Flora and vegetation of the Irpin forest

It is reported about the diversity of phytobiota of the valuable natural complex "Irpin Forest" in the Kyiv region. The data on the history of research of this interesting from a botanical perspective territory of Kyiv Polissia are presented. The features of the vegetation of different complexes of this forest area, dominated by oak-pine, cereal and moss-lichen forests, are characterized. The most valuable forests here are oak ones, which are rich in rare herbaceous plant species. Besides, there fragmentary occur alder stands on lowland areas. The data on the flora of this territory, which includes 437 species of vascular plants from 67 families and 4 divisions, are presented. Ten dominating families of flora (Asreaceae, Poaceae Rosaceae, etc.) include 51.1 % of the forest flora species. A high level of adventization of this flora (19.6 %) has been noted, which is a result of the accessibility of the territory and a significant number of the population of adjacent settlements. Species with a high level of invasiveness include Amorpha fruticosa L., Iva xanthiifolia Nutt., Erigeron annuus (L.) Desf., Galinsoga parviflora Cav., Oenothera biennis L., Oxalis stricta L., Reynoutria japonica Houtt., Solidago canadensis L., Solanum nigrum L. They most often occur along forest roads, on meadows, in places of selective cuttings, on the fringes of the forest. On the periphery of the forest, a number of species were found which have fallen out of cultivation – Berberis aquifolium Pursh, Datura stramonium L. Gaillardia pulchella Foug., Ricinus communis L., Vitis vinifera L. The data on the rare plant species of this territory are given. There are 34 rare taxa, the most valuable of which are the representatives of the families Orchidaceae, Ranunculaceae, Poaceae. Five species of plants of the forest (Dactylorhiza fuchsii (Druce) Soo, D. incarnata (L.) Soo, Epipactis helleborine (L.) Crantz, Platanthera bifolia (L.) Rich., Pulsatilla patens (L.) Mill. Sl) are listed in the Red Data Book of Ukraine. It is proposed to create a new object of the nature reserve fund of the Kyiv region – a regional landscape park "Streams" ("Potoky") on a part of this territory, with further plans to create an administration, security service and develop a management plan for resource management of the object.