A Study of the Effective Environmental Factors in the Distribution of Artemisia austriaca in the Southeast Slopes of Sabalan

1. Department of Rangeland and Watershed Management, University of Mohaghegh Ardabili, Ardabil, Iran.
2. Department of Soil Sciences, University of Mohaghegh Ardabili, Ardabil, Iran.
Abstract
This study was conducted in an attempt to investigate the relationship between the distribution of Artemisia austriaca Jacq. and some environmental characteristics in the southeast slopes of Sabalan. The density parameter was selected as the dependent variable with elevation, slope and aspect, rainfall and temperature, the percentage of clay, sand and silt, pH, organic materials, potassium, phosphorous, lime, electrical conductivity, bare soil, rock, gravel, litter, and the total canopy cover as the independent variables. Following systematic-random method, samples were collected from the roadsides in proper distances based on a 40-meter transect, each containing 5 plots of 1×1 m2 soil samples for recording the parameters. After producing related maps in the geographical information system, the topographic and climatic parameters were extracted for each site. The soil parameters were determined in the soil lab. Data was analyzed using t-test, cluster analysis, and discriminant analysis to determine the effective environmental factors in the distribution of species by means of SPSS16 and PCORD4. The results indicated that factors such as elevation, rainfall, temperature, and bare soil in the first place, and potassium, organic matter, and lime in the second place, and the geographical directions, the percentage of rock and gravels, slope, phosphorus, the percentage of litters, clay, and sand, electrical conductivity, and pH were amongst the environmental factors affecting the distribution of A.austriaca.