20×30 up to 150×200 m, forming almost monotypic thickets. The occurrence of plants equals to 13.0±0.6 generative shoots per m². The main bulk of roots and rhizomes underlay at a depth of 50 cm.

Figure 3: Thickets of common licorice in the Naryn Sands.   Click here to View figure

Table 4: Floristic composition of the grass-forb association in the Naryn Sands

The association is dominated by Melica transsilvanica with an abundance of cор1 and vitality of 4 points, codominant is Elytrigia repens with an abundance of sp-cop and vitality of 4 points. Other species are components with an abundance of un-sp-sol and vitality of 1-5 points.

Plants are ranged in 3 tiers: upper tier is reed grass (40-50 cm high) represented by Calamagrostis epigeios; average tier is herbaceous (20-30 cm high) formed by Ferula nuda, Melica transsilvanica, Glycyrrhiza glabra, Artemisia austriaca, Arte-misia tschernieviana, Astragalus alopecurus, Phlomis pungens, and other herbs; the lower tier is herbaceous (up to 15 cm high) formed by Achillea micrantha, Helichrysum arenarium, Poa annua, Poa bulbosa, Carex physoides and others.

The total area of common licorice thickets in the Naryn Sands is estimated at 768 ha at yield capacity of 3000 kg/ha (Table 2). Exploitable volume is estimated at a level of 2304 tons, the amount of possible annual collection of licorice raw reserves is 230.4 tons.

Conclusion

Thus, the total area of the common licorice thickets in the territory of the Atyrau and Western-Kazakhstan regions made up 899.0 ha, exploitable volume – 5060.1 tons, and the amount of possible annual gathering of the air-dry licorice raw – 506.0 tons.

Acknowledgment

The studies were performed in the framework of the scientific-technical program “Botanical diversity of wild counterparts of cultivated plants in Western Kazakhstan as a source of enrichment and the conservation of genetic reserves of agro-biodiversity for the implementation of food program” (2013-2015).

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