Diversity of Agricultural Plants on Lesvos Island (Northeast Aegean
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Scientia Horticulturae 210 (2016) 65–84 Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Scientia Horticulturae journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/scihorti Diversity of agricultural plants on Lesvos Island (Northeast Aegean, Greece) with emphasis on fruit trees a b c d Caterina Douma , Kostas Koutis , Ricos Thanopoulos , Rallou Tsigou , a e,∗ Alexandros Galanidis , Penelope J. Bebeli a Department of Environment, University of the Aegean, Xenia Building, University Hill, 81100 Lesvos, Greece b AEGILOPS (NGO), Network for Biodiversity and Ecology in Agriculture, Ano Lehonia, 37300 Volos, Greece c Farm Unit, Agricultural University of Athens, Iera Odos 75, 118 55 Athens, Greece d North Aegean Rural Affairs Directorate of Aegean Decentralized Administration, Kountourioti 79, 81100 Lesvos, Greece e Laboratory of Plant Breeding and Biometry, Department of Crop Science, Agricultural University of Athens, Iera Odos 75, 118 55 Athens, Greece a r t i c l e i n f o a b s t r a c t Article history: Historical evidence concerning the island of Lesvos has revealed the cultivation of cereals, olive trees, Received 24 December 2015 vines, figs and vegetables. Although the island’s agricultural economy has been based almost exclusively Received in revised form 5 July 2016 on olive tree cultivation since the 18th century (ce.), wide diversity of other crops has significantly con- Accepted 8 July 2016 tributed to the growth of the local economy. Two consecutive inventories and collection expeditions of Available online 21 July 2016 crop landraces on the island of Lesvos were conducted in 2011 and 2012. The first expedition focused mainly on annual species, while the second one focused exclusively on fruit trees and grapevine lan- Keywords: draces. Both expeditions included visits to nearly 50 villages and contacts with amateur and professional Agrobiodiversity farmers, directly related to landraces. During the first expedition a total of 63 donors contributed 309 Genetic erosion Landraces accessions of 37 annual crop species and genera, mainly vegetables followed by pulses and cereals. A Conservation large variation of fruit trees and grapevine landraces has been recorded during both expeditions, includ- Lesvos Island ing 143 landraces’ names of 13 different species, with the greatest variability observed in pears, figs, Greece apples and cherries as well as in grapevine. Results of the study revealed the substantial plant genetic wealth of cultivated species on the island of Lesvos. The urgent need to collect, conserve and promote this biodiversity is highlighted, since it constitutes invaluable plant material both for scientific purposes as well as for the economic sustainable development of the island. © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. introduction and evolution under two forces: the farmers’ selec- tions and the adaptation on a continuously changing environment. And golden spreads of dwarf peas grew round the banks of rivers This genetic diversity of landraces or local populations is consid- Sappfo (628–568 BCE) ered as the most economically valuable part of global biodiversity (Translated by Greek poetess Olympia Karayiorga) and is of paramount importance for future world crop production (Wood and Lenne, 1997). In the Mediterranean Basin landraces of crop trees, such as olive (Olea europaea L.) and grapevine (Vitis 1. Introduction vinifera L.), constitute an inexhaustible source of unique traits, important natural compounds, derivatives and bioactive molecules In 300 BCE Theophrastus, a Greek native of Eressos on the island such as anticancer agents (e.g. squalene and terpenoids) and valu- of Lesvos, wrote in his Botanical work ‘Enquiry into Plants’ about able antioxidants, all extremely important in enhancing the quality the Lesvos’ diversity of wheat which differ in colour, size, form and of food (Banilas et al., 2009). Moreover, landraces have a high many characteristics related to their productivity and nutritional socioeconomic, cultural and heritage value (Caillon and Degeorges, value (Hort, 1916). The agricultural diversity noticed in the island 2007) and are strongly linked to regional cultural heritage (local is the result of hundreds and even thousands of years of landraces’ rites, celebrations and local knowledge) (Negri, 2003). Since 1983, the Commission on Plant Genetic Resources of the FAO have declared landraces as ‘Public Domain Good’ and ‘Common Her- ∗ Corresponding author. itage of Mankind’ that should be freely accessible for the benefit of E-mail address: [email protected] (P.J. Bebeli). http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.scienta.2016.07.009 0304-4238/© 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. 66 C. Douma et al. / Scientia Horticulturae 210 (2016) 65–84 global agriculture (Stavropoulos et al., 2006). They still play a sig- resources monitoring. Our results, apart from the enrichment of nificant role in marginal and poor areas, since local farmers have Greek Gene Bank in genetic material and its future use in plant been propagating material that shows high degree of adaptation to breeding, will promote the conservation of numerous landraces of local pedo-climatic conditions and suited to the local farming tradi- Lesvos from genetic erosion, as well as the enhancement of the local tions (Chessa and Nieddu, 2005; Camacho-Villa et al., 2005; Jackson economy. et al., 2007). Furthermore, they constitute a vital gene pool for plant breeders, for continuously selecting and adapting crops to chang- 1.1. Natural features of Lesvos Island ing environmental conditions or to the needs of a growing human population (Camacho-Villa et al., 2005; Terzopoulos et al., 2009; Lesvos is the third largest Greek island and is situated in North- 2 Galluzzi et al., 2010). Additionally, landraces are associated with eastern Aegean Sea, covering an area of 1636 km with 371 km of production diversification in intense growing areas and with prod- coastline (Fig. 1). At the beginning of the Pleistocene epoch, before ucts for niche markets (Terzopoulos et al., 2009). As they demand the Mediterranean basin was flooded, Lesvos constituted a part of low external inputs, they contribute to environmental protection an ancient land-bridge between Greece and Western Asia Minor and could support alternative farming systems, such as organic and (Shackle et al., 2001). low input agriculture (Negri et al., 2000; Chessa and Nieddu, 2005; The island has Mediterranean climate, with great variations in Jackson et al., 2007). climatic conditions due to the regional effect of mountains and The deterioration of natural ecosystems, the replacement of atmospheric circulation patterns (Kosmas et al., 2000a). The climate traditional farming systems by modern agricultural practices, the is strongly seasonal with long hot summers and mild winters, and commercialisation of agriculture, the specialization of production spatial variations in rainfall (Bakker et al., 2005). The average annual systems restricted to a few varieties, the changes in consuming rainfall is ranging from 677 mm (eastern part) to 415 mm (western patterns, various legislations and policies, market forces, social part) (Kosmas et al., 2000a) and the mean annual air temperature ◦ inequality and population growth pose threats to landraces’ con- is 17.7 C (Kosmas et al., 2000b). servation (Negri et al., 2000; Upreti and Upreti, 2002). Today, The olive orchards occupy 28% of the total area of the island; the agriculture is based on a narrow genetic base of most major crops rest of the crops and fallow areas cover 9%, pastures 38%, forests 19% (Di Falco and Perrings, 2003), as the majority of the annual species’ and other areas (towns, villages, roads etc.) 6% (National Statistical landraces as well as many of perennial species ones have been Service of Greece, 2009). Olive orchards are located on terraces on replaced by few high-yielding improved varieties, resulting in the slopes of the hills and mountains, becoming the special fea- the stagnation of cultivated germplasm. The Food and Agriculture ture of the island’s landscape. Therefore Lesvos’ informal name is Organization of the United Nations (FAO) estimates that about 75% ‘Olive Island’ (Loumou et al., 2000; Loumou and Giourga, 2003). of the agricultural biodiversity has been eroded during the last The island, although dominated by olive trees and pastures, retains century (FAO, 1999) and this trend seems likely to become even a rich flora comprised of 1279 species and 237 subspecies, 14 of more severe in the near future (Maxted et al., 2002; Pinheiro de which are endemic in Greece, with three of them to be found exclu- Carvalho et al., 2013). It is generally agreed that the on-going ero- sively on the island (Bazos, 2005). sion of agro-biodiversity impedes food security, the functionality of agro-ecosystems, social equity, economic growth and potential 1.2. Agricultural history innovations in agriculture (Negri et al., 2000; Tilman, 2000; Gurr et al., 2003; Frei and Becker, 2004; Manzelli et al., 2005; Jackson Lesvos was initially fully covered by dense pine and oak forests, et al., 2007). However, due to the geographical patterns in Greece as its earliest name ‘Lasia’, meaning a place covered by dense (isolation of islands, hilly and/or mountainous areas), the social forests, reveal (Stefanou, 1994; Tzimis et al., 1996). Expansion of conditions and the presence of small-size farms (average size: agriculture first took place at around 1850 BCE when olive trees, 6.8 ha; Eurostat, 2013), landraces can still be found under cultiva- cereals and vineyards widely spread