Wealth and Diversity of the Flora of Kyrgyzstan

The flora of Kyrgyzstan is rich and diverse.

It is the sole source of plant raw materials for medicine, many sectors of agriculture, and industry. Therefore, the rational use of plant resources is one of the main problems of modern biology.
As mentioned above, on the territory of Kyrgyzstan, which covers an area of 198,000 km², there are 3,786 species of higher flowering plants alone, not counting mosses, lichens, algae, fungi, and other plants that also contain useful substances. All this speaks to the extraordinary richness and diversity of the flora of Kyrgyzstan.

If we compare the flora of the republic with the flora of other countries, its richness appears even brighter and more significant. For example, in Altai, on an area of 400,000 km², 1,900 species of higher plants have been recorded. In Mongolia, on an area of 1,531,000 km², which is seven times larger than Kyrgyzstan, only 1,600 species have been registered. And in Eastern Pamir, there are only 450 species.

The richness of the flora of Kyrgyzstan is influenced by many factors. First and foremost, the diverse modern physical and geographical conditions, the complex history of flora and cenogenesis, starting from the Paleozoic era. The glacial conditions have also influenced the formation of the plant world here. According to glaciologists, there were 26 glaciations in Kyrgyzstan, which facilitated the penetration of boreal flora into its territory.

One of the main reasons for the floristic diversity of Kyrgyzstan is, apparently, its geographical location.
The Tien Shan is a powerful mountain system that occupies a central position in Asia. Here, the migration paths of different floras intersect — boreal, Turanian, Mongolian-Manchurian, Japanese-Chinese, Indo-Himalayan, Mediterranean, and others. This intersection of paths undoubtedly has a dominant influence on the flora of the Tien Shan.

Moreover, the modern lithological composition contributes to the loosening of heredity, resulting in an intense process of speciation and formation of plants. Currently, such genera of flora as wormwood, onion, willow, feather grass, caragana, and many others are in a period of speciation and formation. Thus, the entire set of physical and geographical factors has led to a very complex floristic situation that has developed in the Tien Shan. It has been covered in detail in the eleven-volume guide "Flora of Kyrgyzstan."

An analysis of the flora of the republic has shown that 115 families of plants out of 162, widespread in the USSR, are found on its territory, along with 855 genera and 3,786 species of plants. It should be noted that recent studies have shown that many species of vegetation in Kyrgyzstan have not been accounted for, and some species have been included in the "Additions to the Flora of the Kyrgyz SSR." Further, more detailed study of the flora of our region is expected to increase these figures.

The largest number of species is found in the following families:
Asteraceae (or Compositae) — 583 species
Fabaceae (or Leguminosae) — 400 species
Poaceae (or Gramineae) — 293 species
Brassicaceae (or Cruciferae) — 198 species
Lamiaceae (or Labiatae) — 182 species
Amaryllidaceae (or Liliaceae) — 141 species
Rosaceae — 138 species
Apiaceae (or Umbelliferae) — 118 species
Ranunculaceae — 114 species
Caryophyllaceae — 101 species
Chenopodiaceae — 96 species
Cyperaceae — 91 species
Polygonaceae — 60 species
Salicaceae — 44 species
Juncaceae — 40 species
Rubiaceae — 34 species
Euphorbiaceae — 33 species
Primulaceae — 30 species
Solanaceae — 29 species
Saxifragaceae — 29 species
Caprifoliaceae — 25 species
Gentianaceae — 27 species
Malvaceae — 22 species

It is interesting to note that angiosperms make up 99% of the flora of Kyrgyzstan.

It is also important to emphasize that out of 115 families of higher plants, only 18 families are the main, floristically rich ones. They contain almost 75% of the entire flora of Kyrgyzstan (2,478 species). The remaining families are represented by a smaller number of species.

The largest genera of plants are:
Astragalus — 176 species
Onion — 70 species
Wormwood — 40 species
Sedge — 40 species
Dandelion — 40 species
Buttercup — 37 species

According to the floristic spectrum, Kyrgyzstan is a typical Holarctic province. Therefore, the main stages of florogenesis should be viewed through the prism of Holarctic flora. If we analyze the bio-ecomorphic structure of the flora, it is easy to see that the main biomass in Kyrgyzstan is formed by grasses. There are 3,175 species, including 2,270 perennial species and 896 annual and biennial species. The other bio-ecomorphic types are few in number. There are 260 species of shrubs in Kyrgyzstan, 119 species of semi-shrubs, 143 species of trees, 26 species of cushion plants, and 35 species of other biomorphs.

Thus, the flora of Kyrgyzstan is the flora of herbaceous plants.