Characteristics of mistletoe shrubs (Viscum album subsp. austriacum (Wiesb.) Vollmann (1914)) on black pine in Bosnia and Herzegovina

U okviru istraživanja analizirane se karakteristike grmova imele, a domaćin na kojemu je istraživana prisutnost imele i njene osnovne karakteristike je crni bor (Pinus nigra). Na borovima se javlja posebna podvrsta bijele imele, borova imela Viscum album subsp. austriacum. Lokacija istraživanja je koncentrirana na borove kulture u mjestu Ovčari, nedaleko od Konjica. Imela na boru smatra se jednim od glavnih predisponirajućih čimbenika za njihovo sušenje. Uzorak istraživanja je sačinjavao 120 stabala crnoga bora koja su odabrana za analizu. Stabla su odabrana, tako da se obuhvati što više različitih ekspozicija na terenu. Na ukupno 20% stabala crnog bora ustanovljena je prisutnost borove imele.Few years ago, the new pathogen, pine mistletoe was noticed on Austrian Pine and Scots Pine in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Pine forests mainly occur on xerothermic habitats. There are many adverse factors that influence the health of pines in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Pine mistletoe negatively affects the vitality of pine trees and makes them vulnerable to the emergence of secondary harmful factors. This study was aimed at determining the presence of mistletoe shrubs that infected pine trees, as well as the main features of those shrubs. The focus is on analyzing the impact of exposure on the size of mistletoe shrubs, and the length of Haustorium branching. The research covered a total of 120 trees of Austrian Pine and an assessment of the intensity of their infection by mistletoe was done. According to the results of the study, the issue of pine mistletoe has been present for a long time and has a tendency of increasing the intensity of infection. Due to the high intensity of infection a significant number of trees are dead or in process of drying