The potential of the Sorb (Sorbus domestica L.) as a minor fruit species in the Mediterranean areas: description and quality traits of underutilized accessions.

Biodiversity linked to fruit cultivation plays a key role in terms of the availability of quality products and nutraceutical compounds for the food industry. Thus underutilized species such as Sorbus domestica L. can be an important resource. The aim of this study was to evaluate 31 local accessions from different growing areas on the Island of Sicily and characterize the fruits according to the biometric-carpological features that constitute their quality in order to understand the potential that this species may have not only regarding the recovery and preservation of genetic resources in the Mediterranean area but also the nutraceutical compounds it offers. The results from this prelimin…

Can the Caper (Capparis spinosa L.) Still Be Considered a Difficult-to-Propagate Crop?

As a perennial xerophytic shrub, characterized by plesiomorphic features, the caper (Capparis spinosa L.) is naturally spread throughout the Mediterranean basin and occupies an important ecological role, as well as an economic one, in traditional and specialized systems for commercial production. This species, in spite of its wide diffusion, is currently considered at risk of genetic erosion, mainly due to overgrazing and overharvesting for domestic uses and for trade. This situation is made more serious because of the lack of efficient propagation techniques, determining the caper as a “difficult-to-propagate species”. In this review, we report the main available sexual and vegetative prop…

Potential use of new diphenylurea derivatives in micropropagation of Capparis spinosa L.

A protocol for in vitro multiplication of caper (Capparis spinosa L. subsp. rupestris) from nodal segments collected from mature plants was developed. For shoot multiplication, one auxin (indol-3-butyric acid, IBA) and cytokinins of two different classes were used: the N6-substituted adenine derivatives 6-benzylamino purine (BAP), and the two synthetic phenylurea derivatives N-phenyl-N′-benzothiazol-6-ylurea (PBU) and N-phenyl-N′-(1,2,3-thidiazol-5-yl) urea (thidiazuron, TDZ). Maximum shoot production was achieved from explants cultured with the adeninic cytokinin BAP (4 μM) and the auxin IBA (0.5 μM). New shoots longer than 1 cm were used for rooting. To induce root formation, three auxins…

CULTURAL IDENTITY AND CONSERVATION OF INDIGENOUS AND NATIVE DIVERSITY

The economic development of rural areas has rarely followed that of urban centres, with greater evidence of this in developing countries where the outlying communities have remained considerably more remote from the systems of cultural and economic growth. Even if this has had negative repercussions in terms of social equilibrium within the various countries, from a strictly agronomic point of view it has often resulted in the natural conservation of indigenous and native biodiversity. This has been affected by the natural and daily use of local plant extracts both for nutritional purposes and for a variety of other reasons. The exchange of genetic material between one community and another…

Ornacitrus: Citrus plants (Citrus spp.) as ornamentals

Abstract The industrial production of citrus plants for ornamental use (ornacitrus) began in Italy at the end of the 1960s due to the need for many citrus nurseries to adapt their activities in a time of crisis for citriculture. Nowadays, the ornamental citrus nursery sector is a well-established industry in many European countries such as Portugal, Spain, Greece, and southern Italy. In Italy, nursery production of ornamental citrus plants has become prominent due to the gradual shutdown of many commercial citrus orchards. Currently, Italy maintains its leadership with more than 5.5 million ornacitrus plants produced annually. Ornamental citrus production regards mainly different cultivars …

Selection and micropropagation of valuable caper genotypes

The high quality of the various biotypes present in the natural or cultivated state is one of the main features for caper production. Up to now, however, no selection activity has been carried out in order to identify the most suitable accessions for providing better quality products. In this paper, we report the first results of a selection of caper genotypes characterised by significant qualitative traits. A micropropagation protocol was evaluated in order to improve and allow the multiplication of the most promising Capparis spinosa L. subsp. spinosa genotypes, selected in Salina (Aeolian Islands), Sicily (Italy), in collaboration with the most important local growers.

Moltiplicazione in vitro di specie mediterranee ai fini della conservazione del patrimonio autoctono e del miglioramento delle tecniche di produzione in vivaio

Combining ecological engineering and plant conservation on a Mediterranean islet

This paper reports the results of a bioengineering intervention within the Mediterranean Basin carried out at Lampedusa Island (Strait of Sicily) on the “Spiaggia dei Conigli”, the only sand shore of all Sicilian territory where the sea turtle Caretta caretta lays its eggs every year. The erosion of the steep slope over the beach itself caused sensitive changes in the grain size of shore’s sediment and reduced the area of the beach with fine sand suitable for C. caretta oviposition. In order to reduce surface water flow and to stop erosion, several bioengineering options were adopted using only native plant species to preserve local botanical heritage and to prevent the local extinction of …

PROPAGAZIONE IN VIVO ED IN VITRO DI SPECIE ARBOREE ED ARBUSTIVE ED APPLICAZIONE DI METODOLOGIE INNOVATIVE DI MOLTIPLICAZIONE

Conservazione della biodiversità di susino attraverso crescita rallentata in vitro

In vitro techniques have been proved to be also helpful in the conservation of the plant biodiversity. With this approach, some Sicilian cultivars of European plum (Prunus domestica L.) have been investigated for the application of in vitro slow growth storage at 4°C and in the dark. Established shoot cultures of two cv (Ariddo di Core and Sanacore) have been cultured in MS basal medium containing different concentrations of sucrose (20 and 30 g l-1) and PGRs (BAP and IBA). The experiment is in progress and the reported data are relative to the first 90 days of in vitro preservation.