The Bostandyk District of South Kazakhstan Oblast is undoubtedly one of the natural jewels of Kazakhstan. Its imposing mountain landscapes, turbulent mountain rivers carving through deep gorges, and unique geological history, which has preserved remnants of Tertiary forest landscapes found nowhere else in Kazakhstan, together with its distinctive population composed not only of indigenous Kazakhs but also of Uzbeks, Tajiks, and Kyrgyz, make it a region unlike any other within the vast territory of the Kazakh Soviet Socialist Republic. At the same time, it should be noted that this remarkable area is, in a sense, isolated from the rest of Kazakhstan. Massive mountain ranges, namely the Ugam Range to the northwest, the Talas Alatau to the north, and the Chatkal Range to the east along the border with the Kyrgyz Soviet Socialist Republic, completely block access to Bostandyk District from those directions. Only the south and southwest remain open toward the Tashkent Plain, and for anyone who is not a mountaineer, reaching the area requires traveling through the capital of the Uzbek Republic, the city of Tashkent. It is perhaps for this reason that the Bostandyk District has remained relatively little known within Kazakhstan. Its close proximity to Tashkent, only about 90-100 kilometers away, led to a situation in which the initiative in studying the region belonged almost entirely to scholars from Uzbekistan for many years. Geologists, geographers, meteorologists, hydrologists, zoologists, and a distinguished group of botanists from Central Asian State University all worked in the area and published the results of their fruitful investigations in numerous scientific works. Unfortunately for Kazakhstan, most of the natural-history collections gathered in Bostandyk remained in the extensive repositories of Tashkent, while Kazakhstan received only a very small portion of them. During the last ten to fifteen years, however, with the preparation of major survey publications such as The Geology of the Uzbek Soviet Socialist Republic and The Flora of Uzbekistan, research activities by Uzbek scholars in Bostandyk have virtually ceased because the region belongs to Kazakhstan. As a result, an unusual situation emerged: one of the most naturally diverse and resource-rich areas of Central Asia was effectively left without active scientific investigation and became detached from the sphere of systematic research. Such a situation could no longer be tolerated. At the initiative of the Presidium of the Academy of Sciences of the Kazakh Soviet Socialist Republic and by directive of the Government of Kazakhstan, the Institute of Botany was charged with organizing a comprehensive study of the natural resources of the Bostandyk District and with preparing, within a short period of time, a professional scientific description of the natural and economic conditions of this exceptionally interesting region. The Institute of Botany successfully attracted representatives of a number of other institutions, including several organizations outside the system of the Academy of Sciences of the Kazakh SSR. Among them was the Bostandyk Experimental Farm of the Kazakhstan Branch of the All-Union Academy of Agricultural Sciences. As a result, the present volume is the product of collective effort. Academician and Professor N. V. Pavlov of the Academy of Sciences of the Kazakh SSR prepared the sections dealing with the physical-geographical description of the region, the history of its investigation, analysis of the flora, and the altitudinal zonation of vegetation landscapes (Chapters 1-4). Senior Research Fellow and Doctor of Sciences B. A. Bekov of the Institute of Botany compiled the vegetation map of the region and provided a detailed description of its plant communities, especially forest associations (Chapter 5). Senior Research Fellow and Candidate of Sciences S. R. Shvartsman of the same institute described fungal diseases affecting the forests of the Bostandyk District (Chapter 8). Senior Research Fellow and Candidate of Sciences M. N. Korelov of the Institute of Zoology prepared a survey of the region's fauna (Chapter 11). Senior Research Fellow and Doctor of Sciences M. A. Glazovskaya of the Institute of Soil Science authored the chapter on the soils of Bostandyk (Chapter 9). With regard to the agricultural characteristics of the region, valuable assistance was provided by staff members of the Bostandyk Experimental Farm of the Kazakhstan Branch of the Lenin All-Union Academy of Agricultural Sciences. Senior Research Fellow and Candidate of Sciences S. S. Kalmekov prepared the detailed Chapter 6 devoted to wild fruit and nut-bearing plants of the region. Another Senior Research Fellow and Candidate of Sciences, A. S. Gukasyan, described the cultivation of fruit crops and viticulture in the area (Chapter 7). Finally, Senior Research Fellow and Candidate of Sciences I. M. Nazarenko of the Geographical Research Unit of the Academy of Sciences of the Kazakh SSR authored Chapter 10, which examines the current state of agricultural production in the district and the prospects for its fundamental transformation, based on his Candidate dissertation. The concluding chapter, summarizing the results and principal findings of the investigation, was written by Academician and Professor N. V. Pavlov. The September 1953 Plenum of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union and the subsequent resolutions adopted in February-March 1954 concerning the expansion of grain production and livestock farming prompted the authors to review carefully the research materials and recommendations presented in this work. This review strengthened their conviction that the mountainous portion of the Bostandyk District, because of its natural and economic conditions, is exceptionally well suited for the large-scale development of industrial fruit-growing and viticulture and can play a significant role in improving the welfare and economic strength of Kazakhstan. At the same time, expanded grain production in the northern part of the district would enable the southern part to focus more intensively on fruit cultivation. The compilers of this volume hope that their work will stimulate both scientific and practical interest in this little-known subtropical region of the Kazakh Republic and contribute to the more rapid development of the productive forces of its diverse and unique economy.