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A century of the Tyrolean gene bank: The collection of landraces at Laimburg Research Centre and the cooperation with the Tyrolean Gene Bank

Landraces are traditional varieties which have adapted to the cultivation conditions of their region of origin and which represent a connection to nature and culture. The Tyrolean Gene Bank is among the oldest gene banks worldwide: As early as 1922, efforts began to collect and describe varieties specific to the Alpine region. At present, the Tyrolean Gene Bank has secured more than 1,000 local varieties.

In the early 1990s, the idea arose at Laimburg Research Centre to launch local collection campaigns to collect and properly secure those landraces of the most-important cultivars which were still extant. The increasing abandonment of acreage in the mountainous areas of South Tyrol led to an endangerment of the still existant landraces and to the loss of this local biodiversity. In the initial phase of this collection campaign, the collected seed was transferred to the Tyrolean Gene Bank, which was then responsible for securing the landraces ex situ under the proper conditions. The collected samples were then subjected to further processing for inclusion in the gene bank, and it was ensured that they would be managed by the Tyrolean Gene Bank.

Overview of collection activities in South Tyrol Since the commencement of collection activities in South Tyrol, a total of 261 different landraces of cereal grain from eight species of cereals (including the pseudo-cereal species buckwheat), 177...

Overview of collection activities in South Tyrol

Since the commencement of collection activities in South Tyrol, a total of 261 different landraces of cereal grain from eight species of cereals (including the pseudo-cereal species buckwheat), 177 landraces of vegetables, and 101 landraces of other species were registered or collected (Table 1). With respect to cereals, rye was the species that was reported most frequently. A total of 94 rye landraces were reported, representing 36% of the total number of cereal accessions in the collection. Wheat, oats, and buckwheat are almost equally represented; they account for roughly 15%. At 11%, barley is only slightly less represented. In the case of spelt, maize, and the other cereal species, on the other hand, only a few samples were collected. In the case of vegetables, beans (27%) and turnips (22%) were the most frequently reported species, followed by horse beans (16%) and peas (14%). At 11%, potatoes accounted for a slightly smaller share. This low share was to be expected insofar as, in the case of potatoes, the planting material is no longer usable one year after cultivation has been abandoned. In the category of „miscellaneous,“ about half of the reported landraces were of poppy.

Local collection and characterization Despite the fact that collection activities for landraces in South Tyrol had begun quite late, it was possible to acquire a relatively large proportion of the landraces traditionally cultivated in South Tyrol....

Local collection and characterization

Despite the fact that collection activities for landraces in South Tyrol had begun quite late, it was possible to acquire a relatively large proportion of the landraces traditionally cultivated in South Tyrol. The collection of landraces at Laimburg Research Centre more or less reflects the historical cultivation situation in South Tyrol. Since 2005, the organizational and technical foundations for the systematic documentation and characterization of the collected landraces were established in South Tyrol and the necessary infrastructure for properly storing them in a gene bank collection was created. The storage of the samples in both South Tyrol (Italy) and the Austrian province of Tyrol is intended to minimize the risk of losing samples. By processing a series of projects, it was possible to describe numerous landraces of different species of the collection and to characterize them agronomically (Fig. 1). These characterizations form the basis for determining possible future uses of individual landraces. Individual projects from neighboring countries have shown that these can be used in establishing successful niches for the agricultural and restaurant sectors.

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