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

management system dBASE IV is used to handle the information. Catalogues for various crops are
published to make the information available. Potential genebank users can also receive databases and
request print-outs of selected information.
After checks for quantity and viability the material is prepared for storage in the active, base and safety
base collections. If an accession meets the agreed criteria for preservation it is given the status
"accepted". Otherwise it is given the status "temporarily accepted" until the appropriate working group
changes the status to "accepted" or "rejected". In the latter case the acquired information is nevertheless
stored for future reference.
NGB deals with special collections made for specific purposes, which often are accompanied with
databases containing very specific information. NGB may take the responsibility for a special collection
even if the amount of material is not enough to form an active, base and safety base collection.
1.2 Working programme
Cereals
NGB keeps one Nordic database for each of the four main cereal species grown in the Nordic countries:
barley, oats, wheat and rye. In these databases, passport information is registered as well as
characterization and evaluation data for Nordic varieties, landraces and breeder's lines. The data was
originally supplied from the donors of the material, such as Nordic breeding companies, universities and
research institutes. Since 1991, the Working Group for Cereals has been running projects to characterize
and evaluate the collection in order to make the information in the Nordic databases more
comprehensive.
The series of Nordic Cereal catalogues includes the Nordic Barley Catalogue, published in 1989, the
Nordic Oat Catalogue, published in 1990 and the Nordic Wheat and Rye catalogue, published in 1992.
The mandate of NGB is to preserve the genetic variation in Nordic material of agricultural and
horticultural crops. Cereal material that is to be accepted for long-term preservation must fulfil the
requirements put forward in a document complied by the Working Group. Many lines are still stored
temporarily, while awaiting a decision about NGB's responsibility. In 1991, the Working Group initiated
a detailed examination of the cereal collection to determine what material should be accepted for longterm
preservation.
The International Board for Plant Genetic Resources (IBPGR) has started an International Network for
Barley Genetic Resources. At a meeting in Helsingborg in 1991 the objectives of this network were
defined. One of the basic projects should be to compile a gene list for barley and a database for the
genetic stocks found in various collections worldwide. In 1992, NGB started a pilot study to implement
this project. The pilot study was funded by the Nordic Council of Ministers. The study was presented
in 1993 and NGB is presently looking at various ways of raising funds for the main project so that this
database can be developed.
Fruits and berries
The main task of the Working Group for Fruit and Berries is the collection, description and maintenance
of both valuable local varieties of Nordic origin and indigenous wild material in clonal archives.
The clonal archives are located at various institutes. NGB provides some financial support once the