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The study dealt with the patterns of adaptation of the genus Berberis L. low-abundant alien plants to the climatic conditions of the steppe zone of Ukraine. The success of the introduction, which was conducted on the territory of the Botanical Garden of Oles Honchar Dnipro National University (city of Dnipro) near 60 years ago, was evaluated by a set of indicators. According to the study of phenological rhythms, introduced plants can be characterized as plants with a relatively short growing season, a relatively long shoot growth, a short flowering period and a long maturing period. This indicates the lability of the phenological rhythms of the introduced plants, which respond to changes in environmental conditions in terms of the beginning and end of the phenological phases. The aquatic regime of introduced plants reflects the level of their adaptation to the environment due to the ability of plant organism to withstand water consumption. The study of water exchange features of Berberis L. plants revealed a moderate decrease in the intensity of transpiration and a moderate water deficit in the plant leaves, which indicates the adaptation of the species to the difficult climatic conditions of the steppe zone. The response of introduced plants to the level of moisture in the steppe region confirmed the universal mechanism of plant adaptation to arid conditions. Comparative analysis of the reproductive ability of introduced plants of the genus Berberis L. in the conditions of the Botanical Garden revealed a significant variability of quantitative indicators. The weight of 100 fruits ranged from 12.5 g (B. vulgaris) to 16.3 g (B. declinata). Seed length varied from 4.5 mm (B. canadensis) to 5.2 mm (B. declinata, B. amurensis), seed width varied from 1.8 mm (B. amurensis, B. vulgaris) to 2.1 mm (B. koreana). The highest mass of 1000 seeds was observed in the species B. koreana. To compare sample averages, the criterion for the significant difference of Tukey's group averages was used. The investigated plants of the genus Berberis L. can be recommended for the introduction into large-scale and individual gardening in order to expand the range of fruit products and obtain biologically valuable raw materials for the industrial production of functional products.

The comparative analysis of the fruit and seed capacity of Chaenomeles Lindl., grew in the botanical garden of the Oles Honchar Dnipro National University, was carried out. It is shown that all studied taxa undergo a complete vegetation cycle. According to our observations, the duration of the growing season is as follows: the smallest in Chaenomeles japonica, the longest in C. × superba and C. maulei, the longest in C. speciosa, C. cathayensis and C. californica. Seed length in Chaenomeles plants ranged from 4.2 ± 0.10 mm (C. japonica var. maulei) to 8.5 ± 0.25 mm (C. сathayensis). Seed widths varied from 4.1 ± 0.32 mm (C. cathayensis) to 11.1 ± 0.10 mm (C. japonica var. maulei). According to the results obtained, the average number of seeds in one fruit of different Chaenomeles species differed, decreasing in the following order: C. cathayensis, C. speciosa > C. × californica > C. × superba > C. japonica > C. japonica var. maulei. Most of the Chaenomeles genus representatives were found to be in a good condition: C. japonica var. maulei vitality was estimated at 7 balls, C. japonica and C. × superba – 6 balls. This index is slightly lower for C. speciosa, C. × californica and C. cathayensis as 5 and 4 balls, respectively. It should be noted that the highest vitality was shown by C. japonica var. maulei, which was introduced in the Botanical Garden of DNU in 1955. In research, considerable attention has been paid to the antioxidant system, which is a powerful mechanism preventing the development of avalanche-free and radical peroxide reactions in living organisms. The antioxidant capacity of Chaenomeles fruits, determined in the range from 565.8 ± 15.7 (C. speciosa) to 1121.7 ± 27.5 (C. cathayensis) mg UAE / 100 g DW, can be considered quite high. The overall antioxidant capacity was highest for C. cathayensis fruits (1121.7 ± 27.5 mg AE / 100 g DW), which exceeded the indexes of other species by 1.2–2.0 times. The presence of antioxidants in raw materials and finished products provides for the prevention of their deterioration, reduction of losses, increase the shelf life and release of high quality products, retaining for a long time the characteristic features inherent in fresh, complete products. High taste qualities are characteristic of C. speciosa and C. × californica. Considering the large assortment of Chaenomeles, representatives differing in their biological, physiological and nutritional properties, we consider it promising to introduce their use in the food industry to obtain functional products with high consumer properties, namely, high content of antioxidants, catering for a variety of dishes or for exotic flavors, as well for direct consumption by the population of useful fruits with different flavors.