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SHORT COMMUNICATIONS
Genetic Resources (2023), 4 (7), 68–75
DOI: 10.46265/genresj.ETES2274
https://www.genresj.org
ISSN: 2708-3764
Wild relatives of fruit trees in Syria: Genetic
resources threatened by conflict
Munzer Aldarvish *,a, Anas Al Kaddour b, Akram Bourgolc, Yasser Ramazan d, Yousef Hallak e,
Stephen Caversf and Joan Cottrellg
a Aleppo University and Agriculture Research Centre, Syria
b Aleppo University and General Organization for Seed Multiplication, Syria
c General Commission for Scientific Agricultural Research, Syria
d Plant Protection Directorate, Ministry of Agriculture, Syria
e Ministry of Agriculture, Syria
f UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology, Bush Estate, EH26 0QB, Penicuik, Midlothian, United Kingdom
g Forest Research, Northern Research Station, Roslin, EH25 9SY, Midlothian, United Kingdom
Abstract: Wild relatives of fruit trees (WRFT) are highly valued for food and tradable products by rural communities,
especially in low-income countries and as such are a vital resource for tree improvement. During periods of conflict, a
lack of support and protection by national authorities may make WRFT vulnerable. In Syria, WRFT are at risk of extinction
due to the ongoing crisis, which has limited efforts to conserve and propagate these unique genetic resources. We collected
information about the current status and key threats to WRFT in northwest Syria from 50 agricultural experts using structured
interviews. Our results show that many sites have experienced erosion, overgrazing and drought. To initiate in situ and ex
situ conservation, the locations of WRFT exposed to deterioration were identified and mapped using GPS, and seeds from
five genotypes per species were collected from each of ten species to be used for the establishment of an in situ and ex situ
WRFT collection.
Keywords: Conservation of wild fruit plants, In situ conservation, Plant Genetic Resources, Genetic Erosion, Crop wild
relatives
Citation: Aldarvish, M., Al Kaddour, A., Bourgol, A., Ramazan, Y., Hallak, Y., Cavers, S., Cottrell, J. (2023). Wild relatives of
fruit trees in Syria: Genetic resources threatened by conflict. Genetic Resources 4 (7), 68–75. doi: 10.46265/genresj.ETES2274.
© Copyright 2023 the Authors.
This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY 4.0), which
permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are
credited.
Introduction
Ensuring future global food security is one of the
biggest challenges facing humans today. One in nine
people worldwide already suffers from poor access to
food resources (FAO, IFAD and WFP,2015), and with
predicted human population growth, pressure on food
resources is likely to increase dramatically (Godfray
et al,2010;UN DESA,2015). New high-yielding
varieties of crops that can withstand adverse climatic
conditions and new pests and diseases are urgently
needed (McCouch et al,2013). All cultivated crops
derive from historic human domestication of wild
∗Corresponding author: Munzer Aldarvish
(drgeneral2015@yahoo.com)
genotypes, which have been gradually selected to
produce commercial varieties (Engels and Thormann,
2020). Crop wild relatives are the wild original sources
of these modern cultivars and remain the primary
resource of genetic diversity for breeding new, climate-
change tolerant, and higher-yielding cultivars (Maxted
and Kell,2009;Vincent et al,2019). As such, it is vital
to ensure wild relatives are identified, protected and
propagated to help secure the future of the species we
depend on.
Globally, fruit trees are of enormous economic
importance. In many places (Ercis¸li et al,2009;Otieno,
2017), the wild relatives of fruit trees (WRFT) remain
essential sources of food and medicines (Symphorien
et al,2016) but also provide feed for domestic
animals and food additives. They also play a crucial
Received: 14.11.2022 Accepted: 15.05.2023 Published online: 08.07.2023
Genetic Resources (2023), 4 (7), 68–75 Threats to fruit tree wild relatives in Syria 69
role in maintaining ecological diversity (Musayev and
Huseynova,2016). Notably, some of these wild relatives
are known to possess traits that could greatly benefit
contemporary agriculture through the breeding of new,
improved cultivars. For example, wild genotypes of
species in the genus Prunus are characterized by
adaptation to extreme climatic conditions (U˘
gur and
G¨
undes¸li,2020). Moreover, wild fruit tree genotypes
are an essential source of resilient rootstock, as grafting
is one of the key methods for making new fruit
varieties available to growers (Zhebentyayeva et al,
2019). Several wild edible fruits are used by rural and
tribal populations and significantly contribute to their
livelihood. The use of non-cultivated foods, of which
wild fruits form a part, as a dietary supplement or as
a coping mechanism in times of food shortage, provides
an important safety net for the rural poor, especially in
low-income countries (Ercis¸li and Sagbas,2017).
The term underutilized and neglected species refers
to a category of wild and cultivated plant species char-
acterized by a low level of investment in research and
development, and a recognized but untapped livelihood
potential (Eyzaguirre et al,1998). Widespread genetic
erosion of these species has been recorded worldwide:
for example, in Nepal, more than half of the tradi-
tional landraces have become absent from the farmer’s
fields (Paudel et al,2016). Generally, despite several
initiatives in recent years aimed at the conservation
of such genetic resources, these wild relatives are still
at risk of erosion or extinction (Pilling et al,2020).
They have been almost entirely neglected in ex situ
genebanks (Casta˜
neda-´
Alvarez et al,2016), although
some efforts to change this have begun (Dempewolf
et al,2013). In addition, current in situ reserves often do
not meet the required management standards to main-
tain the wild relatives and their genetic diversity for
long-term use (Iriondo et al,2012;Weibull and Phillips,
2020).
Syria lies within a region of substantial topographic
and climatic diversity in the Fertile Crescent, which
is the centre of origin and domestication of many
globally important crops. Syria is rich in agrobiodiversity
(food, forage crops and fruit trees) like wheat, barley,
lentils, chickpeas, vetch, olives, almonds, pear, plums,
medic, clover, as well as other ornamental, medicinal
and aromatic plants. Such plants are the main stocks
and heritage for farming in Syria and are widely
used elsewhere in the world. According to the Fourth
National Report on Biodiversity in Syria (MSEA,2009),
the reduction in plant genetic resources was caused by
urbanization, climate change, decreasing rainfall and
increasing temperatures in dry seasons, which the region
has experienced in the last seven years. An increasing
incidence of wildfires also poses a particular threat.
During the conflict period from 2012 to 2019,
Syria lost 20.4% of its tree cover (Gaafar,2021),
much of it in Idlib and Lattakia governorates. The
depletion of wild tree populations has been associated
with several factors related to the conflict, including
intense reliance on trees for heating and shelter,
frequent fires in wild forests, charcoal production, illegal
logging, agricultural expansion, and the weakness of
state institutions in protecting natural resources and
in managing environmental development. The losses of
wild tree species include the cherry Prunus mahaleb, oak
trees, wild pines and hundreds of other plant (tree and
crop) species are also threatened.
Unfortunately, there is no data available about the
current situation of the WRFT, the only available data
were published by FAO (1996), which clearly mentioned
the deterioration of plant genetic resources in Syria
started before the crisis. It can be assumed that the
deterioration of WRFT has increased following the
ongoing crisis in Syria resulting from the absence of
any control for the protection of these genotypes against
the deterioration. Moreover, there was clear evidence of
plant genetic resources decline in northwest (NW) Syria
based on the finding of previous research about crop
landraces in the same locations in NW Syria (AlDarvish
et al,2022) The primary causes were the spread of
cultivation to new areas, the need to grow economic
crops, particularly cereals, forages and food legumes,
and accidental forest fires (FAO,1996;AlDarvish et al,
2022). Hence the WRFT were already facing extinction
before the Syrian crisis began. Since then, the absence
of research authorities responsible for the conservation
and propagation of genetic resources has severely
exacerbated the problem. Currently, no conservation
activity is occurring as the conflict is preventing any
access to the field by Syrian botanists, in particular in
mountain areas where the threat from mines and bombs
is severe (Valderrabano et al,2018).
As a first step towards addressing the lack of
activity on these vital global resources, this study aimed
to: i) collect information about the current status
and critical threats to ten species of WRFT in NW
Syria, ii) characterize and map the locations of WRFT
exposed to deterioration, and iii) collect seed from
multiple genotypes of each species to be used for the
establishment of an in situ and ex situ WRFT collection.
Materials and methods
Data collection and analysis
The National Strategy for Conservation and Man-
agement of Plant Genetic Resources for Food and
Agriculture 2015–2035 (FAO,2015) directs national
actions for WRFT in Syria, and our methods were
designed to address these goals using guidelines rec-
ommended by Valderrabano et al (2018). The study
was conducted between September 2021 and Febru-
ary 2022 in Idleb Governorate (Ehsem, Mhambal, Jisr-
Ash-Shugur, Badama, Darkosh, Janudiyeh, Harim, Dana,
Kafr Takharim, Qourqeena, Armanaz subdistricts). This
region is located within Syria’s second and third agroe-
cological zones, incorporating mountains and plains.
Agroecological zone 2 covers 2,473,000 ha (13.4% of
the country) with an annual rainfall of 250 to 350mm
70 Aldarvish et al Genetic Resources (2023), 4 (7), 68–75
and no less than 250mm across two-thirds of the moni-
tored years. Agroecological zone 3 comprises 1,306,000
ha (7.1% of the country) with an annual rainfall of 250
to 350mm and no less than 250mm over half of the mon-
itored years (FAO,2003). These agroecological zones
are key factors affecting the spread of the WRFT, which
is key information when it comes to the planning for sub-
sequent studies on their propagation and preservation.
It is worth noting that this region is currently exposed
to climatic changes, especially drought, based on the
amount of seasonal rain mentioned in the description
of this region. To identify the location of WRFT exposed
to deterioration after the conflict, the researchers con-
ducted focus group discussions with community rep-
resentatives in each subdistrict to explain the aim of
the study, its methods and objectives (one in each of
11 subdistricts under study during the period from 25
September 2021 to 25 October 2021). These represen-
tatives nominated 50 key informant candidates, such
as agricultural engineers, senior farmers and agricul-
tural researchers, which had considerable knowledge of
the agriculture sector in their region and were targeted
for data collection via interviews and a multiple-choice
questionnaire (Supplemental data). The questionnaire
was designed to gather local knowledge on the location,
usage, reasons for decline and appropriate conservation
strategies for WRFT.
Due to the outbreak of COVID-19 in NW Syria during
data collection, 38 of the targeted informants elected
to participate via online interviews, while the remaining
12 agreed to in-person interviews. It’s worth mentioning
that the quality of online interviews was the same as in-
person data collection.
Data collection started on 25 September 2021 and
was completed by 25 October 2021. The data collected
from the questionnaires were transferred to MS Excel
(Microsoft Office 2020) prior to analysis. Data cleaning
was undertaken to ensure the accuracy and integrity
of the dataset. This involved identifying and rectifying
any inconsistencies, outliers or missing values that could
potentially skew the results. Variability and dispersion
within the dataset were calculated with Excel formulas,
including but not limited to measures such as standard
deviation, to extract valuable insights.
Seed collection and storage
The main criterion to decide whether the collected seeds
were WRFT or not, was their natural spread sites. More
specifically, the collected WRFT were collected from wild
and forest locations. For species with similar phenotypes
and for which phenotype is not sufficiently reliable
to distinguish between genotypes, for example, Ficus
carica,Olea europaea and Vitis vinifera, the seeds were
collected from wild mountainous sites far away from
agricultural areas, and according to the interviewees and
field team observations. The collected WRFT existed in
these wild sites for a long time, and their morphological
growth differs from the cultivated species and landraces
of the same species (especially the shape of leaves, fruits
and trees).
WRFT fully ripe fruits were collected during the
harvesting season and the fruit flesh (pulp) was
removed. The extracted seeds were then spread out
on paper sheets and dried in the open air for 30
days, with the seeds flipped daily to make sure they
were completely dry. Then they were disinfected using
thiram fungicide, placed in a paper bag labelled with
the species name, location, date and storage data,
and stored in airtight plastic barrels with dry silica
gel for future studies associated with the propagation
and establishment of local WRFT in situ conservation
sites and ex situ collections. This conservation method
was selected due to the ongoing war in Syria, where
electricity is not available for preserving seeds under
refrigerated conditions, based on the recommendation
of the Millennium Seed Bank staff provided to the
research staff through their visit to the Millennium Seed
Bank in July 2019 as an alternative method for seed
conservation. Moreover, Ashok et al (2017) showed that
this method of conservation could help to conserve seeds
for several years as recommended by Yoshinaga (2010).
For each of the collected accessions, 100 seeds
were weighed for each genotype, and the value was
multiplied by 10 and expressed as g/1,000 seeds;
average values per species, with standard deviation,
were calculated.
Results
Focus group discussions conducted with community
representatives and experts in the agricultural sector
in the targeted subdistricts showed that several WRFT
locations had been subject to neglect after the Syrian
crisis and had experienced significant deterioration
(Figure 1).
Data from the 50 interviews showed that WRFT were
found in the following four types of locations within
the study area: forests, verges along agricultural roads,
rocky and neglected parts of farms, and working farms.
The percentage of responses among the 50 participants
for the distribution of WRFT in study locations is
illustrated in Figure 2.
The interviews revealed that the following ten
WRFT species are experiencing erosion: Prunus mahaleb,
Prunus orientalis,Vitis vinifera,Rhus coriaria,Olea
europaea,Crataegus azarolus,Ficus carica,Pistacia
atlantica,Prunus spinosa, and Pyrus syriaca.
A range of reasons was reported for WRFT deterio-
ration (Figure 3). The primary causes were overgraz-
ing, frequent droughts and climate change. The predom-
inant conflict-related factors reported were neglect by
local authorities, lack of awareness of the importance
and value of WRFT and deforestation resulting from
the collection of wood for fuel and conversion to arable
lands. Several respondents mentioned the lack of inter-
est by the younger generation in making use of local wild
fruit landraces, overuse (massive unmanaged fruit gath-
ering), desertification and expansion of building into for-
Genetic Resources (2023), 4 (7), 68–75 Threats to fruit tree wild relatives in Syria 71
Figure 1. Study area for identification of wild relatives of fruit trees (WRFT) exposed to deterioration. Source: Humanitarian Data
Exchange
Figure 2. Proportion of respondents reporting types of
locations in which wild relatives of fruit trees (WRFT) are
found.
est locations as contributing factors. Floods were not
considered a threat by any of the respondents. Based on
the assessment result with the interviewees, the reasons
for erosions of WRFT are equal within all areas of the
study.
With respect to the impact of the ongoing conflict
in NW Syria on WRFT, all participants stated that the
Syrian armed conflict had intensified the deterioration
due to the lack of government control leading to
overgrazing and excessive cutting of trees in these
locations.
When questioned about conservation actions that
were considered to be the most important for the
protection of WRFT against the current deterioration,
participants responses showed the following answers:
36% suggested exchanging seeds of WRFT with
other farmers, 26% supported the establishment of
local collections for multiplication of these species,
22% considered public awareness campaigns and
14% favoured seed collection and conservation of
these species in local genebanks. Only 2% considered
awareness campaigns to be the most important action
for the protection and preservation of these species.
Regarding the availability of seeds or cuttings of the
WRFT species, 56% of the participants stated that seeds
or cuttings of these species were not available, whereas
44% stated that they have access to seeds and cuttings.
This response suggests that some WRFT are currently at
high risk of decline and may even suffer extinction over
time.
Collection of WRFT genotypes
The results of the interviews and questionnaire allowed
the identification of locations where WRFT had been
exposed to deterioration and needed conservation.
Based on available resources, the researchers collected
mature seeds of each WRFT species from these locations
as a first research and conservation step.
For each of the priority WRFT species identified, five
genotypes were collected from areas facing particularly
severe deterioration There were slight variations in seed
72 Aldarvish et al Genetic Resources (2023), 4 (7), 68–75
Figure 3. Reasons given, and percentage of respondents reporting, for deterioration of wild relatives of fruit trees (WRFT). From top
to bottom – C: Overgrazing; B: Frequent droughts and climatic changes; K: Consequences of Syrian crisis (lack of law enforcement);
I: Lack of knowledge about the importance and value of these species; G: Deforestation, including collection of wood for fuel; H:
Neglecting by local authorities; J: Interest of the younger generation for local wild fruit landraces is very low; F: Overuse (massive
unmanaged gathering); A: Spread of cultivation to new areas and need to grow economic crops; E: Desertification and expanding
of buildings towards forest locations and arable lands; D: Floods.
weight among the genotypes within species, and the
species averages are given in Table 1.
As seed weight can influence the speed and
percentage of germination and can be particularly
important in challenging environments (Upadhaya et al,
2007), and since maternal effects should be accounted
for in any subsequent comparative testing of plants
derived from the collection, seed weights for each
genotype were taken. The primary purpose of presenting
the weight of seeds was to know the standard deviation
for the seed weight within different genotypes collected
from the same species. This can be investigated in future
studies (genetic fingerprinting for these genotypes) to
distinguish between phenotype and genotype within the
same species and to identify if these variations in seed
weight result from environmental factors or are related
to genetic features
Discussion
Future food security for humankind is likely to rely
heavily on the sustainable availability of a wide range
of plant genetic resources for food, agriculture and
nutrition, amongst other needs. WRFT are highly valued
genetic resources for food production and to support
the livelihoods of rural populations, especially in low-
income countries. WRFT in Syria are threatened by
extinction due to conflict, which has led to increased
direct pressure on the tree populations themselves, and
to an absence of research authorities working in the field
Table 1. Average seed weights (g/1,000 seeds) for each wild
relative of fruit trees (WRFT) species collected.
WRFT Species Average seed weight
(g/1,000 seed)
Standard
deviation
Ficus carica 14.82 0.38
Olea europaea 720.00 144.05
Prunus spinosa 309.00 20.74
Vitis vinifera 100.00 7.91
Prunus orientalis 506.00 20.74
Pistacia atlantica 141.00 20.43
Rhus coriaria 92.00 9.08
Prunus mahaleb 180.00 16.96
Crataegus azarolus 400.00 15.81
Pyrus syriaca 165.20 2.83
of conservation and propagation of genetic resources.
Consequently, there is a high risk that this vital resource
may be lost to future research, and its fruits to future
generations.
Our results parallel those of previous studies, which
have identified that plant genetic resources in Syria are
particularly exposed to deterioration arising from the
ongoing conflict (Gaafar,2021;AlDarvish et al,2022).
However, similar threats to wild plant genetic diversity
have also been reported worldwide (Iriondo et al,2012;
Casta˜
neda-´
Alvarez et al,2016;Paudel et al,2016).
Prior to this study, the most recent available
information on the current status of WRFT dates from 11
Genetic Resources (2023), 4 (7), 68–75 Threats to fruit tree wild relatives in Syria 73
years ago (FAO,1996) before the start of the conflict. At
that time in the study area, the key locations for WRFT
were rich in wild genotypes because they were protected
by government authorities such as the Ministry of
Agriculture and the Directorates of Environmental
Protection. As reported by our interviewees, the
absence of state protection has resulted in increased
deterioration of WRFT populations in these locations, as
exploitation such as grazing or cutting of fuelwood for
heating is now uncontrolled (Gaafar,2021). This neglect
and lack of protection for WRFT by state institutions
has and continues to exacerbate ongoing pressure from
climate change and is resulting in severe genetic erosion
of these species. As government bodies have not been
present in the study area for over a decade, the condition
of WRFT has continued to deteriorate, as reported
by Valderrabano et al (2018). Moreover, all interviewees
stated that the weakness of current state institutions,
which demonstrate little interest in wild fruit trees, has
led to increased genetic erosion and deterioration of
these genotypes in NW Syria.
WRFT are highly valued for use directly as food
resources and as commodities that contribute to
livelihoods, especially in rural populations in low-
income countries. They are also an essential source
of genetic diversity for breeding new, higher-yielding,
climate change-tolerant varieties. Despite their high
value for food and agriculture (Maxted and Kell,2009;
Musayev and Huseynova,2016;Symphorien et al,
2016;Ercis¸li and Sagbas,2017;Vincent et al,2019;
Zhebentyayeva et al,2019;Engels and Thormann,2020;
U˘
gur and G¨
undes¸li,2020), WRFT have been almost
entirely neglected in both ex situ and in situ conservation
programmes. As they are likely to be locally adapted
and genetically distinctive, WRFT can provide vital novel
variation for domesticated fruit species to help meet
the challenge of increasingly stressful environments and
climatic changes. For example, they have been used by
plant breeders to develop more efficient nutrient uptake
and utilization, and to integrate genes for adaptation
to stressful environments such as water stress, salinity
and high temperatures (Ayenan et al,2019;Mishra et al,
2022). As for WRFT, Spiegel-Roy (1986) stated that wild
relatives of fruit trees are one of the essential resources
for fruit tree breeding, especially for disease tolerance,
rootstocks and genetic engineering.
To secure the future of these vital resources,
conservation protection efforts are urgently needed
for the degraded areas they occupy. The priority
species we have identified need to be included in
plantation programmes to secure the genetic diversity
that will be needed for the improvement of commercially
cultivated crops. Countries of the Near East and the
Mediterranean basin have perhaps the longest tradition
in fruit cultivation for historical, environmental and
evolutionary reasons (Barone and Caruso,1998;Wolf
et al,2000;Khoury et al,2017;Migicovsky and Myles,
2017;Bissessur et al,2019).
This study represents the first s tep i n highlighting
the extremely threatened status of these genotypes. Our
initiative to obtain accurately mapped locations for these
genetic resources can underpin future research efforts
towards ex situ and in situ conservation programmes.
Furthermore, the seed we have collected will form
the start of a local genebank collection for future
studies of genetic variation and propagation, which can
help to ensure resilient and sustainable agricultural
development for future generations in Syria and
worldwide.
Acknowledgments
This research was supported by Cara (the Council
for At-Risk Academics), United Kingdom. The Syrian
research team wishes to extend their thanks to Joan
Cottrell and StephenCavers for their valuable assistance
in developing the manuscript.
Supplemental Data
Interview questionnaire
Author contributions
Munzer Aldarvish coordinated the research and con-
tributed to the research design and manuscript; Anas
Al Kaddour, Akram Bourgol, and Yasser Ramazan con-
tributed to the research design and manuscript and
undertook the data analyses, Yousef Hallak contributed
to the research design and carried out the field data col-
lection; Stephen Caversand Joan Cottrellprovided aca-
demic guidance and support throughout the research
process and contributed to the manuscript.
Conflict of interest statement
The authors of this manuscript have no conflicts of
interest to declare. All co-authors have seen and agree
with the contents of the manuscript, and there is
no financial i nterest t o r eport. We c ertify t hat the
submission is original work and is not under review at
any other publication.
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