The research was aimed at analysing the peculiarities of non-structural carbohydrate metabolism in the needles of
The concentration of osmotically active substances (glucose, sucrose) increases in the months with the most unfavourable hydrothermal parameters, especially in plants of mesoxerophilic and xerophilic forest growth conditions. The dynamics of fructose content revealed two maxima (July and October), when the concentration of glucose tends to increase steadily, with the highest values found in October. During the study period, the level of fructose in the needles under the arid conditions of the upper and middle parts of the slope was much lower than under the fresh conditions of the thalweg. The dynamics curve of the starch content tends to decrease from the maximum values in May to the first minimum in August. It is followed by some increase in the concentration of this polysaccharide that does not reach the previous values. The second minimum is registered in October. Such changes in the level of starch in the needles of plants are observed under all forest growth conditions. The decrease in polysaccharide content is consistent with the increase in glucose and sucrose, especially in August. A more significant increase in the concentration of soluble osmoprotective sugars (glucose, sucrose) in