The article presents the results of screening studies of raw materials of woody plants growing in humid subtropical conditions (“Sochi National Park”, “Arboretum” park) for the presence of essential oil. The mass fraction of essential oil was determined in fresh raw materials by hydrodistillation on Ginsberg apparatuses. The component composition of essential oils was established using a hardware and software complex based on the chromatograph “Chromatek-Crystal 5000.2”. The raw materials (freshly harvested leaves) of 52 species and cultivars of wood introduced species were studied. Essential oil was detected in 39 species. A high yield of essential oil (from 0.5% of the wet weight) was noted in Melaleuca armillaris (Sol. ex Gaertn.) Sm. (0.51%), Laurus nobilis L. (0.53%), Callistemon salignus cv. ʹMauve Mistʹ (0.54%), Eucalyptus globulus Labill. (0.57%), Eucalyptus niphophila Maiden & Blakely (0.66%), Callistemon linearifolius (Link) DC. (0.70%), C. coccineus F. Muell. (0.78%), C. viminalis (Sol. ex Gaerth.) G. Don (0.80%), Thuja plicata cv. ʹZebrinaʹ (0.85%), Callistemon phoeniceus Lindl. (0.86%), Cinnamomum camphora (L.) J. Presl (1.2%), C. glanduliferum (Wall.) Meisn. (1.6%), Eucalyptus cinerea F. Muell. ex Benth. (1.14%), E. globulus subsp. globulus (1.67%). The highest yield of essential oil among the studied species was noted in Umbellularia californica (Hook. & Arn.) Nutt. – 5.10% of the wet weight.

The article presents the results of studies on the identification of diagnostic signs of white mistletoe shoots and the content of macro- and microelements. The purpose of the study is to reveal the features of the morphological and anatomical structure of the vegetative organs of mistletoe and to study their elemental composition. The object of the study was fresh and dried leafy shoots of Viscum album L., growing on trees and shrubs in the regions of the Stavropol and Krasnodar regions, the republics of the North Caucasus. The microscopic method of pharmacognostic analysis was performed in accordance with the requirements of the State Pharmacopoeia XIV edition. The analysis of the elemental composition was carried out on the basis of JSC «North Caucasian PGO» by the evaporation method on a DFS-8-1 device. The results of the work can be applied to the standardization of medicinal plant materials of mistletoe. The analyzed samples of white mistletoe shoots are rich in calcium, iron, phosphorus and were characterized by low sodium content. Shoots of V. album collected from black poplar showed the highest magnesium content. In the shoots of V. album collected from the common pear, the content of zinc is quite high. According to the conducted studies of white mistletoe shoots, their morphological data and anatomical and diagnostic features were specified. The results obtained allowed the authors to conclude that there were no significant differences in the content of macro- and microelements in samples of mistletoe raw materials harvested from different host trees and their equivalence.

The article presents the results of studies of the dynamics of accumulation of essential oil components in the aerial part of Artemisia scoparia cv. 'Tavrida' during the period of generative development of plants. Chromatography-mass-spectrometric method established the qualitative and quantitative content of the components of the essential oil of Artemisia scoparia. One of the main evaluative biochemical criteria for the prospects of essential oil cultivars is the highest content in the essential oil of the sum of the main components, the mass fraction of which exceeds 50.0%. The results show that capillene, β-pinene, and limonene are among those in Artemisia scoparia cv. 'Tavrida'. Identification of phenolic compounds in the aboveground part of paniculate wormwood was carried out by high-performance liquid chromatography. As a result of the study, the following compounds were found: flavonoids – luteolin 6,8-di-C-glucoside; rutin; hyperoside; kaempferol-O-rutinoside and luteolin; phenolic acids – chlorogenic, 3,5-, 3,4- and 4,5-dicofeylquinic acids; coumarins – scoparone, scopoletin, umbelliferon.

Data on the features of the qualitative composition, physicochemical properties, antioxidant and antimicrobial activity of two hydrolates: the bearded thyme sv 'Yubileynyy' (Thymus striatus Vahl) and the  common  thyme  sv 'Fantazya' (Thymus vulgaris L.) are given. It is shown that the studied hydrolates contain all the main components of essential oil characteristic of these plant species. The pronounced antimicrobial effect of the bearded and ordinary thyme hydrolates in relation to the reference strains of S. aureus, E. coli, and C. albicans was evaluated.  

Component composition of a number of biologically active substances in the leaves of Olea europaea L., growing on the basis of the Nikitsky Botanical Gardens was spectrophotometrically determined. The total content of polyphenols averages 538.94 mg/100 g dry weight. The main flavonoids of the leaves are anthocyanidins, flavanones (197.1 mg/100 g) and flavanols (299.7 mg/100 g). Of the anthocyanidins, pelargonidins (184.0 mg/100 g) and cyanidins (160.1 mg/100 g) are the most represented, the content of other anthocyanins is at the same level - an average of 18% of the total anthocyanins. The amount of photosynthetic pigments is 0.43 ± 0.02 mg/g (chlorophyll b), 1.32 ± 0.07 mg/g (chlorophyll a) and 0.40 ± 0.02 mg/g (total carotenoids). The content of anthocyanidins negatively correlates with the amount of chlorophylls and carotenoids. The analysis and identification of biologically active substances in the leaves of Olea europaea will continue, which will allow us to assess the pharmacological significance of this crop in the Southern Coast of the Crimea.

The results of the study of the early stages of ontogenesis of Orthosiphon aristatus (Blume) Miq. under the conditions of introduction on the Southern Coast of the Crimea are presented. Morpho-biological peculiarities of seeds of the species are revealed. It was found that the color of sepals of mature seeds of O. aristatus is usually yellowish green, while the color of the seeds themselves becomes brown. Morphometric parameters of these seeds, such as length and width, have a very low level of variability (not exceeding 8%). On average, seed length is 2.00 mm and width are 1.40 mm. Physiologically mature O. aristatus seeds take about 14 days to germinate successfully. If the seeds retain their density when tested for viability, they will be covered with a layer of mucus of varying thickness when they germinate. The species is characterized by the above-ground type of seed germination, with the formation of a complete sprout clearly distinguishable by primary roots, stems, and seedpods.

Comparative phytochemical study of different morphoforms of myrtle with borderline indicators of the area of the leaf blade revealed biochemical variations of this species in the conditions of the Southern Coast of the Crimea. 'Yuzhnoberezhny' cv., with a leaf area of 3.75 ± 0.33 cm², was characterized by maximum antioxidant activity (116 mg-eq GR/g cm), as well as a high content of myrtenyl acetate in the essential oil (33.74%) and low – α-pinene (4.82%). This myrtenyl acetate chemotype of oil is valuable for both pharmacology and perfumery. The maximum values for the accumulation of proline and essential oil, which are considered by us as a protective reaction of the plant from various types of stress, differ in the small-leaved form of myrtle (S_l = 0.50 ± 0.06 cm²) (1.45 and 1.77 times, respectively, compared with 'Yuzhnoberezhny' cv.); it is also characterized by the largest leaves (S_l = 5.54 ± 0.42 cm²), high yield (1.19 kg/m²) and plant growth strength, which allows this form to occupy a leading position in the collection of essential oil (3.01 g/ind.). The large-leaved form, as expected, differs greatly from other samples in the quality of essential oil: the chromatographic profile of this cineol chemotype was characterized by the dominance of eucalyptol (40.50%) and α-pinene (20.33%), in which myrtenyl acetate (0.35%) acts as a minor compound.

The fruits of the Olea europaea L. olive tree are rich in essential nutrients, and the products obtained from them are important for health and are used in the Mediterranean diet. The quality of processed olives directly depends on the raw materials used and processing methods. The paper determined the ranges of variability of lipid volumes and their fractions in fresh and processed fruits of the studied olive cultivars growing on the territory of the Federal State Funded Institution of Science "NBG-NSC" in the conditions of the Southern Coast of the Crimea. In the studied fruits, the proportion of raw fat, calculated on an absolutely dry weight, ranged from 10% to 26%, and after processing – from 9% to 35%. Most of the lipid fraction in the mesocarp of freshly harvested olives is MUFA, mainly oleic – from 49.5 to 66.2%, and after processing – from 59.8 to 75.4%. PUFAs in fresh fruits are mainly represented by linoleic - from 3.3 to 10.7% and linolenic - from 0.2 to 0.4%, and after processing, depending on the cultivar and processing method, - from 5.7% to 10 .4% and from 0.2% to 0.7%, respectively.

The increase in lipid content was achieved through the use of selected processing methods. 

The effect of long-term use of Ziziphora bungeana Juz. infusion for a leukogram in 30 laboratory white rats has been investigated. The animals were divided into 3 equal groups. The first one was intact (healthy) animals. The second group included test animals with a model of rheumatoid arthritis. The third one consisted of rats with arthritis who were treated with Ziziphora extract for 90 days. It was found that modeling rheumatoid arthritis causes a significant increase in the level of lymphocytes against the background of a decrease in the level of other leukocyte forms. Long-term use of Ziziphora extract contributes to the normalization of the white blood. The initial level of lymphocytes is restored, the level of eosinophils and monocytes increases. The number of segmented neutrophils even exceeds that of intact rats. Thus, Ziziphora extract proved to be an effective drug for correcting the leukogram in case of rheumatoid arthritis. 

Possible application of spectral research methods for the determination of azulenes on the surface of plant cells promising as pharmacological raw materials has been considered. Leaf surfaces with blue or silver color in Eucalyptus cinerea F. Muell. ex Benth., Hippophae rhamnoides L., needles and cypress cones (berry-cones) Juniperus excelsa M. Bieb. and Juniperus × pfitzeriana (Späth) P.A. Schmidt 'Blue Cloud' were investigated. The peaks of 580-620 nm and 660-666 nm characteristic of azulenes and chlorophyll, respectively, have been recorded in the absorption spectra of leaves and cypress cones using a microspectrofluorimeter/ microspectrophotometer. 10 minute extracts from the surface of intact cells with 100% acetone or 95% ethanol have been analyzed to confirm the presence of azulenes in the samples. The content of azulenes in such extracts was in mg/g of wet weight in the leaves of Eucalyptus cinerea 12.5 ± 0.02 and Hippophae rhamnoides – 1.0 ± 0.1, and in the needles/cypress cones of juniper Juniperus excelsa – 1.76/1.46 ± 0.3/0.2 and Juniperus × pfitzeriana 'Blue Cloud' 0.55/2.96/ ± 0.01/0.3, accordingly. All the studied woody plants can be sources of azulenes.

The chemical compounds that determine the chemotype have different biological activity and fragrance category. Therefore, the definition of a chemotype has an important practical value, because the chemotype determines the use of plant species as sources of biologically active substances. We investigated three Thymus L. species from the collection of the Donetsk Botanical Garden. Essential oil compounds have been identified by GCMS. The major component content is the basis for determining chemotype. Geraniol with a quantity 76.39% is a major component of the Thymus serpillum L., so this species is the geraniol chemotype. Сitral and its isomers with a quantity 73.62% are major components in essential oil of the Thymus graniticus Klokov & Des.-Shost., so this species is the citral chemotype. Timol (monoterpene phenol) with a quantity 25.12% and related biogenetic compounds: γ- terpinene (23.03%) and p-cymene (24.72%) are major components in the essential oil of the Thymus marschallianus Willd., so this species is the thymol chemotype. The definition of сhemotype is an additional basis in the chemosystematics of the studied species.

Data on the development features, mass fraction and component composition of Tagetes minuta L. essential oil (small marigolds) when grown in the Northern Prisivashie region for 2020-2022 are presented. It has been established that in the conditions of this region, small marigolds go through all phases of development and form full-fledged seeds. The mass fraction of essential oil obtained by hydrodistillation averages 0.33± 0.02% of the wet weight in fresh raw materials, 0.36± 0.01% in inflorescences, 0.21± 0.02% in leaves. The major components of the essential oil, determined using a hardware and software complex based on the chromatograph "Chromatek-Crystal 5000.2", from the aboveground mass and inflorescences are (E)-ocimene (19.28 - 30.11% and 22.40 - 22.66%, respectively) and its derivatives: (E)-tagetenone (15.35 - 25.69% and 40.6 - 41.78%) and (Z)tagetenones (5.36 - 18.45% and 9.0 - 13.73%); from leaves - (Z) - (up to 57%) and (E) - (up to 17%) tagetenones. The obtained data make it possible to attribute the essential oil from the aboveground part of Tagetes minuta grown in the conditions of the Volga region to the ocimene-tagetenone chemotype (Gil, 2000), which, due to the high content of ocimene and tagetenones, is promising for use in the cosmetology and pharmacological industry. 

The component composition of aloe vera hydrolate (Aloe vera L.) was revealed, which is represented by volatile compounds: eucalyptol (0.14 mg/dm³), isomenthone (0.08 mg/dm³), a-bisabolone oxide A (0.36 mg/dm³), a-bisabolol (0.45 mg/dm³) and α-bisabolol oxide (0.09 mg/dm³). The total content of phenolic compounds in the hydrolate (10 mg/dm³), its antioxidant activity (0.20±0.06 mg/dm³) and antimicrobial effect on strains of pathogenic microorganisms (Staphylococcus aureus (strain – ATCC 25923), Escherichia coli (strain – ATCC 25922)). The presence of eucalyptol, bisabolol and isomentone in aloe vera hydrolate causes its anti-inflammatory, bactericidal, antiseptic, antispasmodic, deodorizing, tonic, soothing, healing, moisturizing and nourishing properties, with antibacterial and antiseptic action. 

As a result of studying the geographical and genetic structure of the avifauna of the Crimean Peninsula, it was found that it includes species of 5 types of faunas and Tropical group, in which 17 ecological and faunistic groupings are distinguished. The species of Nomadic (34.7%) and European (30.2%) types are dominant; with species of tropical genesis (19.3%) being subdominant. Representatives of the Euro-Chinese and Siberian fauna types account for 9.4% and 3.5%, while the Himalayan fauna type is represented by one species. Since the 19th and the first half of the 20th centuries, the dynamics in the composition of estuarine and alluviofilial complexes of the European, Nomadic types and Tropical group is noted due to an increase in the number of species of estuaryisland and floodplain groupings. The leading anthropogenic factors of changes in the number of species, composition, and spatial distribution of birds in the last 50 years are hydro- and forest reclamation. 

Phenodates of the flowering period of the orchid Orchis mascula in the Crimea were revealed. The earliest flowering was observed from early April, the latest from late April, the end of flowering – the end of May – the first days of June. Phenodates of flowering in the Southern Coast’s cenopopulation (mountain Chakаtysh) and in the Mountain forests (Karabel-Dag tract) coincided; the sum of positive temperatures of the beginning of flowering of cenopopulations on the Southern Coast averaged 690 °С, while in the mountain forests it was 264 °С. The distribution of generative individuals in the two studied cenopopulations is highly irregular, deviates from normal and represents a MacArthur "broken stick" distribution. The Southern Coast and Mountain Forest cenopopulations of O. mascula differed significantly in the length of peduncles, inflorescences and the number of flowers in the inflorescences. The morphological differences between plants of the Southern Coast and mountain-forest cenopopulations, as well as significant differences in the sum of positive temperatures of the phenodate flowering period, suggest the presence of two ecological forms of O. mascula in the Crimea.