Search results for "Agricultural biodiversity"

Ecotype-Level Genetic Biodiversity of Five Italian Traditional Crops

2019

Italy displays a high level of agrobiodiversity due to its diversified pedoclimatic zones. The Administrative Region of Campania includes several and divergent biomes, occurring close to each other. In fact, the distance between a sea level environment and that of high mountains can be less than 20 km. These environmental conditions allow the cultivation of many different crops and vegetables, represented by diverse ecotypes and varieties that are well adapted to the distribution range where they have been selected and grown. Efforts to maintain and further increase biodiversity in farming systems require a better understanding of the existing diversity created by traditional farming practi…

2020

Arts-based practices can support sustainability, combined with research that points out needs for intervention. We practiced environmental sensitivity and dialogic art with fifth-grade school pupil...

Chemical–Physical, sensory analyses and consumers’ quality perception of local vs. imported loquat fruits: a sustainable development perspective

2020

Local products and their distribution through short supply chains play a key role in the sustainable development of many rural areas, as affirmed by the 2030 Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) Agenda. Moreover, in the last years, more and more consumers have shown a specific interest towards local production, pushed by the need for healthy eating, protecting the environment, and boosting the local economy. However, the cultivation of local fruit varieties or ecotypes has considerably decreased in the last decades because of their low production potential. As a result, many farmers have been forced to replace local orchards with few worldwide grown cultivars, causi…

A Participatory Agrobiodiversity Conservation Approach in the Oases: Community Actions for the Promotion of Sustainable Development in Fragile Areas

2021

Rural development policies today include significant directions towards ecological transition and sustainability. Biodiversity plays a fundamental role, especially in fragile environments. The North African oases, for example, are socio-ecological structures with delicate balances in terms of natural resources, where the activation of participatory conservation approaches appears today to be very useful, aiming at long-lasting results. This type of approach was applied in the oasis of El Hamma, in Tunisia. The socio-ecological analysis was carried out through semi-structured interviews with different stakeholders of the oasis. The results were used to activate focus groups and to identify, …

The Monumental Olive Trees as Biocultural Heritage of Mediterranean Landscapes: The Case Study of Sicily

2021

Monumental olive trees, with their longevity and their remarkable size, represent an important information source for the comprehension of the territory where they grow and the human societies that have kept them through time. Across the centuries, olive trees are the only cultivated plants that tell the story of Mediterranean landscapes. The same as stone monuments, these green monuments represent a real Mediterranean natural and cultural heritage. The aim of this paper is to discuss the value of monumental trees as “biocultural heritage” elements and the role they play in the interpretation of the historical stratification of the landscape. We present the results of a survey of the most s…

Micropropagation of Sicilian cultivars with an aim to preserve genetic diversity in hazelnut (Corylus avellana L.)

2018

The use of a small number of cultivars in agriculture can lead to a loss of agrobiodiversity. Since in vitro techniques are valuable tools for conserving plant biodiversity, an efficient micropropagation protocol for four Italian hazelnut cultivars, ‘Carrello’, ‘Ghirara’, ‘Minnulara’, and ‘Panottara’, was developed. The highest axillary bud survival was obtained after decontamination with 40 min 1% sodium hypochlorite followed by 40 min 0.1% sodium merthiolate in ‘Minnulara’ and ‘Ghirara’, while the 35þ35 min treatment was the best for ‘Carrello’ and ‘Panottara’. Shoot multiplication was higher in ‘Minnulara’ and ‘Ghirara’ when 6.6 lM N6-benzyladenine was used, even if some hyperhydric shoo…

Preserving Biodiversity in Marginal Rural Areas:Assessment of Morphological and Genetic Variabilityof a Sicilian Common Bean Germplasm Collection

2020

The historical cultivation of common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) has resulted in the development of local populations/cultivars in restricted Italian rural areas. Many common bean landraces, still cultivated in small mountain areas from Sicily, have become outdated and endangered due to the commercial varieties spreading. These accessions are poorly known but often represent a genetic heritage to be preserved and enhanced. The ex situ conservation of fifty-seven Sicilian common bean landraces was carried out at the &ldquo

“Face the cow”: reconnecting to nature and increasing capacities for pro-environmental agency

2020

Arts-based practices can support sustainability, combined with research that points out needs for intervention. We practiced environmental sensitivity and dialogic art with fifth-grade school pupils as part of an International Socially Engaged Art Symposium (ISEAS2019). Using arts-based action research methodology, our case study focused on the opportunities of arts-based environmental education in advancing the management of meadows and wood-pastures. We explored nature connectedness and pro-environmental mindsets and behaviors among the pupils and artists/researchers. The artistic results encompassed the dialogic interactions of the intervention, exhibited artworks, and audiovisual docume…