Articles
Conservation of the Malus gene pool in Kazakhstan as the basis for environmental protection and economic growth
Article number
1384_24
Pages
183 – 190
Language
English
Abstract
Apples originated in the foothills of the Dzhungarskiy Alatau, an area mostly encompassed by modern Kazakhstan.
There, the Sievers apple, the ancestor of the domestic apple, is still found in the wild.
Kazakhstans gene stock for Malus and related species is a vital world resource.
Since the 1940s, when Kazakhstan was part of the USSR, the Kazakh national apple collection has been held at the Pomological Garden outside Almaty and at satellite orchards at higher elevations.
Kazakh scientists continue to work on genetic identification and preservation through programmes at several research institutes of the National Agrarian Science and Educational Centre (NASEC), a number of regional universities, and various facilities of the Kazakh Ministry of Agriculture.
Recent work focuses on modernizing and expanding gene banks, strengthening academic research including biotechnology applications, and on promoting international scientific exchange.
We propose to move this agenda forward into the center of regional economic development and environmental protection initiatives.
Tree planting schemes for erosion control, water conservation, carbon sequestration, and greatly expanded commercial fruit and nut production, are part of the national development plan for Kazakhstan and will require many millions of saplings of multiple species.
Through a vigorous program of identification of promising apple cultivars for different markets and different microclimates, introduction of identity-verified virus-free planting materials produced by local growers, development of new technologies of rootstock-scion affinity prediction for intensive apple cultivation, and the integration of apples and other valuable trees into programs of economic reforestation, we intend to build demand for Kazakh apples, rootstocks, and planting materials and to support growers, scientists, and apple-loving consumers.
There, the Sievers apple, the ancestor of the domestic apple, is still found in the wild.
Kazakhstans gene stock for Malus and related species is a vital world resource.
Since the 1940s, when Kazakhstan was part of the USSR, the Kazakh national apple collection has been held at the Pomological Garden outside Almaty and at satellite orchards at higher elevations.
Kazakh scientists continue to work on genetic identification and preservation through programmes at several research institutes of the National Agrarian Science and Educational Centre (NASEC), a number of regional universities, and various facilities of the Kazakh Ministry of Agriculture.
Recent work focuses on modernizing and expanding gene banks, strengthening academic research including biotechnology applications, and on promoting international scientific exchange.
We propose to move this agenda forward into the center of regional economic development and environmental protection initiatives.
Tree planting schemes for erosion control, water conservation, carbon sequestration, and greatly expanded commercial fruit and nut production, are part of the national development plan for Kazakhstan and will require many millions of saplings of multiple species.
Through a vigorous program of identification of promising apple cultivars for different markets and different microclimates, introduction of identity-verified virus-free planting materials produced by local growers, development of new technologies of rootstock-scion affinity prediction for intensive apple cultivation, and the integration of apples and other valuable trees into programs of economic reforestation, we intend to build demand for Kazakh apples, rootstocks, and planting materials and to support growers, scientists, and apple-loving consumers.
Authors
A. Brown, M.V. Urazaeva, S.Zh. Kazybayeva, Y.M. Yefremova
Keywords
pathogen-free, Malus, gene bank, reforestation, erosion control
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