Native fruit tree genetic resources in Japan
The diversity of climate, from subarctic to subtropical, and the complex geological history of Japan have produced a rich biodiversity. The flora includes several hundred species of native woody plants with edible fleshy fruits or nuts. People have eaten them from prehistoric times until about a hal...
| Published in: | Breeding Science |
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| Main Author: | |
| Format: | Text |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Japanese Society of Breeding
2016
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| Online Access: | http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4780805/ http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27069393 https://doi.org/10.1270/jsbbs.66.82 |
| Summary: | The diversity of climate, from subarctic to subtropical, and the complex geological history of Japan have produced a rich biodiversity. The flora includes several hundred species of native woody plants with edible fleshy fruits or nuts. People have eaten them from prehistoric times until about a half century ago. In Hokkaidō and the Ryūkyū Islands nut species had an important role in the diet, but fleshy fruits were also eaten until recently. Only Castanea crenata and a few minor species became domesticated as edible fruit trees in pre-modern times. Recently, Vitis coignetiae, Lonicera caerulea, Akebia quinata, Akebia trifoliata, Stauntonia hexaphylla, and Actinidia arguta have entered small-scale cultivation. The conservation of the germplasm of many of these native species, both in situ and ex situ, is precarious. |
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