Proceedings of the XLVI Italian Society of Agricultural Genetics - SIGA Annual Congress

Giardini Naxos, Italy - 18/21 September, 2002

ISBN 88-900622-3-1

Poster Abstract - 1.01

THE CITRUS IMPROVEMENT AND NATIONAL VOLUNTARY CERTIFICATION PROGRAM CARRIED OUT BY ISTITUTO SPERIMENTALE PER L’AGRUMICOLTURA

Caruso A., Russo G., Guardo M., Puglisi A., Sorrentino G.

Istituto Sperimentale per l’Agrumicoltura, Corso Savoia, 190 Acireale (CT)

variety selection, sanitary improvement, voluntary certification program

The contribution of Istituto Sperimentale per l’Agrumicoltura (ISA) to the renewal of Italian citrus variety picture with the introduction of its own variety and phytosanitary selections is described.

The evolution and use of different species and varieties is reported referring to ISA propagation material delivered to farmers and nurserymen for grafting, until the coming into effect of the ‘National Voluntary Certification Program’, which would have guaranteed them genetically and sanitary controlled propagation material.

For each variety to be included in the Ministero per le Politiche Agricole e Forestali (MiPAF) accessions list, the constitutor, public or private, is obliged to keep the ‘Primary Source’ in screen-house and to present the pomological and phytosanitary documentation to the MiPAF. The latter then submits the documentation to Technical-scientific committee for estimate and approval.

The whole material recorded within this program, for a minimum of two plants per accession, is to be grown up in pots placed in two different screen houses, called respectively ‘Pre-multiplication Conservation Centre’ and ‘Pre-multiplication Centre’.

Every year the plants are checked for true-to-type and in order to verify the permanency of the phytosanitary status, are submitted to biological, immuno and electrophoretic assays.

Within this program ISA is responsible for the national ‘Pre-multiplication Conservation Centre’ and ‘Pre-multiplication Centre’, in which plants of every cultivar, included in accessions list recorded in the MiPAF, are grown up.

Seventy-eight accessions of the 99 recorded in the list were selected by ISA and precisely: 24 sweet orange cultivars, 3 of bergamot, 2 of citron, 10 of clementine, 5 of lemon, 2 of mandarin, 1 of grapefruit, 1 of satsuma, 4 of kumquat, 1 of calamondin, 1 of lime, 1 of Microcitrus, 13 of citrus hybrids including various triploids and 10 rootstock species. These accessions are also maintained in the ‘Primary Source’ in accordance with the law.