CONTENT OF COMMON BUCKWHEAT POLLEN IN HONEYS PRODUCED IN DIFFERENT NATURAL AND CLIMATIC ZONES OF THE ALTAI REGION
The Altai Region is divided into zones that differ in terrain, climate, soils and vegetation. Common buckwheat is one of the most widespread melliferous plants and grain crops in the Region; honey-bees are its main pollinators. Buckwheat crops are the most productive in the forest-steppe areas due to the agro-climatic conditions and well-developed apiculture. There are no sufficient data on pollen analysis of honey varieties produced in the Altai Region in contemporary scholarly literature. Therefore, the research goal was to study the content of common buckwheat pollen in honeys produced in different natural and climatic zones of the Region. The studies were conducted according to the conventional methodology. The pollen in honey samples was identified to a family (species). The research results of 105 honey samples taken in 7 natural zones of 23 districts of the Altai Region are presented. The results showed that the composition of all studied honey samples included common buckwheat pollen (1.3-90.0%). It was found that 55 samples under study belonged to buckwheat monofloral honey varieties (GOST R 52451-2005). Five samples with the largest amount of common buckwheat pollen belonged to the Prialeyskaya zone (31.4-74.1%); 13 samples - to the Priobskaya zone (32.3-70.6%); 2 honey samples - to the Prialtayskaya zone (74.3%; 75.2%). The largest amount of buckwheat pollen was found in 9 honey samples taken in the vicinity of the City of Barnaul (31.0-86.1%); in 14 samples from the Biysko-Chumyshskaya zone (34.0-90.0%); in 11 samples from the Prisalairskaya zone (37.7-86.3%) and 1 sample from the Altayskay zone (47.0%) of the Region.