Nội dung

Turkish Journal of Botany http://journals.tubitak.gov.tr/botany/ Research Article Turk J Bot (2018) 42: 57-72 © TÜBİTAK doi:10.3906/bot-1703-58 Volumetric analysis of airborne pollen grains in the city of Uşak, Turkey 1, 1 1 1 2 Ulaş UĞUZ *, Aykut GÜVENSEN , Nedret ŞENGONCA TORT , Aylin EŞİZ DEREBOYLU , Pelin BARAN 1 Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Ege University, İzmir, Turkey 2 Department of Biology, Faculty of Science and Art, Uşak University, Uşak, Turkey Received: 21.03.2017 Accepted/Published Online: 06.10.2017 Final Version: 11.01.2018 Abstract: Airborne pollen in Uşak, a province in Turkey, was studied for two years (from 1 February 2014 to 31 January 2016) using the volumetric method and the most recent pollen data of the region were obtained. During the study, 23,915 pollen grains were detected. The pollens detected belonged to 53 taxa. Of the 53 taxa, 28 were woody and 25 were herbaceous. Of the pollen grains detected, 86% (20,565 pollen grains) were from woody plants, 4.74% (1133 pollen grains) belonged to Poaceae, and 8.65% (2071 pollen grains) were from other herbaceous plants, whereas 0.61% (146 pollen grains) were unidentified pollen grains. Of the woody taxa, those whose pollen grains comprised more than 1% each of the total number of pollen grains during the study were Quercus (32.60%), Pinaceae (31.96%), Cupressaceae/Taxaceae (10.22%), Fraxinus (5.47%), and Platanus (1.12%), whereas of the herbaceous taxa, those whose pollen grains comprised more than 1% each of the total number of pollen grains were Poaceae (4.74%), Amaranthaceae (1.82%), Plantago (1.59%), and Rumex (1.18%). In the two-year period, the highest airborne pollen concentrations were recorded in May (47.30%), followed by April (27.64%) and June (10.47%). The results obtained in the study indicated that the dominant airborne pollen types detected in Uşak generally had allergenic effects at moderate or high levels and that these taxa reached the highest amount in May. Key words: Aeropalynology, pollen calendar, Uşak, Turkey 1. Introduction Allergic diseases affect 20%–30% of Turkish population and constitute an important disease group due to the labor and financial losses they cause (Bıçakçı et al., 2009). In some countries, the rates of diseases causing allergy in humans are as follows: 14% in Finland, 5.9%– 18.5% in France, 6.6% in Holland, 13.1%–13.3% in Italy, 12.9%–32.7% in Japan, 10%–20.6% in Norway, 10.6% in Spain, 0.5%–14.2% in Switzerland, 13%–24% in Sweden, 3%–29% in the UK, 10.2%–42% in the US, 9.5%–22.5% in Germany, 12.5% in Denmark, 18.2% in Scotland, and 16.7% in Poland (Bousquet et al., 2008). Many allergic diseases are caused by airborne pollen due to seasonal pollination. The degree of pollen’s allergenic effect on humans differs from one species to another. Turkey, which is home to about 12,000 taxa, has three phytogeographical regions. These regions have different climatic characteristics and different flora, and the amount of different pollen types of wind-pollinated plants vary from one region to another (Bıçakçı et al., 2009). For allergic persons, the first step to protect themselves against pollen allergy is to know the type of the pollen they are allergic to and what period of the year they might be exposed to that type of pollen in the region they live in. Therefore, * Correspondence: ulas.uguz@ege.edu.tr it is very important to determine the amount of different pollen types in a settlement (Güvensen and Öztürk, 2002). If the treatment process of an individual allergic to pollen is to be managed better, it is also important to determine the amounts of airborne pollen in different regions and to prepare pollen calendars for these regions. Various studies have been conducted on allergenic pollen in different regions of the world, the effects of the allergenic pollen on vulnerable individuals, and the pollination periods of the taxa producing allergenic pollen by using different methods, and pollen calendars have been created for some of these regions (Gioulekas et al., 2004a; Rodriguez-Rajo et al., 2004; Marínez-Bracero et al., 2015). As in many other countries, similar studies have been conducted in different regions of Turkey, and significant data have been obtained on the detection of the amount of different pollen types, and association between meteorological factors and pollen types and concentrations (İnceoğlu et al., 1994; Bıçakçı et al., 1996; Pınar et al., 1999; Guvensen and Ozturk, 2003; Celenk et al., 2010; Bicakci et al., 2017). Our aims in the present study were (1) to investigate the airborne pollen in Uşak for the first time with the volumetric method, (2) to prepare the most recent pollen 57 UĞUZ et al. / Turk J Bot map of the region, and (3) to determine the effects of meteorological factors on the distribution of airborne pollen belonging to dominant taxa in the atmosphere. 2. Materials and methods 2.1. Study area, flora, and climate Uşak connects West and Central Anatolia and is a gateway between the Aegean and Central Anatolian regions (Figure 1). The population of the city center is 353,048 according to the 2015 census. The majority of the province includes plateaus. However, Murat Mountain (2312 m) in the north–northeast and Bulkaz Mountain (1990 m) in the east form the boundaries of the province. In the floristic studies carried out in these regions, species belonging to three different phytogeographical regions in Turkey have been detected. According to the aforementioned studies, the following species are distributed as Euro–Siberian phytogeographical elements: Carpinus betulus L., Corylus avellana L., Fagus orientalis Lipsky, Juncus articulatus L., Ligustrum vulgare L., Pinus sylvestris L., Populus tremula L., Salix alba L., S. cinerea L., Tilia rubra subsp. caucasica Rupr., Urtica dioica L.; Irano–Turanian phytogeographical elements: Artemisia spicigera C.Koch, Campanula involucrata Aucher ex A.DC, Fumana aciphylla Boiss., Quercus libani Olivier; Mediterranean phytogeographical elements: Cistus laurifolius L., Jasminum fruticans L., Pinus brutia Ten., Plantago holosteum Scop., Quercus cerris L., Q. coccifera L., Q. ithaburensis subsp. macrolepis Kotschy, Figure 1. Location of the study area (Uşak). 58 Q. vulcanica Boiss. et Heldr., and Salix amplexicaulis Bory et Chaub (Çırpıcı, 1989; Dönmez Şahin and Serin, 2009). On the other hand, major species planted in the parks, gardens, and the city center are Acer negundo L., A. saccharinum L., A. platanoides L., A. palmatum Thunb., Aesculus hippocastaneum L., Betula alba L., Catalpa bignonoides Walter, Cedrus atlantica (Endl.), C. deodara (Roxb.) G.Don, C. libani A.Rich., Cercis siliquastrum L., Cupressus sempervirens L., Cupressocyparis leylandii (A.B. Jacks. & Dallim.) Dallim., Elaeagnus angustifolia L., Fraxinus spp., Hibiscus syriacus L., Ligustrum japonicum Thunb., Malus floribunda Sieb. ex Van Houtte, Pinus pinea L., Pittosporum tobira (Thunb.) W.T.Aiton, Platanus orientalis, Prunus cerasifera Ehrh., P. serrulata Lindl., Rosa spp., Quercus spp., Robinia pseudoacacia L., Salix spp., Sophora japonica L., Thuja orientalis L., Tilia tomentosa Moench., and Viburnum spp. Due to its location, the region where the Mediterranean climate reigns is also under the influence of continental climate. Due to the increased effect of continental climate, winters are colder in this region than in the Aegean region, and summers are not as warm (Darkot and Tuncel, 1995). Meteorological data (daily average temperature (°C), daily precipitation (mm), daily average relative humidity (%), and daily average wind speed (m/s)) about Uşak were obtained from the data sent to the Turkish Meteorological Data Archiving System (TUMAS) by the Directorate of the Uşak Meteorological Station. According to the meteorological data obtained from the system, in the UĞUZ et al. / Turk J Bot study period, the highest average temperature in Uşak was in July (24.62 °C) and the lowest in January (2.03 °C). The average rainfall was highest in June (8.07 mm) and lowest in July (0.1 mm). The average humidity was lowest in July (42.11%) and highest in January (74.55%). The highest and lowest average wind speeds were recorded in January (1.52 m/s) and in December (0.93 m/s), respectively. 2.2. Aerobiological method Airborne pollen data in Uşak Province were collected from 1 February 2014 to 31 January 2016, using the 7-day volumetric trap “Lanzoni VPPS 2010” of Hirst’s design (Hirst, 1952). The pollen trap was installed on the roof of the rectorate building of Uşak University. The rectorate building was approximately 25-m tall, away from any barrier that might prevent air circulation, and had an uninterrupted energy source. It was located at a place representing the features of the city. Silicone oil was applied to the Melinex tape on the drum of the pollen trap, which completed its full rotation in a week. The tape was replaced weekly. The adhesive tape was brought to the laboratory and divided into 7 equal pieces, each of which was used as a preparation representing one day. To identify and count the pollen grains, an Olympus light microscope with 400× magnification was used. The method described by the Spanish Aerobiological Network was used in the atmospheric sampling and analysis (Galan et al., 2007). The pollen concentrations of the identified taxa were converted into the number of airborne pollen grains per cubic meter, and pollen tables were formed. Any taxa whose pollen grains comprised more than 1% of the total number of airborne pollen grains in Uşak during the study were defined as dominant taxa. The start date of the main pollen seasons (MPS) of these taxa were calculated when their annual pollen concentrations exceeded 2.5% of the total number of pollen grains and the end occurred when 97.5% of the annual pollen concentration had been reached (Andersen, 1991). At the end of the study, 10-day pollen concentrations were added together for each month, then mean values were calculated, and finally a pollen calendar related to the study period was prepared based on these mean values (Spieksma, 1991). In the statistical analysis, the average daily pollen concentrations of the 9 taxa (Quercus, Pinaceae, Cupressaceae/Taxaceae, Fraxinus, Poaceae, Amaranthaceae, Plantago, Rumex, Platanus) with the highest pollen concentrations in the atmosphere of Uşak during the MPS were correlated with the following parameters: average temperature (°C), average relative humidity (%), total precipitation (mm), and average wind speed (m/s). The statistical analysis was performed with the Spearman correlation test using SPSS 20 (IBM, Armonk, NY, USA). 3. Results During the two-year study period, airborne pollen grains of 53 different taxa were detected in Uşak. Of the 53 taxa, 28 belonged to woody plants and 25 belonged to herbaceous plants. Of the 23,915 pollen grains, 14,683 were detected in the first year and 9232 in the second year. Of the pollen grains counted, 86% (20,565 pollen grains) were from woody plants, 13.39% (3204 pollen grains) were from herbaceous plants, and 4.74% (1133 pollen grains) were from Poaceae, whereas 0.61% (146 pollen grains) were not identified (Table 1). Monthly variation in total pollen concentrations during the two-year period and the variation in woody and herbaceous pollen grains are given in Figures 2 and 3. Of the total annual pollen count, 86.37% was detected in May, April, and June. The months when the highest pollen concentrations were detected in the second year were the same as those in the first year. In both years, the highest pollen concentrations from the woody taxa were detected in May, April, and June, whereas those from the herbaceous taxa were detected in May, June, and July. Of the woody taxa, those whose pollen grains comprised more than 1% of the total number of pollen grains during the study were Quercus (32.60%, 7796 pollen grains), Pinaceae (31.96%, 7643 pollen grains), Cupressaceae/ Taxaceae (10.22%, 2445 pollen grains), Fraxinus (5.47%, 1307 pollen grains), and Platanus (1.12%, 268 pollen grains). The pollen of these five taxa constituted 94.6% of the woody pollen and 81.37% of the total pollen. Of the herbaceous taxa, those whose pollen grains comprised more than 1% of the total number of pollen grains each were Poaceae (4.74%, 1133 pollen grains), Amaranthaceae (1.82%, 436 pollen grains), Plantago (1.59%, 380 pollen grains), and Rumex (1.18%, 282 pollen grains). The pollen of these four taxa constituted 69.5% of the herbaceous pollen and 9.33% of the total pollen (Table 2). During the study, the changes in the concentration of the dominant taxa in Uşak atmosphere are given in Figure 4. Quercus constituted 32.60% of the total pollen and was the taxon with the highest number of pollen grains. The airborne pollen of this taxon was observed from January to July, and the highest airborne pollen concentration of this taxon was recorded in May (5219 pollen grains, 21.82%) (Table 2). The main pollen season for Quercus lasted 54 days between 10 April and 2 June in the first year, and 40 days between 17 April and 26 May in the second year (Table 3). Airborne Pinaceae pollen was observed in all the months during the study. Pinaceae pollen constituted 31.96% of the total pollen and the highest concentration was recorded in May (3324 pollen grains, 13.90%) (Table 2). The main pollen season for Pinaceae was between 29 March and 19 June and lasted for 83 days in the first 59 UĞUZ et al. / Turk J Bot Table 1. Annual pollen concentrations and percentage of pollen taxa recorded in Uşak atmosphere (1st year: 1 February 2014 to 31 January 2015; 2nd year: 1 February 2015 to 31 January 2016). Taxa 1st year Pollen/m3 Quercus 4715 % 2nd year Pollen/m3 32.11 3081 % Total Pollen/m3 % 33.37 7796 32.60 Pinaceae 5020 34.19 2623 28.41 7643 31.96 Cupressaceae/Taxaceae 1679 11.43 766 8.30 2445 10.22 Fraxinus 857 5.84 450 4.87 1307 5.47 Platanus 142 0.97 126 1.36 268 1.12 Pistacia 104 0.71 72 0.78 176 0.74 Alnus 119 0.81 33 0.36 152 0.64 Salix 50 0.34 48 0.52 98 0.41 Morus 37 0.25 56 0.61 93 0.39 Casuarina equisetifolia 38 0.26 40 0.43 78 0.33 Sarcopoterium spinosum 43 0.29 33 0.36 76 0.32 Juglans 41 0.28 24 0.26 65 0.27 Ulmus 38 0.26 21 0.23 59 0.25 Phillyrea latifolia 30 0.20 13 0.14 43 0.18 Castanea sativa 28 0.19 7 0.08 35 0.15 Corylus 17 0.12 17 0.18 34 0.14 Ericaceae 18 0.12 14 0.15 32 0.13 Rosaceae 22 0.15 10 0.11 32 0.13 Betulaceae 17 0.12 12 0.13 29 0.12 Carpinus 4 0.03 20 0.22 24 0.10 Fagus 12 0.08 11 0.12 23 0.10 Populus 9 0.06 6 0.06 15 0.06 Tilia 9 0.06 5 0.05 14 0.06 Acer 6 0.04 4 0.04 10 0.04 Ailanthus 6 0.04 2 0.02 8 0.03 Cistaceae 5 0.03 1 0.01 6 0.03 Eucalyptus camaldulensis 3 0.02 0 0.00 3 0.01 0.00 1 0.00 7495 81.18 20,565 86 Aesculus 1 0.01 Woody taxa total 13,070 89.01 Poaceae 453 3.09 680 7.37 1133 4.74 Amaranthaceae 224 1.53 212 2.30 436 1.82 Plantago 189 1.29 191 2.07 380 1.59 Rumex 154 1.05 128 1.39 282 1.18 Urticaceae 120 0.82 19 0.21 139 0.58 Apiaceae 51 0.35 82 0.89 133 0.56 Asteraceae 40 0.27 73 0.79 113 0.47 Brassicaceae 53 0.36 42 0.45 95 0.40 Artemisia 29 0.20 63 0.68 92 0.38 Xanthium 42 0.29 46 0.50 88 0.37 Mercurialis 37 0.25 32 0.35 69 0.29 Cyperaceae 19 0.13 35 0.38 54 0.23 60 UĞUZ et al. / Turk J Bot Table 1. (Continued). 1st year Taxa 2nd year % Pollen/m3 Total Pollen/m3 % Pollen/m3 % Taraxacum 19 0.13 23 0.25 42 0.18 Papaveraceae 14 0.10 9 0.10 23 0.10 Ambrosia 15 0.10 4 0.04 19 0.08 Centaurea 6 0.04 13 0.14 19 0.08 Lamiaceae 9 0.06 9 0.10 18 0.08 Astragalus 9 0.06 6 0.06 15 0.06 Fabaceae 10 0.07 4 0.04 14 0.06 Typha 11 0.07 1 0.01 12 0.05 Caryophyllaceae 6 0.04 2 0.02 8 0.03 Ranunculaceae 5 0.03 1 0.01 6 0.03 Rubiaceae 6 0.04 1 0.01 7 0.03 Galium 4 0.03 0.00 4 0.02 Campanula 3 0.02 0.00 3 0.01 Herbaceous taxa total 1528 10.41 1676 18.16 3204 13,39 Unidentified 85 0.58 61 0.66 146 0.61 Total 14,683 100.00 9232 100.00 23,915 100.00 Woody Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Jan May Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Jan Herbaceous Nov Apr Dec May Jan Jun Oct Mar FebSep 6000 5500 1st yearA 5000 4500 2nd year 4000 3500 3000 2500 2000 1500 1000 500 0 Aug Jul Jun May Apr Mar Feb Pollen grains/m3 Pollen grains/m ³ 6000 5500 5000 4500 4000 3500 3000 2500 2000 1500 1000 500 0 Jun Apr Jan Dec Nov Oct Sep Aug Jul Jun May Apr Herbaceous B Mar Pollen grains/m3 Woody 6000 5500 5000 4500 4000 3500 3000 2500 2000 1500 1000 500 0 Feb A Mar 6000 5500 5000 4500 4000 3500 3000 2500 2000 1500 1000 500 0 Feb Pollen grains/m3 Figure 2. Monthly variation in pollen concentration in Uşak. n grains/m3 Figure 3. Monthly variation in woody and herbaceous pollen grains recorded in Uşak atmosphere; (A) 1 February 2014 to 31 January 2015; (B) 1 February 2015 to 31 January 2016. 6000 5500 5000 4500 4000 3500 3000 B 61 UĞUZ et al. / Turk J Bot Table 2. Monthly distribution of pollen grains (PG/m³) and percentage (%) of dominant taxa in Uşak atmosphere. Taxa/Month Quercus Pinaceae Cupressaceae/Tax. Fraxinus Platanus Total woody Poaceae Amaranthaceae Plantago Rumex Total herbaceous Total (over 1%) Others Unidentified Total Feb Mar Apr May Jun Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Jan Total % 0.00 0.21 9.15 21.82 1.39 0.01 0.00 32.60 PG/m³ 1 51 2189 5219 332 3 1 7796 % 0.12 0.69 10.72 13.90 5.38 0.33 0.20 0.14 0.16 0.13 0.08 0.11 31.96 PG/m³ 28 166 2564 3324 1287 78 47 33 39 30 20 27 7643 % 0.43 2.34 4.09 2.46 0.52 0.09 0.00 0.03 0.04 0.03 0.06 0.12 10.22 PG/m³ 103 560 979 588 125 21 1 7 10 7 15 29 2445 % 0.08 0.20 0.36 4.58 0.23 0.00 5.47 PG/m³ 20 49 85 1096 56 1 1307 % 0.01 0.22 0.74 0.13 0.02 PG/m³ 2 53 177 32 4 % 0.64 3.68 25.06 42.90 7.54 1.12 268 0.43 0.20 0.17 0.20 0.15 0.15 0.24 81.37 PG/m³ 154 879 5994 10259 1804 103 48 40 49 37 35 57 19459 % 0.02 0.11 0.24 1.84 1.16 0.69 0.31 0.23 0.12 0.01 0.00 0.00 4.74 PG/m³ 4 1 % PG/m³ % 0.01 27 58 440 277 166 73 55 29 2 1 0.01 0.01 0.07 0.14 0.36 0.73 0.33 0.13 0.02 0.00 32 5 1133 1.82 3 3 17 34 86 175 80 1 436 0.05 0.27 0.40 0.38 0.39 0.08 0.01 0.00 1.59 2 1 PG/m³ 2 12 64 95 90 94 20 % 0.02 0.08 0.22 0.42 0.31 0.13 0.01 380 1.18 PG/m³ 4 20 52 100 73 31 2 % 0.04 0.26 0.74 2.73 1.98 1.58 1.13 0.57 0.26 0.03 0.01 0.00 9.33 PG/m³ 10 62 177 652 474 377 270 137 61 7 3 1 2231 282 % 0.69 3.93 25.80 45.62 9.53 2.01 1.33 0.74 0.46 0.18 0.16 0.24 90.70 PG/m³ 164 941 6171 10911 2278 480 318 177 110 44 38 58 21690 % 0.41 1.51 1.74 1.56 0.86 0.77 0.82 0.64 0.17 0.11 0.03 0.08 8.69 PG/m³ 97 362 417 372 206 184 195 152 40 26 8 20 2079 % 0.02 0.05 0.10 0.12 0.09 0.10 0.05 0.03 0.02 0.00 0.02 0.01 0.61 PG/m³ 5 12 23 29 21 25 12 8 4 1 4 2 146 % 1.11 5.50 27.64 47.30 10.47 2.88 2.20 1.41 0.64 0.30 0.21 0.33 100.00 PG/m³ 266 1315 6611 11312 2505 689 525 337 154 71 50 80 23915 year. In the second year, it was between 6 April and 24 September, and lasted 172 days (Table 3). Cupressaceae/Taxaceae was the taxon with the third highest pollen concentration and its pollen constituted 10.22% of the total pollen. Airborne pollen of Cupressaceae/Taxaceae was observed in all months during the study, but the highest pollen concentration of this taxon was recorded in April (4.09%, 979 pollen grains) (Table 2). The main pollen season for this taxon lasted 126 days between 11 February and 16 June in the first year, and 76 days between 5 March and 19 May in the second year (Table 3). 62 Jul Fraxinus pollen accounted for 5.47% of the total airborne pollen. Airborne pollen of Fraxinus was observed from February to July, and the highest pollen concentration of this taxon was recorded in May (4.58%, 1096 pollen grains) (Table 2). The main pollen season for this taxon lasted 75 days between 20 March and 2 June in the first year and 54 days between 10 April and 2 June in the second year (Table 3). Poaceae pollen was detected in the air during the entire study period. Poaceae was the herbaceous taxon with the highest number of pollen grains and constituted 4.74% of the total pollen. While the highest pollen concentration of 450 400 350 300 250 200 150 100 50 0 Quercus 2014 2015 300 250 200 150 100 50 0 Pinaceae 120 100 80 60 40 20 0 Feb 15 Mar 01 Mar 15 Mar 29 Apr 12 Apr 26 May 10 May 24 Jun 07 Jun 21 Jul 05 Jul 19 Aug 02 Aug 16 Aug 30 Sep 13 Sep 27 Oct 11 Oct 25 Nov 08 Nov 22 Dec 06 Dec 20 Jan 03 Jan 17 Jan 31 140 120 100 80 60 40 20 0 Cupressaceae/Taxaceae Fraxinus 60 50 40 30 20 10 0 Poaceae 14 12 10 8 6 4 2 0 Amaranthaceae Pollen/m3 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0 20 18 16 14 12 10 8 6 4 2 0 Plantago Feb 01 Feb 15 Mar 01 Mar 15 Mar 29 Apr 12 Apr 26 May 10 May 24 Jun 07 Jun 21 Jul 05 Jul 19 Aug 02 Aug 16 Aug 30 Sep 13 Sep 27 Oct 11 Oct 25 Nov 08 Nov 22 Dec 06 Dec 20 Pollen/m3 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0 Pollen/m3 Mar 01 Mar 15 Mar 29 Apr 12 Apr 26 May 10 May 24 Jun 07 Jun 21 Jul 05 Jul 19 Aug 02 Aug 16 Aug 30 Sep 13 Sep 27 Oct 11 Oct 25 Nov 08 Nov 22 Dec 06 Dec 20 Pollen/m3 Feb 15 Mar 01 Mar 15 Mar 29 Apr 12 Apr 26 May 10 May 24 Jun 07 Jun 21 Jul 05 Jul 19 Aug 02 Aug 16 Aug 30 Sep 13 Sep 27 Oct 11 Oct 25 Nov 08 Nov 22 Dec 06 Dec 20 Pollen/m3 Feb 08 Feb 15 Feb 22 Mar 01 Mar 08 Mar 15 Mar 22 Mar 29 Apr 05 Apr 12 Apr 19 Apr 26 May 03 May 10 May 17 May 24 May 31 Jun 07 Jun 14 Jun 21 Jun 28 Jul 05 Jul 12 Jul 19 Jul 26 Pollen/m3 Pollen/m3 Feb 15 Mar 01 Mar 15 Mar 29 Apr 12 Apr 26 May 10 May 24 Jun 07 Jun 21 Jul 05 Jul 19 Aug 02 Aug 16 Aug 30 Sep 13 Sep 27 Oct 11 Oct 25 Nov 08 Nov 22 Dec 06 Dec 20 Jan 03 Jan 17 Jan 31 Pollen/m3 Mar 08 Mar 15 Mar 22 Mar 29 Apr 05 Apr 12 Apr 19 Apr 26 May 03 May 10 May 17 May 24 May 31 Jun 07 Jun 14 Jun 21 Jun 28 Jul 05 Jul 12 Jul 19 Jul 26 Pollen/m3 UĞUZ et al. / Turk J Bot Feb 01 Feb 08 Feb 15 Feb 22 Mar 01 Mar 08 Mar 15 Mar 22 Mar 29 Apr 05 Apr 12 Apr 19 Apr 26 May 03 May 10 May 17 May 24 May 31 Jun 07 Jun 14 Jun 21 Jun 28 Jul 05 Jul 12 Jul 19 Jul 26 Aug 02 Aug 09 Aug 16 Aug 23 Aug 30 Rumex Mar 01 Mar 08 Mar 15 Mar 22 Mar 29 Apr 05 Apr 12 Apr 19 Apr 26 May 03 May 10 May 17 May 24 May 31 Jun 07 Jun 14 Jun 21 Jun 28 Feb 01 Feb 08 Feb 15 Feb 22 Platanus Figure 4. Seasonal variation in dominated pollen types in Uşak atmosphere (2014–2015). Poaceae was recorded in May (1.84%, 440 pollen grains), 1 pollen grain was detected in December and January (Table 2). The main pollen season of Poaceae was between 24 March and 3 October (194 days) in the first year and between 12 April and 3 October (175 days) in the second year (Table 3). The airborne pollen of Amaranthaceae was observed in all the months except January and February. The highest concentrations were detected between May and October. This taxon, which constituted 1.82% of the total pollen grains, peaked in August (0.73%, 175 pollen grains) (Table 2). The main pollen season for this taxon lasted 147 days between 17 May and 10 October in the first year, and 147 days between 27 May and 20 October in the second year (Table 3). Plantago pollen constituted 1.59% of the total pollen. Plantago pollen was detected in the atmosphere between February and September. The highest amounts of Plantago pollen were detected in May (95 pollen grains), July (94 pollen grains), and June (90 pollen grains) (Table 2). The main pollen season for this taxon lasted 151 days between 17 March and 14 August in the first year, and 136 days between 4 April and 17 August in the second year (Table 3). Rumex pollen constituted 1.18% of the total pollen grains in Uşak during the study. Rumex pollen was detected in the atmosphere between February and August and peaked in May (0.42%, 100 pollen grains) (Table 2). The main pollen season for Rumex lasted 108 days between 19 March and 4 July in the first year, and 134 days between 16 March and 27 July in the second year (Table 3). Platanus pollen constituted 1.12% of the total pollen grains. Platanus pollen was detected in the air between February and June and peaked in April (0.74%, 177 pollen grains) (Table 2). While Platanus pollen was not among the dominant pollen types in the first year (in other words, its pollen concentration was not over 1%), its main pollen season lasted for 42 days from 27 March to 7 May in the second year (Table 3). In addition to these taxa, airborne pollen grains belonging to 22 woody taxa and 22 herbaceous taxa were detected in Uşak. Each of these pollen grains comprised less than 1% of total pollen (Table 1). Pollination seasons of these taxa are given in Figure 5. Seasonal variation in average temperature (°C), average relative humidity (%), total precipitation (mm), and average wind speed (m/s) are given in Figure 6. Although the monthly average temperature and average humidity values measured in the two years differed from one year to the other ​​(%), the differences were not significant in general. However, the average outdoor temperature in Uşak in February, March, and April in the first year was higher than that in the second year. On the other hand, the amount of precipitation varied remarkably in certain 63 UĞUZ et al. / Turk J Bot Table 3. Characteristics of the main pollen season (MPS) for the most important taxa in Uşak atmosphere. Quercus Main pollen season 10/04–02/06 17/04–26/05 54 40 Max. daily pollen/m - date 431 - 19/05 299 - 08/05 Main pollen season 29/03–19/06 06/04–24/09 Season length (days) 83 172 Max. daily pollen/m - date 288 - 24/04 104 - 27/05 Main pollen season 11/02–16/06 05/03–19/05 3 Cupressaceae/ Taxaceae Fraxinus 2nd year Season length (days) 3 Pinaceae 1st year Season length (days) 126 76 Max. daily pollen/m3 - date 110 - 24/04 83 - 30/03 Main pollen season 20/03–02/06 10/04–02/06 Season length (days) 75 54 Max. daily pollen/m - date 130 - 20/05 79 - 13/05 3 Main pollen season Platanus Poaceae 27/03–07/05 Season length (days) 14 - 23/03 17 - 17/04 Main pollen season 24/03–03/10 12/04–03/10 Season length (days) 194 175 Max. daily pollen/m - date 15 - 20/05 62 - 27/05 Main pollen season 17/05–10/10 27/05–20/10 Season length (days) 147 147 Max. daily pollen/m - date 15 - 19/08 7 - 26/08 and 08/09 Main pollen season 17/03–14/08 04/04–17/08 3 Amaranthaceae 3 Plantago Rumex 42 Max. daily pollen/m3 - date Season length (days) 151 136 Max. daily pollen/m3 - date 6 - 20/05 4 - 19/04, 25/06, 26/06, 16/07, 20/07, 21/07 Main pollen season 19/03–04/07 16/03–27/07 Season length (days) 108 134 Max. daily pollen/m - date 9 - 22/05 5 - 18/04, 15/05 3 periods of the two years. The amount of the rainfall in spring period in the second year was particularly high and effective. Average wind speed values measured in the second year were higher than were those in the first year. According to statistical results in the first year, significant positive correlations were determined between average temperatures and pollen concentrations of Quercus, Fraxinus, Amaranthaceae, and Rumex (P < 0.01 and P < 0.05). However, the negative effects of the total rainfall and average humidity on Cupressaceae/Taxaceae, Quercus, and Amaranthaceae pollen were statistically significant (P < 0.01). In the second year, the positive effect of the average temperature on Quercus, Cupressaceae/ Taxaceae, Amaranthaceae, Rumex, and Platanus pollen was statistically significant. However, the same parameter had a negative impact on pollen concentrations of 64 Pinaceae and Poaceae (P < 0.01 and P < 0.05). On the other hand, statistical data from the second year showed that the total rainfall had a positive effect on Pinaceae pollen and a negative effect on Plantago pollen. Furthermore, the average humidity had a positive effect on Poaceae and Pinaceae pollen and a negative effect on Cupressaceae/ Taxaceae and Amaranthaceae (P < 0.01 and P < 0.05) (Table 4). 4. Discussion The first four taxa (Quercus, Pinaceae, Cupressaceae/ Taxaceae, and Fraxinus) with the highest airborne pollen concentrations were woody plants and their pollen comprised 80.25% of the total airborne pollen. This is due the fact that these plants, which are pollinated by the wind and release a large number of pollen in the atmosphere, UĞUZ et al. / Turk J Bot TAXA Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Jan 1 2 3 1 2 3 1 2 3 1 2 3 1 2 3 1 2 3 1 2 3 1 2 3 1 2 3 1 2 3 1 2 3 1 2 3 Acer Aesculus Ailanthus Alnus Betulaceae Carpinus Castanea sativa C.equisetifolia Cistaceae Corylus Cupress./Taxac. Ericaceae E.camaldulensis Fagus Fraxinus Juglans Morus P.latifolia Pinaceae Pistacia Platanus Populus Quercus Rosaceae Salix S.spinosum Tilia Ulmus Ambrosia Apiaceae Artemisia Asteraceae Astragalus Brassicaceae Campanula Caryophyllaceae Centaurea Amaranthaceae Cyperaceae Galium Lamiaceae Fabaceae Mercurialis Papaveraceae Plantago Poaceae Ranunculaceae Rubiaceae Rumex Taraxacum Typha Urticaceae Xanthium 1600< 800-1599 400-799 200-399 100-199 50-99 24-49 12-23 6-11 3-5 1-2 Figure 5. Pollen calendar of Uşak. 65 66 120 100 0 5 4 0 Feb 01 Feb 15 Mar 01 Mar 15 Mar 29 Apr 12 Apr 26 May 10 May 24 Jun 07 Jun 21 Jul 05 Jul 19 Aug 02 Aug 16 Aug 30 Sep 13 Sep 27 Oct 11 Oct 25 Nov 08 Nov 22 Dec 06 Dec 20 Jan 03 Jan 17 Jan 31 0 Feb 01 Feb 15 Mar 01 Mar 15 Mar 29 Apr 12 Apr 26 May 10 May 24 Jun 07 Jun 21 Jul 05 Jul 19 Aug 02 Aug 16 Aug 30 Sep 13 Sep 27 Oct 11 Oct 25 Nov 08 Nov 22 Dec 06 Dec 20 Jan 03 Jan 17 Jan 31 % mm °C Feb 01 Feb 15 Mar 01 Mar 15 Mar 29 Apr 12 Apr 26 May 10 May 24 Jun 07 Jun 21 Jul 05 Jul 19 Aug 02 Aug 16 Aug 30 Sep 13 Sep 27 Oct 11 Oct 25 Nov 08 Nov 22 Dec 06 Dec 20 Jan 03 Jan 17 Jan 31 35 30 25 20 15 10 5 0 -5 -10 -15 50 Feb 01 Feb 15 Mar 01 Mar 15 Mar 29 Apr 12 Apr 26 May 10 May 24 Jun 07 Jun 21 Jul 05 Jul 19 Aug 02 Aug 16 Aug 30 Sep 13 Sep 27 Oct 11 Oct 25 Nov 08 Nov 22 Dec 06 Dec 20 Jan 03 Jan 17 Jan 31 m/s UĞUZ et al. / Turk J Bot Average temperature ( ºC) 40 2014 2015 Total precipitation ( mm) 30 20 10 Relative humidity ( %) 80 60 40 20 Wind speed(m/s) 3 2 1 Figure 6. Seasonal variation of average temperature (°C), average relative humidity (%), total precipitation (mm), and average wind speed (m/s) in Uşak (2014–2015).