Final Report Summary - CHERLA (Promotion of sustainable cherimoya production systems in Latin America through the characterisation, conservation and use of local germplasm diversity)
Project objectives
The main objective of 'Promotion of sustainable cherimoya production systems in Latin America through the characterisation, conservation and use of local germplasm diversity' (CHERLA) project was to develop sustainable cherimoya production systems in three Andean countries (Bolivia, Ecuador and Peru) based on the characterisation, conservation and use of local genetic resources. This main objective was divided into three groups of interdependent activities:
1. Assessment of local diversity
A first step in CHERLA was to assess local cherimoya diversity using existing ex situ germplasm collections and studying in situ cultivated, semi-cultivated and wild materials. Assessment has been carried out through classic phenotypic descriptors in combination with state-of-the-art molecular tools and Geographic Information Systems (GIS).
%2. Conservation of local diversity
Local diversity has been conserved ex situ and in situ using protocols that have been developed as a function of local situation parameters in the three Latin American countries participating in CHERLA. Small living core collections have been established both at the local (managed by local farmer associations) and national (managed by national agricultural research institutes) levels, together with seed collections of wild materials. Plant materials have been fully documented and characterised and made available for subsequent improvement work in the intervention area object of this project and elsewhere.
3. Use of local diversity
The conservation of local cherimoya diversity should have a direct impact on the end-users. Thus, the main problems faced by local farmers for sustainable cherimoya production have been addressed and guidelines to optimise cropping, processing and commercialisation using a participative approach have been developed.
Summary of the main results obtained
1. Assessment of local diversity
- Evaluation of phenological and pomological commercially interesting traits have been performed in the different ex situ germplasm collections in Spain, Ecuador and Peru.
- A set of 20 polymorphic SSRs useful for fingerprinting and diversity studies in cherimoya has been developed, published and distributed among the members of the CHERLA consortium. The set has been used to fingerprint ex situ collections and to study the genetic diversity in cultivated, semi-cultivated and wild cherimoya material.
- A selection of the most informative traits has been performed.
- A CHERLA database with three modules (in situ characterisation, molecular characterisation and ex situ characterisation) has been developed and distributed among the project partners. This database allows to efficiently share the results gathered by the different project partners.
- Descriptors for cherimoya have been finished and they have been published.
2. Conservation of local diversity
- A complete inventory of cherimoya genetic resources conserved ex situ in the different countries has been performed.
- A method to develop core collections in cherimoya has been described.%- Additional cherimoya accessions have been collected and planted in germplasm collections in order to increase the number of representativeness of the current ex situ collections in the different countries involved in CHERLA.
- A strategy for cherimoya in situ conservation measures has been elaborated.
- Spatial analyses have been performed providing an overview of cherimoya diversity in its centre of origin, including the definition of hotspots of diversity.
3. Use of local diversity
- Detailed studies on reproductive biology of cherimoya and its main bottlenecks have been performed.
- The main pests that affect cherimoya fruits in the different countries have been identified and the most important are fruit flies species of the genera Ceratitis and Anastrepha.
- Optimisation of fruit production has been performed in different pilot areas in Ecuador, Peru and Bolivia establishing the main cropping limitations and applying different local strategies through workshops, fairs and direct interactions with local farmers.
- Support materials for the different workshops with farmers, technicians and professionals have been elaborated.
- The evaluation of the financial / economic damage caused by pests has been performed.
- Improved techniques for nurseries have been elaborated and released.
- Detailed surveys have been carried out involving the main actors of cherimoya production, marketing and consumption in the different countries of the CHERLA consortium.
The main objective of 'Promotion of sustainable cherimoya production systems in Latin America through the characterisation, conservation and use of local germplasm diversity' (CHERLA) project was to develop sustainable cherimoya production systems in three Andean countries (Bolivia, Ecuador and Peru) based on the characterisation, conservation and use of local genetic resources. This main objective was divided into three groups of interdependent activities:
1. Assessment of local diversity
A first step in CHERLA was to assess local cherimoya diversity using existing ex situ germplasm collections and studying in situ cultivated, semi-cultivated and wild materials. Assessment has been carried out through classic phenotypic descriptors in combination with state-of-the-art molecular tools and Geographic Information Systems (GIS).
%2. Conservation of local diversity
Local diversity has been conserved ex situ and in situ using protocols that have been developed as a function of local situation parameters in the three Latin American countries participating in CHERLA. Small living core collections have been established both at the local (managed by local farmer associations) and national (managed by national agricultural research institutes) levels, together with seed collections of wild materials. Plant materials have been fully documented and characterised and made available for subsequent improvement work in the intervention area object of this project and elsewhere.
3. Use of local diversity
The conservation of local cherimoya diversity should have a direct impact on the end-users. Thus, the main problems faced by local farmers for sustainable cherimoya production have been addressed and guidelines to optimise cropping, processing and commercialisation using a participative approach have been developed.
Summary of the main results obtained
1. Assessment of local diversity
- Evaluation of phenological and pomological commercially interesting traits have been performed in the different ex situ germplasm collections in Spain, Ecuador and Peru.
- A set of 20 polymorphic SSRs useful for fingerprinting and diversity studies in cherimoya has been developed, published and distributed among the members of the CHERLA consortium. The set has been used to fingerprint ex situ collections and to study the genetic diversity in cultivated, semi-cultivated and wild cherimoya material.
- A selection of the most informative traits has been performed.
- A CHERLA database with three modules (in situ characterisation, molecular characterisation and ex situ characterisation) has been developed and distributed among the project partners. This database allows to efficiently share the results gathered by the different project partners.
- Descriptors for cherimoya have been finished and they have been published.
2. Conservation of local diversity
- A complete inventory of cherimoya genetic resources conserved ex situ in the different countries has been performed.
- A method to develop core collections in cherimoya has been described.%- Additional cherimoya accessions have been collected and planted in germplasm collections in order to increase the number of representativeness of the current ex situ collections in the different countries involved in CHERLA.
- A strategy for cherimoya in situ conservation measures has been elaborated.
- Spatial analyses have been performed providing an overview of cherimoya diversity in its centre of origin, including the definition of hotspots of diversity.
3. Use of local diversity
- Detailed studies on reproductive biology of cherimoya and its main bottlenecks have been performed.
- The main pests that affect cherimoya fruits in the different countries have been identified and the most important are fruit flies species of the genera Ceratitis and Anastrepha.
- Optimisation of fruit production has been performed in different pilot areas in Ecuador, Peru and Bolivia establishing the main cropping limitations and applying different local strategies through workshops, fairs and direct interactions with local farmers.
- Support materials for the different workshops with farmers, technicians and professionals have been elaborated.
- The evaluation of the financial / economic damage caused by pests has been performed.
- Improved techniques for nurseries have been elaborated and released.
- Detailed surveys have been carried out involving the main actors of cherimoya production, marketing and consumption in the different countries of the CHERLA consortium.
