Integration of Conservation Strategies of Plant Genetic ... - Genres

L. Dotlacil; Z. Stehno; M. Resatko
6O's. KÜHN (1974) guided three German expeditions to the Carpathians. They collected 1 15O local
genetic resources of cereals, legumes, vegetables, oil seed and fodder crops. These collections are
maintained in Gene Banks Gatersleben and Praha-Ruzyne and in the Agricultural University Brno. Many
of these accessions were lost.
Wild relatives of domestic origin have been widely used for breeding of fodder plants in the Research
station for Grasses Roznov since 3O's. Many cultivars originated in ecotypes collected in the mountains
near the Station. Similarly several cultivars of fodder leguminous plants originated in ecotypes collected
in Moravia near the Research Institute for Fodder Plants Troubsko (Coronila, Lotus). In the 7O'several
expeditions were organized by this Institute in South Moravia for collecting fodder legumes. Collecting
missions were started again by Repka. He collected 161 samples during 10 short trips in 1991.
HOLUBEC and KÜHN (1993) investigated localities of Aegilops in Slovakia. They gathered Aegilops
cylindrica in an old wine plantation and on alluvial deposits of the Danube River in South Slovakia in
1989. This locality can be considered as the most northern original distribution of this species.
In fruits, land races and old cultivars are very seldom planted and disappear when old gardens, alleys and
solitary trees in landscape are cut down. During the last 5 years, some of these land races were collected
by Paprstein, in the Research Institute for Fruits,Holovousy.
A new project for collecting and conservation of the widest genetic diversity of wild fodder plants, wild
relatives of cultivated crops and threatened land races of fruits and other crops on the territory of the
Czech Republic was prepared in the Gene Bank Prague with cooperation of Research Institute for
Fodder Plants Troubsko and Zubri and Research Institute for Fruits, Holovousy. The time schedule
includes a one week, joint expedition every year and several short excursions by particular institutions.
Genetic resources evaluation and utilization
Holding of collections in the Czech Republic is distributed among 19 institutions among which belong
research institutes, breeding and research stations, universities and institutions of botanical research
(Table 2). Systematic collection extending, evaluation of new accessions, recording of received data into
a database and multiplication of stored seed samples belong under the main activities of cooperating
institutions.
Consecutive completing of the descriptive part of the database with evaluation results increases
utilization of stored genetic resources. Collections described in this way are more valuable.
To reach this goal, coincidental for all crops, some literature data can be used. But such utilization is
limited to characters having low interaction with environment. Evaluation under conditions of their
future application is important for a rank of characters with considerable response to growing
environment.
In spite of different methods of evaluation of particular crops, three steps are recommended at least for
main agricultural and garden plants.
Preliminary evaluation has in addition to first, simple characterization also quarantine function. The
extent of quarantine observations is specific for each crop according to phytosanitary regulations.