Chronica Horticulturae volume 49 number 1 ... - Acta Horticulturae

Chronica
HORTICULTURAE
Volume 49 - Number 1 - 2009
A PUBLICATION OF THE INTERNATIONAL SOCIETY FOR HORTICULTURAL SCIENCE
Horticultural Highlights
Problems with Plastics • Critical Pests and Diseases Imperil World Citrus •
Cactus Pear: Gift of the New World • Integrated Crop Management Strategies
for Sustainable Production of Non-Traditional Agricultural Exports: Snow Peas
in Guatemala • Horticultural Economy of Guangxi Province, China
Symposia and Workshops
Medicinal and Aromatic Plants • Jujube • Woody Ornamentals of the
Temperate Zone • Orchard Systems • Biotechnology of Fruit Species • Papaya •
Brassica • Ecological Sound Fertilization Strategies for Field Vegetable
Production • Vegetables and Potatoes • Quality and Safety of Agri-Foods

Chronica
HORTICULTURAE
Chronica Horticulturae © ISBN: 978 90 6605 039 6 (Volume 49 – Number 1;
March 2009); ISSN: 0578-039X.
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Isabel Ferreira, Instituto Superior de Agronomia, Lisbon, Portugal
Kim Hummer, USDA ARS NCGR, Corvallis, USA
Hilde Nybom, Balsgard-Dept. Crop Science, Swedish University of Agricultural
Sciences, Kristianstad, Sweden
Robert K. Prange, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, Kentville, Canada
Anthony David Webster, Malmesbury, Wiltshire, United Kingdom
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A publication of the International Society for
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human well-being.
CONTENTS
■ News & Views from the Board
3 Asian Horticulture: Issues and Potential, J.-M. Lee
■ Issues
8 Problems with Plastics, A. Cameron
■ Horticultural Science Focus
11 Critical Pests and Diseases Imperil World Citrus, L.G. Albrigo,
N. Wang, T. Spann, X. Deng and E.F. Carlos
■ Horticultural Science News
15 Cactus Pear: Gift of the New World, P. Inglese
19 Integrated Crop Management Strategies for Sustainable
Production of Non-Traditional Agricultural Exports: Snow Peas in
Guatemala, S.C. Weller and G.E. Sanchez
■ The World of Horticulture
23 Horticultural Economy of Guangxi Province, China,
Weijiang Ruan and R.K. Prange
28 New Books, Websites
29 Courses and Meetings
■ Symposia and Workshops
30 Fourth World Conference on Medicinal and Aromatic Plants
(WOCMAP IV)
32 First Int’l Jujube Symposium
33 First Int’l Symposium on Woody Ornamentals of the Temperate
Zone
35 Ninth Int’l Symposium on Integrating Canopy, Rootstock and
Environmental Physiology in Orchard Systems
38 First Int’l Symposium on Biotechnology of Fruit Species
40 Second Int’l Symposium on Papaya
43 Brassica 2008 - Fifth ISHS Int’l Symposium on Brassicas and
Sixteenth Crucifer Genetics Workshop
45 Fourth Int’l Symposium on Toward Ecological Sound Fertilization
Strategies for Field Vegetable Production
47 Fourth Balkan Symposium on Vegetables and Potatoes
48 The Asia-Pacific Symposium on Assuring Quality and Safety of
Agri-Foods
■ News from the ISHS Secretariat
50 New ISHS Members
51 Calendar of ISHS Events
55 Available Issues of Acta Horticulturae
56 Chronica Horticulturae - Author Information
Cover photograph: Many horticultural products contain a built-in disposal
issue. The pot of this non-stop tuberous begonia is a new composition of
recycled fibers (from cow dung) mixed with a low grade plastic. see p. 8
ISHS • 2

NEWS & VIEWS FROM THE BOARD
Asian Horticulture:
Issues and Potential
Jung-Myung Lee, Secretary of the ISHS Board
Globalization has been a powerful force in Asia for over a decade. Significant increases in international
trade of horticultural products, exchanges of professionals and students, new and
improved cultivars and seeds, advanced professional and technical information, and practical
as well as sophisticated farm equipment are deeply influencing Asian horticulture. The horticultural
industry has become the major agricultural activity in some Asian countries in terms of
product value and potentials. Many of these industries, especially seed companies, have supported
various ISHS symposia. Seventeen issues of Acta Horticulturae (759 to 775) have been
published covering all the manuscripts submitted at IHC 2006. Maximum and intensive use of
land have been key concerns for Asians, but alternative sources of additional income from
other horticultural practices have been pursued such as value added technology, off-season
production, high-quality produce, improved storage and marketing.
A
Jung-Myung Lee
Figure 1. Scenes of the first Asian
Horticultural Congress held in Jeju, Korea
in December, 2008: (A) opening ceremony;
(B) plenary lecture by Professor Park;
(C) fruit professional tour.
Asia contains more than 60% of the world
population in about 20% of world’s arable
land. The average size of a farm is well below
the world average and as a result the majority
of Asian farmers are eager to produce valueadded
horticultural crops as compared to field
crops, to obtain higher yields of high-quality
produce, to explore environmentally-friendly
crops, and to exploit off-season production by
utilizing newly developed production techniques
such as improved cultivars, grafted
transplants, protected cultivation, successive
cropping system, and proper cultural management
(Lee, 2007).
GLOBALIZATION
The term globalization has now become very
popular among Asian horticulturists.
Globalization may be confirmed by the recent
massive increases in international trade of fresh
and processed horticultural crops, frequent and
large-scaled exchanges of industrial workers
and students, rapid and efficient transfer of
modern horticultural technologies via many
scientific meetings, and use of imported seeds
and machines. The recent expansion of Free
Trade Agreements (FTAs) also has increased
international trade and accelerated globalization.
Asian Horticultural Congresses
Various international horticultural meetings
have been sponsored in Asia. Following the
International Horticultural Congress (IHC) held
in Kyoto, Japan (1994) and Seoul, Korea (2006),
the first Asian Horticultural Congress (AHC
2008) (Fig. 1) was launched in Jeju Island of
Korea located in the southern part of Korea
with subtropical climates. This decision was
influenced by the First Symposium on
Horticulture in Europe (SHE 2008) held in
Vienna, Austria in February 17-20, 2008. The
AHC, recognized by ISHS, was held from
December 11-13, 2008 with 790 registrations
(140 from abroad). The Congress included 2
days of paper presentations, and various professional
and optional tours. Some of the topics
presented at the AHC are shown in Table 1. The
next AHC will be held in Tsukuba, Japan in
2012. An All Africa Horticultural Congress
(AAHC) is scheduled in Nairobi, Kenya in
August, 2009.
Exchanges of Scientists and Students
In addition to the horticultural scientists participating
the IHCs, ISHS symposia, ISHS-related
workshops and meetings, there has been an
explosive increase in the number of foreign students,
both undergraduate and graduate level,
in many Asian countries especially China, Japan,
and Korea. Over 30,000 Korean students are
studying in China and about the same number
of Chinese students are studying in Korea (Table
2). Many of these foreign students are studying
language, but a considerable number of students
are also majoring in horticulture-related
areas. South Korea (83,854), India (63,644),
China (53,758), Japan (47,249), and Taiwan
(32,442) were the top 5 countries having their
active students studying in the USA in 2006, followed
by Canada (23,312) and Mexico (13,441)
(Source: US ICE, SEVIS). Student exchange
reflects the strong desire of Asians for globalization.
Globalization can also be seen in workers
B
C
immigration shifts in the industrial sector. Many
immigrants throughout Asia, legal and illegal,
are working in horticultural production.
EXPANSION OF SEED AND
TRANSPLANT INDUSTRY IN
ASIA
Vegetable Seeds
The vegetable seed market of China, which
produces over 50% of the world’s vegetables, is
CHRONICA HORTICULTURAE •VOL 49 • NUMBER 1 • 2009 • 3

Table 1. Some topics presented at the 1 st Asian Horticultural Congress held in Jeju Island,
Korea from December 11-13, 2008.
Title (Nationality)
Vegetable production and seed industry in China
Mechanism of sugar accumulation and target for improving the fruit quality (Japan)
New challenges to horticultural industry in North-East Asia (Korea)
Vegetable genetics and breeding in China
Current topics of technologies for greenhouse production of fruit vegetables in
NARO (Japan)
Horticulture in Mongolia
Horticultural production and industry in Thailand
Heat tolerant and yellow leaf curl virus resistant tomato cultivars for Cambodian
farmers
The status of horticulture industry in Malaysia
Introduction of crop zoning concept and food technology practices to enhance fruit
production in Sri Lanka
Horticultural industry in Jordan: Past, present, and future
Impact of Asian native plants in US horticultural market (USA)
The current opportunities and challenges for applying plant biotechnology in
horticultural development of Vietnam
A brief review of protected horticulture in Korea and recent researches on moisture
control root media in plant production
Speaker
Rifei Sun
Shohei Yamaki
Hyo Geun Park
Hui Feng
T. Mochizuki
J. Oyungerel
P.P. Buara
M. Ouk
Tengku Ab. Malik
K.B. Wahundeniya
M.M. Qrunfleh
D. Zhang
L.T. Binh
J.E. Son
A
B
Figure 2. (A) Nongwoo Bio’s Breeding
Station in Yeoju, Korea with 3 overseas
stations at the bottom from left Beijing,
USA, and Indonesia; (B) new building in
Beijing; (C) APSA magazine.
estimated to be valued at more than US$1.4 billion.
With the increased recognition of new and
high-yielding hybrid cultivars, a large number of
vegetable seed producers and distributors has
been established. There are four types: public
seed companies, research institutes, foreign
seed companies, and local private seed companies.
Private seed companies have been expanding
rapidly in recent years and there are now
thousands of small firms. Some companies have
started to breed their own cultivars and establish
marketing network and play a strong role
in Chinese vegetable seed industry. About 60
foreign seed companies have opened branch
companies or stations in China. Most of them
not only sell their vegetable seeds but also establish
breeding stations there. The major foreign
vegetable seed companies include Syngenta,
Seminis, Bejo, Rijk Zwaan, and Nongwoo. The
status of international trade of vegetable seed
of China is shown in Table 3.
Active international trade and contract overseas
vegetable seed production is common in many
Asian countries. For example, Republic of Korea
has been producing more than 70% of vegetable
seeds for plantings overseas and the
same is also true in Japan. The international
Table 2. Number of foreign students studying at college level or higher in China and Korea.
Nationality Studying in China as of 2006 Studying in Korea as of 2007
Total 162,695/184 countries 49,270 (100%)
Asian origin 150,000 (92.2%) 45,622 (92.6%)
China — 33,650 (68.3%)
Korea 30,150 (18.5%) —
Others 12,695 (7.8%) 3,648 (7.4%)
C
trade as well as domestic use of vegetable
seeds in Korea has been relatively stable for the
last few decades. Production and supply of
plug-grown transplants by commercial nurseries
and supply of high quality seeds significantly
reduced the total amount of vegetable
seeds. However, recent increases in consumption
of vegetable sprouts and baby vegetables
tended to increase the international trade in
selected vegetables. According to the FAO statistics,
in 2007 Asia produced 73.7% of the
world’s vegetables (659 million tonnes) on
72.8% of the world’s vegetable production
area (23.9 million ha). In contrast, about 47%
of the world’s fruit was produced in Asia. In
India, the percentage of hybrid vegetable cultivars
is lower than expected (Table 4) as is the
case of the yield per unit area of land, suggesting
the need for further improvement and
enlargement of the seed market there as in
many southeastern Asian countries including
Indonesia, Vietnam, and Malaysia.
The major sponsors for the IHC 2006 in Korea
were seed companies. Several seed companies
donated very generous amount of cash and
sponsored several other programs such as professional
tours, exhibition participation, exhibition
classrooms, and ISHS activities. For example,
Hungnong Seed Company, sold to Seminis
in 1998 and again to Monsanto in 2005, hosted
Korean Night Dinner party for the ISHS
Council members and served Korea-style dinner
and arranged for traditional performance of
Korean dancing and music in Auckland, New
Zealand in February 1997. Hungnong Seeds,
under the name of Seminis, also sponsored IHC
2006 by donating 60,000 US$ and field trips.
Nongwoo Bio, another seed company in Korea,
is currently the top company in terms of total
sales. Nongwoo donated 100,000 US$ for the
IHC 2006 and sponsored a field trip and Council
ISHS • 4

dinner. Since most of major crop seeds are supplied
by the Government at low price and fruits
are perennials in most cases, the vegetable
industry in Asia is far more important than fruit
or ornamentals in most Asian countries. As in
the case of many multinational seed companies
such as Monsanto, Nongwoo Bio also operates
Overseas Branches in USA, Indonesia, and
China (Fig. 2A). In addition to the Overseas
company in China in 2008 (Fig. 2B), one more
branch company of Nongwoo Bio will be oper-
A
Figure 3. (A) Uniform-sized cell trays for
various vegetable plug transplant production;
(B) grafted pepper seedlings in 105-
cell trays for machine transplanting; (C)
double-stemmed grafted tomato plug
seedlings.
Table 3. Values of exported and imported vegetable seeds in China (revised from the presentation
by Dr. Rifei Sun, the Deputy Director of Institute of Vegetables and Flowers, CAAS,
China, at the first Asian Horticultural Congress held in Jeju, Korea in December 2008).
Country Export (Million US$) Import (Million US$)
2003 2004 2005 2003 2004 2005
Japan 2.89 2.82 2.59 9.09 11.98 12.06
The Netherlands 4.38 5.34 6.59 4.08 3.12 5.82
Korea 6.47 5.67 6.36 3.71 3.20 4.52
USA 7.48 9.57 10.58 4.55 4.56 3.98
France 1.16 2.44 3.26 0.61 1.28 1.23
Thailand 0.00 0.37 0.42 3.38 3.30 3.69
Italy 0.58 1.22 2.19 - - -
Taiwan 0.82 1.26 1.26 3.66 2.65 1.30
India 1.05 1.43 1.88 - - -
Israel - - 0.46 3.32 3.44 3.13
Australia - - - 1.79 2.09 1.90
Denmark - - - 1.53 1.73 2.10
Subtotal 24.83 30.12 35.62 35.71 37.33 39.71
% of Total 89.85 92.97 90.48 97.49 87.92 88.41
B
C
ating in India from late 2009. Each multinational
company vies to provide better vegetable
seeds to compete with domestic seed producers.
The Asia and Pacific Seed Association
(APSA) has been very active in Asia, primarily
dealing with vegetable seeds (APSA, 2008).
APSA held its 14th annual congress in India in
November 2008 with 800 registered participants
from 44 countries (Fig. 2C). Plant protection
right and LMO (living modified organism)
issues become of increasing concern in sales
and international trade along with royalty issues
with increasing number of UPOV (international
union for the protection of new varieties of
plant) member countries (67 as of January
2009). Active and positive connections between
the private breeding sectors and large-scaled
gene banks are required to avoid possible conflict
involving breeders’ rights.
Transplant Industry
Multiple-cropping of vegetables is very common
in Asia. Double or triple cropping is routinely
practiced in major vegetable production areas.
Even in the paddy rice field, short-season vegetables
or overwintering vegetables are grown
prior to or after rice cultivation. Except for a few
vegetables such as carrots and radishes, maximum-sized
healthy transplants, intact or grafted,
are preferred by farmers. More and more
farmers are purchasing nursery-grown transplants
rather than growing transplants for their
own uses. As compared to about 55 seed companies
operating in Korea, more than 200 commercial
nurseries are producing vegetable transplants.
The total retail value is also high for the
transplant industry as compared to the seed
industry in Korea. The seed companies are selling
more seeds to the seedling growers than to
the individual farmers, thus indicating significant
changes in seed and transplant industries
in Korea as well as Japan. International trade of
transplants, mostly grafted ones, has been
steadily increasing over the world (Kubota,
2008; Lee, 2008). US import of grafted
seedlings produced in Mexico or Canada,
European imports of grafted and/or plug vegetable
seedlings from Morocco, and Korea’s
export of grafted transplants to Japan (Table 5)
Table 4. Vegetable seed production status in India.
Crop Cultivation area in Share of F 1 seeds (%)
2005-06 (1,000 ha)
2001-2002 2005-2006
Eggplant 533.5 17.8 22.0
Cabbage 274.0 32.0 50.0
Cauliflower 306.9 4.0 15.0
Chillies 627.3 3.0 10.0
Gourds 448.1 2.0 25.0
Melon 182.0 5.5 27.5
Tomato 549.5 28.0 60.0
Onion 428.0
Radish 312.0 3.0 10.0
CHRONICA HORTICULTURAE •VOL 49 • NUMBER 1 • 2009 • 5

Table 5. Korea’s export of grafted seedlings to Japan in 2008.
Nursery Solanaceous Cucurbits Total number
Pureun (green) 1,200,000 300,000 1,500,000
Hoban 400,000 - 400,000
Poseung 150,000 - 150,000
GreenTek 500,000 500,000
Others 100,000 100,000 300,000
* Price of seedlings being exported: US$30~35 per 100 seedlings.
A
Figure 5. Pleasure use and therapeutic
exercise in horticulture is increasing: (A)
citizen weekend farm in Jeju; (B) Queen
Sirikit Botanic Garden, Thailand; (C)
Yeomiji garden in Jeju, Korea.
A
B
C
Figure 4. (A) Chinese cabbage; (B) cabbage
growing on hilly land in China; (C)
land leveling for mechanization in Japan.
are examples (Fig. 3C). Rapid growth of transplant
industries is expected in Asia. Use of
healthy seeds is vital for grafting and dry heat
treatment has been extensively used to eradicate
seed-borne diseases in cucurbits, solanum
crops, and some crucifers (Lee, 2008).
PROTECTED CULTIVATION
AND READJUSTMENT OF
ARABLE LAND
Protected Cultivation
Massive production of fresh and high quality
vegetables has been popular in many Asian
countries located in the Temperate Zone to
satisfy the strong needs for year-round supply of
fresh vegetables. The yield may be doubled or
even tripled by growing vegetables under protected
environments as compared to the field
growing. The market prices of certain vegetables
show large changes depending upon the
time of the year, thus making protected cultivation
more attractive to the farmers with small
farm size. In addition, farmers may adapt more
convenient management techniques and cultural
practices such as time-set fertigation, automatic
chemical sprays or fumigations during the
night, and even semi-automatic temperature
and ventilation systems to maximize the crop
yield. Heavier incidence of soil-borne diseases
such as Fusarium and Phytophthora caused by
successive cropping under the protected cultivation
area could be significantly reduced by
applying proper cultural practices such as solar
heating of the soil covered with clear PE film
during the summer, growing paddy rice during
the summer 4 months of the year, or by using
grafted seedlings rather than soil fumigation
with toxic chemicals such as methyl bromide.
Readjustment of Farm Land
Active readjustment of farm land has been taking
place in some Asian countries for several
reasons including the efficient use of farm
machinery and labor-saving devices. Much of
the terraced paddy rice cultivation as commonly
noticed in the Philippines and other southeastern
Asian countries is now almost abandoned
because of their high requirements for
hand labor. It is also true with horticultural
crops. Extensive orchards commonly found in
China, Iran, and Japan, are slowly undergoing
readjustments for better adaptation for mechanization.
In some developed Asian countries,
farm size has been increasing considerably, due
mostly to the marked decreases in population
engaged in agriculture, thus significantly
increasing the need for land readjustment (Fig.
4). Some of the farms located near large cities
B
C
have been changed to leisure-absorbing facilities
(weekend farms), where citizens living in
small apartment units in big cities can lease the
land (one or multiple year contract, 50-100 US$
for 16 m 2 flat land plot per year) and enjoy farm
activity, clean air, and own-grown vegetables.
The farm-owner may provide all kinds of farm
equipment, fertilizers, agrochemicals, seeds and
seedlings, and even food and beverages upon
request with additional charge. More than 200
such farms have been recently opened in the
metropolitan Seoul areas in Korea and similar
trends can be found in other Asian countries.
Many of the productive farms located near the
big cities are also transformed into parks and
gardens for tourists instead of traditional farming
(Fig. 5A). Other types of horticultural events
are also getting popular among amateurs interested
in learning and practicing general horticultural
life through short courses, in addition
to traditional garden visits (Fig. 5B and C).
Popular courses include Living with Horticulture,
Floral Arts-Press, Dry and Staining, Gourds and
Vegetable Crafts, and Grow & Pick-Your-Own.
ISHS • 6

Figure 6. Various devices for increasing vegetable production under adverse conditions: (A) nethouse in Israel; (B) solar greenhouse complex in
China; (C) vegetable sprout production under artificial lights.
A B C
OVERCOMING ADVERSE
CONDITIONS AND BIO-
ENERGY PROJECTS
The world economy has been badly shaken by
the recent surge and decline of oil prices as well
as the current financial crisis originating in the
USA. Asia had already experienced huge financial
crisis in 1997 and Thailand, Indonesia, and
Korea were most badly shaken. Other Asian
countries such as Hong Kong, Malaysia, Laos,
and the Philippines were also hurt by the 1997
Asian financial crisis. China, India, Taiwan,
Singapore, Brunei, and Vietnam were less
affected, although all suffered from a loss of
demand and confidence throughout the region.
Recent world economic crisis and upsurge of
crude oil prices triggered the keen interest in
energy-saving and bioenergy. Many researchers
engaged in biotechnology are rapidly changing
their project titles into areas of bioenergy
because of the funding from the government
and foundations. Energy-saving, in addition to
the previously-mentioned labor-saving, is one of
the key issues confronting good quality horticultural
producers over the world, especially under
the protected cultivation environments or in
indoor sprouts production. Governments are
willing to support this emerging bioenergy
industry by several means such as purchasing
the power or energy at much higher price,
reducing the cost of tax-free energy for greenhouse
heating for off-season horticultural crop
production, supplying modern equipment of
creating, saving, and preserving energy for
energy-saving operation at much lower prices
(Fig. 6).
REFERENCES
APSA. 2008. Apsa Seed & Planting Materials
15(5).
Kubota, C. 2008. Use of grafted seedlings for
vegetable production in North America. Acta
Hort. 770:21-28.
Lee, J.M. 2007. Advances in Asian horticulture.
Chronica Hort. 47(4):3-5.
Lee, J.M. 2008. Vegetable grafting: A powerful
aid for cultivation of environmentally-friendly
produce. KAST Rev. Modern Sci. 4:68-85.
Sun, R. 2008. Vegetable production and seed
industry in China. Asian Horticultural Congress.
2008.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement,
Students/Exchange Visitors (US ICE, SEVIS).
Students by country of citizenship as of June 30,
2006.
Did you renew your ISHS membership?
Logon to www.ishs.org/members
and renew online!
CHRONICA HORTICULTURAE •VOL 49 • NUMBER 1 • 2009 • 7

ISSUES
Problems with Plastics
Arthur Cameron
Plastics and plasticulture are widely utilized
and increasing in modern-day horticulture
throughout the world. Around the world, millions
of tonnes of plastic are used each year to
mulch crops, cover greenhouses, and to construct
a variety of plant containers and plug
flats. Plastics are light weight and versatile and
have thus found a multitude of uses in crop production
and landscaping. However, the fate of
plastic in our environment is a serious issue that
needs to be resolved. Unfortunately, our
“green” industry is not so green when it comes
to reusing and recycling the vast quantity of
plastic generated (Fig. 1). Landfills do not seem
an appropriate option, and, unless stringently
controlled, burning can release a number of
potentially dangerous compounds into the
atmosphere. Containers can be reused, but
there are issues related to disease and lack of
standard sizes. Greenhouse coverings and
mulch films cannot be reused, since they deteriorate
under UV radiation. Another complicating
factor is that several different types of plastic
are used in the horticultural industry, including
low density polyethylene, high-density polyethylene,
polypropylene, and high-impact polystyrene.
To maintain the highest quality of the
recycled product, these need to be carefully
sorted and handled separately. Even if properly
sorted, various contaminants including soil and
organic matter reduce the quality of recycled
plastic compared to virgin material. Every time
plastic goes through the recycling process, contaminants
and structural degradation reduce
the quality of the plastic, such that it is difficult
or impossible to manufacture the same product
again and again. The list of problems goes on
and, to date, more plastic is burned or put in
landfills than is recycled or reused.
The market for recycled plastic can be extremely
volatile as it was in 2008, with a sharp spike
in price followed by a precipitous decline. As
expected, this has largely followed the price of
crude oil over the same time period. Currently
prices are extremely depressed and plastic recycling
plants that were recently planned are now
on hold. The cost of collecting, sorting, cleaning,
transporting, grinding, and melting combined
with reduced quality due to even minor
amounts of contaminants impacts the quantity
of plastic recycled. In states of the USA such as
Michigan, waste management companies typically
make more money putting plastic into
landfills than they do selling it to recycling companies.
Under these circumstances, it may
require legislation rather than financial returns
to stimulate and encourage recycling efforts for
horticultural plastics.
PLASTIC TYPES
There are several different types of plastics used
in the international horticulture industry. The
price for virgin and recycled starting material for
each varies, as does their value for specific purposes.
Recycling is affected by the original resin,
contaminants of any sort, and any change in
structure caused by heat or UV radiation.
Figure 1. Plastic disposal is a problem. (A) This mix of plastic and organic matter will end up
in a landfill if not sorted. (B) Discarded plastic in a greenhouse is inconvenient and unsightly.
High-Density Polyethylene (HDPE)
Uses. HDPE is commonly used for constructing
nursery containers, specifically those used outdoors
for trees and shrubs. Outside of agriculture,
the most important use for HDPE plastic is
for milk containers manufactured through the
process of blow molding. HDPE is also used to
manufacture fuel tanks for vehicles, various
other screw top containers (e.g. bleach, shampoo,
and motor oil), and some types of irrigation
pipes. HDPE is valued since it resists breakage
and does not break down quickly under UV
light. It is both thermally and chemically resistant
and thus has been extensively used for containing
pesticides and herbicides.
Reusing and Recycling. HDPE-constructed
plant containers should be reused only if they
are properly sterilized. In particular, it has been
noted that Thielaviopsis spores can persist and
can infect a subsequent crop if not completely
eliminated by appropriate sanitation procedures.
Thielaviopsis is a serious root disease that
can affect a wide range of species. There are
also an endless number of different container
designs, and so it is difficult or perhaps impossible
for growers to reuse unless there has first
been a good deal of sorting.
HDPE is one of the easiest plastics to recycle,
though major recycling efforts are typically
devoted to milk containers (Fig. 2). Recycled
HDPE is typically not reformed into containers,
but rather is made into plastic timber for landscaping,
picnic tables, and even railroad ties.
Compared to wood, plastic lumber can be very
heavy, but is becoming more popular each year.
Generally, milk containers are commonly recycled,
while other containers made from HDPE
are not. Nursery containers are more difficult to
recycle since dirt and other contaminants can
reduce the value of timber if not completely
eliminated.
Low-Density Polyethylene (LDPE)
Uses. This relatively inexpensive plastic is used
extensively throughout the world to cover
greenhouses and as a plastic mulch. When
double layered, it is effective as a cover and
thermal barrier for greenhouses in colder parts
of the world. It has proven effective as a
mulching material for diverse food and ornamental
crops such as strawberries, vegetables,
and even herbaceous perennial plants. It is also
commonly used for various plastic bags.
Reusing and Recycling. LDPE films are not
typically reused, though they can be recycled
and the secondary product can be made into
products such as trash bags and plastic timber.
ISHS • 8

Figure 2. High-density plastics must be baled (A) or ground (B) before being transported,
since the bulk density is so low.
due to contaminants, which in some applications
presents a barrier.
When used as a mulch, the trapped soil reduces
the quality of the recycled plastic. Some plastic
recycling companies specialize in developing
wash line systems for cleaning these plastics,
and a wide range of specialized systems have
been developed. Still, washing is an extra cost
and many plastic recyclers do not have this
equipment, which reduces the number of
options available to growers. When used as a
greenhouse cover, LDPE films break down due
to UV radiation, which also limits the usefulness
in recycled products. Unless baled, LDPE film
has a very low bulk density and is inefficient to
transport. If at all possible, LDPE films should
first be baled before transporting. Several types
of balers have been successfully developed, and
can be rented or purchased. In some cases,
recycling companies will provide the baling
equipment for a limited amount of time when
growers are removing field mulch or greenhouse
coverings. In the state of New Jersey,
there is a statewide effort to aid growers on the
recycling of LDPE films.
Polypropylene (PP)
Uses. Polypropylene is commonly used to construct
plant containers, especially those used for
greenhouse production of house plants, herbs,
annuals, potted flowering plants and bedding
plants. It is favored since it is generally durable,
lightweight and resists breakage. However, it
eventually becomes brittle, especially when
exposed to UV light, and is best used indoors or
for quick crops. PP is also used for auto parts,
food containers, and dishware. Spun-bonded
polypropylene (sometimes referred to as woven
polypropylene) is used as row covers for frost
protection, as a moisture barrier for buildings,
and as disposable water repellent clothing.
Reusing and Recycling. Reusing PP containers
is possible but carries the same warnings
as those for HDPE containers, specifically
diseases such as Thielaviopsis that can persist
as spores. Also, PP can get brittle if exposed to
UV radiation. Virgin PP is white, whereas
recycled PP will always be darker, or even black
High Impact Polystyrene (HIPS)
Uses. HIPS is commonly used for molding the
trays (flats) used for seedlings and small plants.
Pure solid polystyrene is colorless, but generally
plug trays are black since they are constructed
from recycled plastic. These are inexpensive and
extremely lightweight. Polystyrene is also used
in cafeteria trays, various cases and toys.
Expanded polystyrene, known as styrofoam, has
long been used for small plant containers.
Reusing and Recycling. HIPS trays can be
reused, but again caution should be used due
to control disease contamination. Growers can
accumulate HIPS trays if they purchase and
transplant small plants from a plug producer.
HIPS trays are extremely light, difficult to compress
and come in a multitude of designs.
Unless they are all of the same design, they do
not stack or nest. The trays may be clean, but
the inserts are typically dirty. Some plastic companies
are promoting the fact that they are
using recycled HIPS and trying to close the loop
so that HIPS can be used again and again (Fig.
3). This will be limited by the extent of contamination
and the ability of recyclers to completely
clean the plastic before melting. Companies
that collect and produce can melt HIPS and
form it directly into thin sheets that can be
molded directly back into trays. This eliminates
a step in the recycling process and enhances the
financial return. Expanded polystyrene is generally
more difficult to recycle, and has a reputation
for accumulating in the environment.
RECYCLING HORTICULTURAL
PLASTICS
Figure 3. These high impact plastic trays are made from recycled plastic.
Collection
Horticultural industries are often responsible for
finding suitable recycle companies for their
plastic. Some states, such as New Jersey, offer
help to connect growers with recyclers for a
specific plastic, in this case, LDPE. In many
states and other countries, there is no such
state-led facilitation, and growers may have
difficulty finding suitable companies.
Many recycling companies require a minimum
amount of plastic before pick up. This requires
that a grower stores plastic until an adequate
amount has accumulated, or that several
growers band together and combine their
plastic. This is possible, but to date, the low
value of the plastic has not provided adequate
incentive, and most is deposited at landfills.
Localized collection sites, preferably with capacity
to bale and to grind plastic, would be ideal.
Many American communities offer curbside
pickup for PET (polyethylene terephthalate) and
HDPE (milk containers). However, few offer
curbside pickup of horticulture pots and containers
for home gardeners. Curbside collection
alone does not verify that the plastics are
CHRONICA HORTICULTURAE •VOL 49 • NUMBER 1 • 2009 • 9

Figure 4. These biodegradable pots have their own issues, since they are heavier, do not stack
well, and have sharp edges when they break.
researchers and growers have proposed the use
of biodegradable pots as a substitute for plastic
(Fig. 4). They can be made from a variety of
plant and animal-based materials including rice
hulls, digested cow manure, corn stalks, wood
fibers, and keratin. More commercial options
have become available, although they are most
often heavy and cumbersome, which means
they take more space and cost more to ship.
Biodegradable pots are being used more for
fast crops in order to reduce the chances that
the pots will degrade before the crop is sold.
Researchers around the world are looking for
better solutions, but the percent of biodegradable
pots utilized at this time is very small compared
to plastic.
Plastics fill a prominent niche in production systems
for a wide range of horticulture crops.
How to best promote recycling at all levels is still
a challenge in the USA and throughout much of
the rest of the world. It has been difficult to
track innovations since they are often undertaken
by private industry. An international meeting
to discuss improved methods and practices for
plastic recycling and new innovations in
biodegradable pots and films could be very
timely.
properly recycled. They can be directed to landfills
or shipped to China.
Recycle drives using volunteers are still an
important means of collecting plastic and
directing it to appropriate recycling companies.
These have been organized by communities,
botanic gardens, and retail nurseries. They generally
require large amounts of coordination
and volunteers, and may require subsidization,
depending on the amount of plastic collected,
the density of packing, and the distance to the
recycler.
At the Missouri Botanic Gardens in St Louis a
program has been developed so gardeners can
return plastic to one of several retail nurseries.
The plastic is then transferred to the Missouri
Botanic Gardens facility where it is sorted,
cleaned and ground. This successful program
has been in place for over ten years. Recently,
there have been some pilot programs from
some of the big-box retailers to collect and recycle
plastic containers and trays from gardeners,
which is very encouraging.
Sorting and Separation
The several different types of plastics that are
typically returned from recycling must be carefully
sorted and cleaned if the plastic is to have
a higher resale value. For instance, even small
amounts of PP can reduce the quality of HDPE
or HIPS. It takes trained personnel to efficiently
and effectively sort the various plastics, since
sometimes the differences can be hard to
detect. In some cases, the recycling companies
will sort the plastic. This reduces the value of
the plastic sold by the community or grower.
Contamination
All contamination, including soil, sand, organic
matter, paper, moisture, and improperly sorted
plastic reduces the quality of the final recycled
plastic. One of the serious limitations of recycling
plastic is that the quality of the recycled
plastic is always less than that of virgin plastic.
Unless new technology is discovered, there can
be no improvement in quality and purity during
the recycling steps. Because of impurities, the
price offered for recycled plastic is often half of
that for virgin plastic. Lower grades of mixed
plastics can be formed into timbers that are
used for landscaping. Mulch films are particularly
a problem since it has begun to degrade
and is covered with organic matter, soil and
potentially pesticides. Washing is an option but
only practiced by a limited number of recyclers
and this step adds to the cost of recycling.
THE FUTURE
Cradle-to-grave or closed loop recycling is a
concept where the burden of recycling is placed
on the companies that sell the plastic in the first
place. Obviously this may add to the cost of the
initial product, but could help close the loop.
One Michigan company has initiated a program
to close the loop for HIPS trays. This is still in the
pilot stages, but represents a step forward. The
problem remains that most plastics used in horticultural
industries are not of the same quality
when recycled as when first put into use. Until
new technology is discovered, this will continue
to be a major drawback.
As a result of the plastic problems, many
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Arthur Cameron
Dr. Arthur Cameron is Professor of Horticulture in
the Department of Horticulture, Michigan State
University. He specializes in plant physiology in
relation to the ornamental industry, flowering
and sustainable landscaping practices. Email:
cameron@msu.edu
ISHS • 10

HORTICULTURAL SCIENCE FOCUS
Critical Pests and Diseases Imperil
World Citrus
L.G. Albrigo, N. Wang, T. Spann, X. Deng and E.F. Carlos
BIOTIC THREATS TO CITRUS
In recent years, several new pests and diseases
have been identified that joined those already
established to increase the risks of producing
citrus. Two of these diseases appear to have originated
in Brazil. One is citrus variegated chlorosis
(CVC), which is caused by a xylem limited
bacteria, Xylella fastidiosa, and is vectored by
sharpshooter insects (Roberto et al., 1996). The
other disease of Brazilian origin is called ‘sudden
death’ and may be caused by a Marafivirus
(Maccheroni et al., 2005). Another decline
disease known as ‘citrus blight’ is now believed
to be associated with an Idaeovirus, possibly in
association with some strain of citrus tristeza
virus (CTV) (Derrick et al., 2005). Additionally,
some phytoplasma organisms are becoming
more recognized as being involved in decline
diseases in citrus in the Middle East, Asia and
South America. A phytoplasma was associated
with Huanglongbing (HLB) like-symptoms in
Brazil (Teixeira et al., 2008), and Chen et al.
(2009) found the aster yellows phytoplasma in
association with diseased citrus trees in China.
A phytoplasma type organism is responsible for
witches broom in citrus limes (Garnier et al.,
1991).
To make matters worse, “our shrinking world”
has allowed several citrus pests and diseases to
rapidly spread around the world over the past 18
years even though these problems were known
only to exist in relatively restricted production
areas for many years without significant spread.
Examples of such pests are the citrus leafminer
(Phyllocnistis citrella Stainton) and the Asian
citrus psyllid (Diaphorina citri Kuwayama), which
followed closely after the spread of the brown
citrus aphid (Toxoptera citricida (Kirkaldy)).
Psyllids and brown citrus aphids are vectors of
serious diseases, HLB and CTV, respectively. The
citrus leafminer is a serious pest in itself, but it
can also exacerbate the spread of citrus canker
by creating leaf surface wounds that allow
bacterial ingress (Graham et al., 2004).
These diseases are serious threats, but there are
effective control / management strategies such
as insect vector control, change of rootstock or
other cultural practices to allow reasonable economic
production of citrus even when they are
present. However, one of these diseases, HLB,
has very severe symptoms, which always leads
to non-commercial productivity and often leads
to tree death. This disease has recently spread
to the American continent. HLB (also known as
yellow shoot disease or citrus greening) has no
effective control strategies other than eradication
of the psyllid vector and diseased trees. The
disease is presumably caused by a phloem limited
bacterium (Candidatus Liberibacter spp.).
The organism has not been cultured outside
citrus trees or psyllids and Koch’s Postulates
have not been fulfilled. There is no easy solution
to the control of HLB, and no known
disease resistance exists in commercial citrus
species.
HUANGLONGBING
This disease originated in Southeast Asia and
was commonly found in China by 1925 (Lin,
1956a, b). HLB seriously affects production in
Southern China, the Philippines, Taiwan,
Indonesia, India, Vietnam, and Sri Lanka. The
Asian strain of the bacterium, C. L. asiaticus,
spread to Brazil where it was first identified in
2004 (Coletta-Filho et al., 2004; Texeira et al.,
2005a). Since the initial identification in Brazil,
a new strain of the bacterium has been identified
there, C. L. americanus (Teixeira et al.,
2005b), but in recent studies (Lopes, Coletta-
Filho and Carlos, personal communication) the
Asian strain appears to be more adaptive to
Brazilian conditions than this new strain. In
Florida, the psyllid vector of the Asian strain,
Diaphorina citri, was reported to be present in
1998 (Halbert et al., 2002), and the bacterium
was positively identified in 2005 (Halbert,
2005). In 2006, the disease was reported in
Cuba. In 2008, the disease was reported in
Louisiana. The vector is now well established in
several Southeastern US states besides Florida,
and psyllids were found in Southern California
in late 2008.
Another strain of HLB that occurs in South
Africa, L. africanus (Del Guercio), is a cooler
weather version of Liberibacter and is vectored
by a different psyllid, Trioza erytreae, which also
prefers cooler temperatures than the Asian
citrus psyllid. Both traditional strains (Garnier et
al., 1996) and their vectors (Aubert and Quilici,
1984) have been reported to exist on Reunion
Island, the furthest reported northern location
for the cool climate strain. Apparently, the
Asian strain moved through Southeast Asia and
the Indonesian Islands to Reunion, while the
African strain moved northward as far as
Reunion. Much of the vector and disease
spread is by man in his travels, and importation
should be the main concern of citrus areas not
yet affected by the disease. The Mediterranean
and California citrus growing areas are now
very concerned about the continued spread of
HLB. It seems likely that the cool temperature
strain and its vector would be more of a threat
to these Mediterranean climate growing areas
considering their relatively cool winter climates.
Cold climates in some mountain ranges in
southern China can completely eliminate the
Asian citrus psyllid in the colder winters.
HLB is widely spread throughout southeastern
Asia, but its distribution is more limited as one
moves northward in China. In the low hill areas
near Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, where
trees produce several new flushes of growth
throughout the year, the disease and vector are
easy to find. In North Guangdong (Lechang),
HLB occurs and symptoms on pummelo are
very severe (Deng et al., 2008). Further north,
near Ganzhou in Jiangxi Province, citrus is
grown on higher mountains at up to 450 m elevation.
Winters are much colder and psyllid
populations have difficulty over-wintering. This
winter weather apparently prevents any rapid
spread of HLB from psyllid feeding in the
spring. Little summer leaf flush occurs in this
region, and the few summer shoots are commonly
pruned off to further discourage psyllid
development. Only the fall flush requires extensive
pesticide spraying to control the vector. In
this region, infected trees remain infected over
the winter indicating that the bacteria may
over-winter better than the vector, possibly in
the underground root system. Further north of
these provinces, low elevation citrus production
occurs, and again, HLB can be found. In Hunan
Province and certainly north to the citrus production
regions on the Yangtze River (Sichuan,
Chongqing and Hubei Provinces), HLB is not
found (observations by authors) since the climate
is too cold for the psyllid, and possibly the
bacteria, to survive.
HLB infected trees may take several months or
more to show symptoms and the bacteria can
CHRONICA HORTICULTURAE •VOL 49 • NUMBER 1 • 2009 • 11

Figure 1. Top row are variations of blotchy mottle from HLB infection. Bottom row, left to
right, are zinc, iron, manganese and magnesium deficiency. Note that all of the HLB cases are
non-symmetrical whereas nutrient deficiencies are symmetrical on either side of the leaf midvein.
be spread to additional trees before symptoms
appear. First visible symptoms usually are yellow
shoots, but the classical leaf symptom is chlorotic
mottling (blotchy mottle) that is asymmetric
on either side of the leaf midvein and may occur
later after the yellow shoots. The classical symptoms
of HLB in Guangdong are the yellow
shoots standing out from the otherwise green
canopy (Zhao, 1981). On chronically infected
trees, secondary growth leaves are small and
frequently totally yellow or have green veins
and chlorotic interveinal areas (typical of Zn
deficiency symptoms). These and other confounding
symptoms are shown in Figure 1.
Fruit on infected trees are frequently small,
underdeveloped, misshapen, and have poor,
uneven color development, hence, the origin of
the name greening in South Africa. These
greening symptoms are not as common in
China and Florida, possibly due to the differences
in climate and bacterial strain. The juice of
affected fruit is low in soluble solids, high in
acids and often bitter.
HLB Identification
HLB can be tentatively identified in the field by
foliage and fruit symptoms. Currently, a more
definitive diagnosis is done by real time PCR
(polymerase chain reaction) (Carlos et al., 2008)
and finding the bacterium in the leaf phloem tissue
using TEM (transmission electron
microscopy). Until 1992, TEM visualization of
the bacterium in the sieve elements of blotchy
mottle leaves was the most reliable method of
diagnosis of the disease (Garnier and Bové,
1996). However, the bacteria were (Garnier and
Bové, 1983), and still are (Achor et al., personal
communication), hard to find in citrus by this
method. Since the bacteria were found to grow
in large numbers in periwinkle, this became the
most efficient source of the bacteria since culturing
isolated bacteria has not been achieved yet.
Work in Bové’s laboratory has shown that
hybridization and PCR methods could more
effectively identify the HLB bacteria, a member
of the proteobacteria (Jagoueix et al.,1994),
than electron microscopy (Garnier and Bové,
1993; Bové, 2006). The bacteria are unevenly
distributed in affected trees (Carlos et al., 2008),
and regular PCR is normally unable to detect the
bacteria in visually symptomless tissues of a diseased
tree. Even using real time PCR, it may take
up to 4 months after infection for bacteria titer
to increase sufficiently before real time PCR can
positively diagnose disease presence.
In a light microscope study of symptom development,
Schneider (1968) reported the presence
of large amounts of starch accumulating
in leaves of HLB affected trees.
HLB can be detected by an iodine test for starch
accumulation after leaf symptoms are visible.
The underside of the test leaf can be scratched
with cloth-backed sandpaper and the sand
paper placed in the iodine solution (Fig. 2)
(Tetsuya et al., 2007), or the cut edge of the
leaf can be submerged in the iodine solution for
30 sec to 1 min to produce the black iodinestarch
complex (Etxeberria et al., 2007).
In Indonesia, the disease was labeled “vein
phloem degeneration” (Tirtawidjaja et al.,
1965). Schneider (1968) and Kim et al. (2009)
reported phloem collapse to be characteristic of
the disease. Schneider (1968) proposed that the
collapse of the phloem came secondarily from
the necrosis in the phloem caused by the
disease organism. He thought that the phloem
collapse stimulated an increased development
of the cambium to compensate for the necrotic
phloem cells. The collapse of the phloem could
be caused by an accumulation of large amounts
of the bacterium plugging the phloem sieve
elements or the plant could be reacting to the
disease organism or its toxins by producing
blocking materials in the sieve plates of the
phloem.
It was also Schneider’s idea that the accumulation
of starch was due to the necrosis in the
phloem impeding the transport of sugars. Kim
et al. (2009) have shown that genes affecting
photosynthesis were not influenced by HLB but
that genes affecting starch synthesis were upregulated.
The large accumulation of starch in
the chloroplasts disrupts the inner membranes
leading to chlorosis but does not disrupt the
outer membranes (Achor et al., in preparation),
which would cause permanent chlorosis in the
affected leaves (Achor and Albrigo, 2005).
Kim et al. (2009) reported that the phloem protein2
(PP2) gene was highly up-regulated in
HLB-infected leaves and plugs occurred in the
sieve elements of HLB affected plants. These
plugs were presumed to be callose based on
light microscopy and aniline blue staining. A
more recent study showed two different types
of plugs obstructing phloem transport and confirmed
the smooth plugs to be callose by immunoassay,
and the filamentous plugs observed
were presumed to be PP2 from up-regulation
(Achor et al., in preparation). PP2 and callose
have been involved in the plugging of sieve
tube pores during wounding or disease organism
ingress in other plants (Dinant et al., 2003;
Knoblauch and van Bel, 1998). Further studies
will determine how this plugging might affect
the ultrastructure and function of the phloem.
HLB Control
The psyllid vector requires young flush to reproduce
so vector control is essential when new
flush is present. Psyllids may become infected
through feeding during the fourth or fifth instar
or as adults, and once they acquire the bacterium,
they can infect citrus trees for the rest of
their lives (Hu et al., 1988). The best HLB control
currently available is to remove affected
trees as soon as symptoms are visible and maintain
psyllid populations as low as practical
through an aggressive control program using a
diversity of effective chemicals coupled with
disease-free planting material. The central area
Figure 2. Iodine solution starch test using
cloth backed sand paper to abrade lower
leaf surface (about 15 abrading passes)
and then sandpaper is submerged in
iodine solution. Note dark solution in
right bag from starch in HLB sample.
ISHS • 12

of the citrus belt in São Paulo State, Brazil, the
southern area of production in Florida and in
China (Fig. 3), all have some good examples of
citrus companies operating these control strategies
with success.
Extensive efforts are now underway in several
countries, including China, to better understand
HLB and find more effective control
measures for this disease. Florida and Brazil are
increasing their efforts. Major emphasis is on
vector control and to find true disease resistance,
perhaps introduced from other plants
with stronger bacterial resistance. Towards
better psyllid control, a possible pheromone
from the psyllid is being evaluated as is a repellent
compound from white guava (Stelinski and
others, personal communications). The
Vietnamese determined that a high population
of guava within a citrus planting would repel
the psyllid vector (Beattie et al., 2006). Up to
US$15 million is expected to be expended on
HLB and citrus bacterial canker research in
2009.
Due to the disease issues confronting citrus production
and vulnerability of available citrus
germplasm, efforts are underway through ISHS
to enter citrus into two international programs
that could help in preserving citrus germplasm
(Global Crop Diversity Trust and the CR-
Challenge to high value crops).
THE FUTURE
Although several new diseases of citrus have
appeared in recent years, HLB appears to be the
most serious and difficult to control. There are
still many important perspectives of HLB biology
that remain unknown. Its long latency period
before detection can be confirmed allows
considerable disease spread even if known
affected trees are removed and the vector is
under good control. The recent increased
Figure 3. Trees in declining orchards from HLB infection (top) and trees in orchards where HLB
control practices were implemented (bottom). Note missing tree spaces in top left photo. All
locations about 1 hour from Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, Peoples Republic of China.
spread of the disease and its vector are puzzling
since the disease has been known in Southeast
Asia for nearly 100 years. Modern transportation
and increased movement of people, vectors
and diseased plant material are probably to
blame for the recent spread of HLB into several
citrus production areas on the American
Continent. Although the C. L. asiaticus strain
has spread widely, apparently the C. L. africanus
strain has not.
Many scientific and practical needs are being
addressed to control this disease. Resistance or
tolerance to the disease is necessary for longterm
economic continuation of citrus production
in affected areas. Better vector control
methods that rely less on frequent pesticide
applications are needed. Better knowledge of
the bacterial-plant interaction is essential to
long term management of the disease. Much of
this knowledge needs to center around bacterial
acquisition and transfer by the psyllid. Does
the bacteria multiply in the vector? Apparently
it does (Joao Lopes, Helvecio and Carlos, personal
communication). How does the bacteria
cause the disease symptoms? Hopefully, the ongoing
efforts will answer many of the questions
and lead to the satisfactory control of this
serious disease that is limiting citrus production
in many locations around the world.
REFERENCES
Achor, D.S. and Albrigo, L.G. 2005. Biuret toxicity
symptoms in citrus leaves mimics cell senescence
rather than nutritional deficiency chlorosis. J.
Amer. Soc. Hort. Sci. 130:667-673.
Aubert, B. and Quilici, S. 1984. Biological control of
the African and Asian citrus psyllids
(Homoptera:Psylloidea), through Eulophid and
Encyrtid parasites (Hymenoptera:Chalcidoidea) in
reunion Island. p.100-108. In: S. Garnsey, L.W.
Timmer and J.A. Dodd (eds.), Proc. 9th Conf. Intl.
Org. Citrus Virologists.
Beattie, G.A.C., Holford, P., Mabberley, D.J., Haigh,
A.M., Bayer, R. and Broadbent, P. 2006. Aspects
and insights of Australia-As collaborative research
on Huanglongbing. Proc. Intl. Workshop for the
Prevention of Citrus Greening Disease in Severely
Infected Areas. Intl. Res. Div., Agric. Forestry
Fisheries Res. Counc. Secretariat, Ministry of
Agric. Forestry and Fisheries, Tokyo, Japan. p.47-
64.
Bové, J.M. 2006. Huanglongbing: A destructive,
newly emerging, century-old disease of citrus. J.
Plant Pathol. 88:7-37.
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L.L., Fender, L.C., Bonato, F., Eugênio, M. and
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ABOUT THE AUTHORS
L. Gene Albrigo
Tim Spann Nian Wang Xiaoling Deng Eduardo F. Carlos
Dr. L. Gene Albrigo is Professor of Horticulture
with the University of Florida Citrus Research
and Education Center (UFCREC) and Chair of
the Citrus Section of ISHS. Email:
albrigo@ufl.edu
Dr. Tim Spann is Assistant Professor of
Horticulture, UFCREC, 700 Experiment Station
Road, Lake Alfred, FL 33850, USA. Email:
spann@ufl.edu
Dr. Nian Wang is Assistant Professor of Microbiology
and Cell Science, UFCREC, 700 Experiment Station
Road, Lake Alfred, FL 33850, USA. Email:
nianwang@ufl.edu
Dr. Xiaoling Deng is Head, Citrus Huanglongbing
Research Laboratory, Department of Plant
Pathology, South China Agricultural University,
Guangzhou 510642, P.R. China. Email:
xldeng@scau.edu.cn
Dr. Eduardo F. Carlos is Research Scientist,
Laboratory of Biotechnology, Instituto
Agronomico do Parana, Cx.P. 481, 86001-970,
Londrina, Parana, Brazil. Email:
efcarlos@iapar.br
ISHS • 14

HORTICULTURAL SCIENCE NEWS
Cactus Pear: Gift of the New World
Paolo Inglese
Among the 1.600 species of the Cactaceae, a family native of the New World, platyopuntias, the
prickly pears, are the most widespread cacti out of their native area. Opuntia ficus-indica, O. megacantha,
O. streptacantha, O. robusta and O. joconostle are the most commonly cultivated species
in Mexico, but only O. ficus-indica is commercially cultivated for fruit production. There is production
in over 20 countries with more than 100,000 ha, distributed in the Americas (70,000 ha in
Mexico, and significant production in Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, and Peru, and 200 ha in California,
USA), as well as in Europe (Italy and Spain), Africa (Tunisia, Morocco, Ethiopia, South Africa), and
Asia and the Middle East. There is a much greater area cultivated for forage or fodder production,
particularly in Brasil and in the Wana Region.
While cacti provide edible fruits, gathered from the wild or harvested from commercial orchards,
stems (cladodes) can be also utilised for fresh consumption and the so called nopalitos, currentyear
young cladodes, are one of the most interesting sources of fresh vegetable in arid areas,
though almost unknown out of Mexico. Moreover, a red dye, carmine, is produced from the bodies
of a scale insect, cochineal (Dactylopius coccus), feeding on the cladodes of O. ficus-indica.
Beside the commercial production, an important role is played by “natural” cactus pear stands or
backyard house gardens and natural hedges surrounding small villages or farmsteads (nopaleras de
solar), whose fruits are gathered from rural populations in arid areas and have a substantial role in
subsistence agriculture and the peasant economy, which is underestimated by official statistical
data. The value of the fruit is very high for the subsistence of local populations in areas where few
other trees can thrive. Thus, during the pre-Colombian period, indigenous people migrated from
the coast of the Gulf of Mexico to the highlands of the Northern plateau to get the fruits during
their ripening season (Casas and Barbera, 2002). In Northern Tigray (Ethiopia), local people still
feed, almost exclusively, on cactus fruits for more than two months and, again, they can migrate
from one place to another to follow the ripening season of natural cacti stands. The statistics of
the Kingdom of Sicily (1834) also reveal that in the early 19th century, the price of wheat
decreased during the ripening season of O. ficus-indica, from September throughout November.
At that time cactus pear trees were placed along the routes of Southern Italy to feed travellers for
more than 2-3 months.
The fruit is consumed fresh but in Mexico it is processed to produce a solid paste such as the queso
de tuna, a jelly such as the melcocha de tuna and a fermented drink with low alcoholic content,
colonche, all very popular in the Mexican central plateau. In all other countries the commercial use
of jams, jellies and products derived from the fruit is rare. An old tradition in Sicily is to sun dry the
fruits or to concentrate the juice through boiling and making special cakes called mustazzoli, by
adding flour and spices to the concentrated juice.
HISTORICAL
“So beautiful and so different from our trees”
wrote Columbus describing cacti on his first
pages about the New World. The Spanish state
officer Oviedo y Valdez in his Somario de la
Natural y General Historia de las Indias (1526)
wrote “this is a tree or rather a monster amidst
tree.” “Such a wonder”, he wrote, “that great
painters, such as Leonardo da Vinci and Andrea
Mantegna would have been necessary to
describe it properly.”
Indeed, cacti were absolutely unusual for the
Europeans. These plants with apparently no
branches, no trunk, no leaves, with spiny, succulent
stems (the cladodes) and juicy, red-coloured
fruits, which were considered able to turn the
urine red, created great fear among the “conquistadores”
(Casas and Barbera, 2002).
The Spaniards first met cacti during their stay at
Hispaniola (Haiti) and then in 1519, during the
campaign of Hernando Cortez on his way to
Tenochtitlan, the capital of the Atzec empire,
when the caciques of Tlaxacla offered the
invaders cactus fruits, together with maize,
gold, and jewels. Indeed, the highlands of
Mexico are the native area of most of cultivated
cacti where they have been consumed for more
than 9000 years. Their importance is clearly
recognizable in the pre-Columbian codices and
the presence of cacti is strictly related to the
birth of the Aztec empire. The legend says that
the god Huitzilopochtli ordered to nomadic
tribes coming from the north to stop only when
they would have found a prickly pear inside the
crack of a rock, with an eagle (symbol of the
sun) eating a snake (symbol of death) upon it.
Since then, the foundation of the capital city,
whose name means “place of a stony prickly
pear,” has been celebrated in the flags of the
Aztecs and it is still present in today’s Mexican
flag.
Mature cochineals (Peru, 2002).
Soon after the conquest of the Aztec empire,
the Spaniards recognized the high value of the
red dye, so appreciated at the court of
Montezuma to be requested as a tribute from
the conquered populations. The “grana
cochinilla” became extremely popular and
appreciated, being 10 times more persistent
than the red dye kermes from the related scale
Nopalitos salad served in a Mexican
restaurant.
CHRONICA HORTICULTURAE •VOL 49 • NUMBER 1 • 2009 • 15

insect found in oaks, that it became the first
product imported by the American continent
after the gold and silver (Donkin, 1977). Late in
the 16th century Spain imported up to 90
tonnes of “grana cochinilla” from Mexico and
its value was so high that the Spaniards banned
the export of the insect to Europe until 1777.
All attempts to breed the cochineal in the Old
World and in North Africa failed but in
Lanzarote, the easternmost island of the
Canaries, the industry is still active after its
introduction in the early 19th century. Even the
red uniforms of the British Army were coloured
with the dye imported from the Canary Islands
and other Spanish territories. The plant was first
introduced in the gardens of rich and noble
families as a curiosity from the New World and
then became naturalized in southern Europe
(Italy and Spain).
DIFFUSION AND
ADAPTATION
Cactus pear cladodes, rich in vitamin C, were
carried on ships as an antiscorbutic. Their ability
to maintain freshness and rooting ability for
an extended time resulted in their rapid spread
throughout the routes of the European colonial
expansion, reaching Africa, Asia and Oceania.
This species is now part of the landscape of the
Mediterranean Basin and the Middle East as
well as of most of North African, East African
and South African countries. It also became a
very dangerous weed in Australia (Queensland)
and in the Eastern Cape and in Karoo in South
Africa, where rains coupled with high temperature
favoured propagation. In these cases only
the biological control realised with Cactoblastis
cactorum was able to eradicate the Opuntias.
The extraordinary diffusion of O. ficus-indica is
based on the different uses of the plant and on
its morphological and functional features,
responsible for its wide adaptability to a large
range of environmental conditions and for its
naturalisation in all continents where it has
been introduced after the encounter of
Columbus with the Americas. Prickly pears are
able to survive and produce commercial crops
with very poor water resources. This is due to
crassulacean acid metabolism (CAM), with
night opening of the stomata that reduces transpiration,
the ability to recycle internal water
stored into the cladodes and the ability of the
plant to create rain roots immediately after
water supply to the soil.
O. ficus-indica can thrive and produce commercially
in arid and semi-arid areas; however, it
must be clear that in its native Mexican environments,
the annual rainfall is concentrated in the
summer during the fruit development period
and water shortage occurs in winter together
with the low temperature regime, when the
plants show no apparent growth. In the
Mediterranean Basin, Middle East, Chile, North
and East Africa, the vegetative and reproductive
growth occur during long, dry and hot summers
The Dactylopius coccus and its different
developmental stages.
with the annual 500 mm rainfall occurring
mainly during mild winters when the plants
show apparently no growth.
Crassulacean acid metabolism shows the highest
photosynthetic activity when mean nocturnal
temperature is relatively low, 15°C, and daytime/nightime
range is 25°C/15°C. This means
that when the fruit development period occurs
in dry and hot summer conditions (from June
throughout August in the Northern
Hemisphere), the net CO 2 uptake is more than
often limited to 40-60% of the maximum
potential rate, thus making orchard management
critical in terms of irrigation and fruit thinning
in order to get commercial fruit quality. In
tropical areas, with a steady mild temperature
regime throughout the year, O. ficus-indica
reduces its reproductive activity, indicating a
certain degree of chilling requirement, which
has never been clearly investigated.
CROP DEVELOPMENT
Flowering
Bloom occurs at the end of spring (late Mayearly
June in the Northern Hemisphere) and
flowers develop mostly on the edge of 1-yearold
cladodes, while 2-year-old cladodes are
Aztec image of cactus (Source: S. Gruzinski, 1994).
responsible for most of annual production of
new cladodes. A single cladode can bear even
more than 30 flowers, but 60-70% of the crop
comes from cladodes bearing 4-8 flowers.
Fruits obtain most of their assimilates from their
mother cladode, but the sink demand of developing
fruits and current year cladodes (vegetative
growth) involves a substantial flow of
stored carbohydrates from older cladodes. Fruit
size at harvest depends on the number of fruits
per cladode rather than on the number of fruits
per tree. To get the best commercial harvest
size, fruiting cladodes should be thinned to 6-7
fruits. The number of fruiting 1-year-old cladodes
to be left on the plant to get a commercial
crop changes with planting density and
ranges from 100 to 150 for 350-450 plants
ha -1 to 25-45 for 1,000 to 1,200 plants ha -1 .
Fruit productivity of O. ficus-indica is extremely
variable, according to cultivar, environmental
conditions and orchard planting and management.
The highest yields reported in commercial
orchards are 20-30 t/ha, obtained in the best
plantations in Sicily, Israel, Mexico and South
Africa, but the average yield is around 15 t/ha,
with very low yield (4-9 t/ha) from traditional
plantations in Mexico or Northern Africa.
The earliest crop (March-April) comes from
South Africa and a late crop comes, in October-
November, in Italy (Inglese et al., 2002). A winter
crop (January-February) has been obtained
in Israel, following an extensive fertilisation and
irrigation applied soon after harvesting the
summer crop in July. In Italy, an off-season, winter
crop is obtained by inducing a third bloom in
early August, after the removal of the spring
and the second flush of flowers and cladodes.
This crop can ripen its fruits from December
throughout February.
In the Southern Hemisphere, the summer crop
is harvested from December to February in
Northern Argentina or in Chile, with a second
natural crop occurring from July to September
in Chile. In the native areas of Mexico the harvest
season changes with the environments and
the cultivars and goes from May throughout
October.
ISHS • 16

Harvesting cochineal from a cactus pear
tree in the pre-hispanic world (Source:
VV.AA., 1995).
In Sicily, and now in many other countries, the
complete and manual removal, during early or
full bloom, of the spring flush of flowers and
cladodes, the so called scozzolatura, is a common
practice to induce a second bloom in late
July, with fruits ripening in October-November,
when rains occur and temperatures are suitable
for optimal fruit development and ripening.
Indeed, 95% of the Sicilian production comes
from the scozzolatura and the fruits ripening in
fall are called bastardoni, reminding one of an
Cactus pear engraving from the herbal
of Pier Andrea Mattioli (1558).
improper fertilisation! The different flowering
period results in a longer fruit development
period (90-110 days), a larger fruit size (120-
200 g), a different fruit shape (fruits are more
elongated), a much higher flesh vs. seed ratio, a
better flavour and post harvest maintenance
than summer fruits that ripe in August-
September.
The reflowering index (ratio between the 2nd
and the 1st flush of flowers) ranges from 0.2 to
1, according to cladode load and time of
removal, being highest for cladodes with 3-6
flowers and for pre-bloom removal of flowers
and newly developed cladodes.
The legends on the origin of scozzolatura are
typical of the culture of the archaic Sicilian rural
world. It could have been a quarrel at the village
of Capaci (near the capital City of Palermo)
between a farmer who did not want to sell his
products and a trader who took his revenge by
knocking down the flowers at full bloom, or a
controversial discussion between a son, who, in
May 1819, thinned out the flowers to have a
better crop, and his father who, ignoring the
benefit of this technique, removed the remaining
fruits. In any case and against all expectations,
a new bloom took place, with a spectacular
fruit crop coming in October.
Fruiting
Cactus pear fruit is a berry with 150-300 seeds,
with a commercial weight ranging from 120 to
200 g, depending on cultivar, ripening time and
orchard management. The percentage of flesh
ranges from 55-65% and is less variable than
fruit size. Sugars, mainly glucose (6-8% on a
fresh weight basis) should be at least 13%, but
some Mexican cultivars reach 17-18%.
The colour of the flesh can be yellow, white,
red, purple or green depending on cultivar.
Most of the commercial crop in Italy is based on
the yellow-flesh cultivar ‘Gialla’, while in Chile
the dominant colour of the flesh is green and in
Mexico red cultivars are very popular. In Salinas,
California, the red flesh variety is the most popular.
Fruits are rich in betalain pigments (particularly
red and yellow fruits) recently acknowledged
as natural radical scavengers. They can
be stored for 4-6 weeks and, if minimally
processed, shelf life is 3-4 days.
Despite its appearance, the fruits have a very
poor photosynthetic activity, only during the
first stage of growth, and rely on their “mother”
cladode for their development. Cultivars of
O. ficus-indica can have spines (glochids) or be
spineless. As a matter of fact only Mexican cultivars
are spiny while all commercial cultivars
have spineless cladodes and bear glochids only
in the epicarp of the fruit. In fact, there is no
reason to grow spiny cultivars other than avoiding
animal feeding on the cladodes.
Biodiversity
The largest biodiversity occurs in Mexico where
crossing between different Opuntia species is
A cactus pad painted in Basilius Besler’s
Book of Plants (The Garden of Eichstadt),
1613.
very common. Mexican cultivars have been
recently collected and described and their
potential use in breeding programmes is impressive.
South Africa is the second largest source of
biodiversity, mostly due to the presence of the
selections of Luther Burbank, the American
nurseryman and breeder, who created a large
variability in terms of cladode shape, plant habit
and vigour, fruit colour and ripening time. In the
Mediterranean Basin and North Africa it seems
that the variability is reduced to three different
colours of the flesh (yellow, purple-red and
white) and its firmness. Few indications are
reported on the existence of seedless and spineless
(meaning no glochids in the fruits) cultivars
in Italy and Israel. However, those selections
have no commercial use, since their fruits are
very poor in terms of flesh percent and fruit size.
The use of cuttings for plant propagation and
the low frequency of mutations have reduced
the genetic variability, but it is also clear that
this variability has been poorly investigated so
far. For example, a large variability may exist,
even at orchard level, in terms of plant productivity,
particularly where the selection of cuttings
for orchard establishment is inaccurate.
Cactus pear orchard in Sicily.
CHRONICA HORTICULTURAE •VOL 49 • NUMBER 1 • 2009 • 17

RESEARCH COOPERATION
In 1840 a French agronomist named De
Gasparin who was visiting Sicily said that the
cactus pear fruit was “the manna, the
Providence of Sicily, representing what the
banana is for the equinoctial countries and the
bread-fruit tree in the Pacific Islands”. Someone
else said that the fruit was the “bread of the
poor people”. In the 1970s cactus pear became
an intensive crop, thanks to a growing demand
by the national and international markets. The
new intensive production was first developed in
Sicily, thanks to an old tradition for fruit growing.
Orchards were planted in a regular shape
and trees were irrigated, fertilised and pruned
regularly; techniques such as spring flush
removal (scozzolatura), fruit thinning, and
appropriate postharvest management have
been largely applied, based on research efforts.
During the 1980s and 1990s a large effort in
terms of international research and technical
cooperation made possible the innovation of
cactus pear plantations in Mexico and South
America as well as in Africa and in the Middle
East. FAO, through the “International
Cooperation Network on Cactus Pear and
Cochenille” founded in 1993 in Guadalajara
(Mexico) by 19 participating countries, has been
playing a key role in developing international
cooperation and editorial activity, which was
completely lacking before when FAO published
the Technical Bulletin entitled “Agro ecology,
Cultivation and Uses of Cactus Pear” (1995). In
1996 the Working Group on Cactus Pear and
Cochineal was created within ISHS and the
“ISHS International Congress on Cactus Pear
and Cochineal” became the most important
event for the scientific community devoted to
this crop.
THE FUTURE
Although highly appreciated by local rural communities,
cactus pear fruits still fail to appeal to
the urban consumers of the wealthy European
and Northern American markets. The increase
of Latino population in the USA and the North
Fruiting cladode of Opuntia ficus-indica.
Box of ripe fruits of ‘Rossa’ and
‘Gialla’ cactus pear, Sicily.
African immigration in Europe are promoting a
rapid increase of the demand.
Marketing and promotional campaigns as well
as consumer education should be promoted at
local and international levels. An efficient distribution
structure should be encouraged, since
cactus pear fruits can be offered throughout
the year, coupling the Northern and the
Southern Hemisphere production. ‘Gialla’ fruits
can be produced in Italy from early August to
late November and even in January-February,
under appropriate management techniques.
The major objectives to be achieved in order to
develop the cactus pear industry are: the reduction
of yield variability at orchard and site level.
This very much depends on the appropriate
choice and preparation of planting material and
on orchard planting and management strategies.
Yields should be increased and standardised
to 20-30 t/ha. Variability in fruit quality,
which greatly affects farmers’ incomes, needs
to be reduced since the reduction in price
between first class fruits (>130 g in size) and
smaller fruits can be 60-70%. Finally appropriate
pruning and fruit thinning must be
applied on a regular basis.
The absolutely complete removal of glochids
from the fruits before they reach the market and
the reduction of seed content are the most
important targets for future research. Both
depend on selection and breeding (Mondragon
Jacobo, 2001). The removal of the glochids can
be achieved, as done today, by standardising
postharvest fruit handling. The reduction of
seed content is the major research challenge,
since seed number reduces consumer acceptance
greatly. Empty, stenospermic seeds are
common in the Italian cultivars, being 50-60%
of total seed number. Increasing this percentage
without reducing fruit size exclusively depends
on breeding. There is in fact a large variability in
seed, particularly in stenospermic seeds, content
among cactus pear cultivars. Breeding between
Opuntia species and understanding the basis of
stenospermic seed development in cacti must be
encouraged in order to reduce the seed number
and increase consumer acceptance.
The role of other columnar and vine cacti,
which are gaining more and more interest in
the markets, has not been discussed. The vine
cactus Hylocereus undatus (Pitahaya or Dragon
fruit) is very popular in the far East, with its
white flesh and small seeded fruits, but it is still
almost unknown in Europe and in the USA.
Selenicerus megalanthus is more familiar in
South America gathered from the wild or harvested
in home gardens. Columnar cacti
(pitayas) like Cereus peruvianus or Stenocereus
spp. are cultivated in Mexico and Israel and are
very popular in central America (Nerd et al.,
2002). However none of these cacti has a role
comparable to O. ficus-indica, and in spite of
their great interest, they need more research for
successful cultivation.
REFERENCES
Casas, A. and Barbera, G. 2002. Mesoamerican
domestication and diffusion. p.143-162. In: P.S.
Nobel (ed.), Cacti Biology and Uses, Univ.
Califonia Press, Berkeley.
Donkin, R.A. 1977. Spanish red: An ethnographical
study of cochineal and the opuntia cactus.
Trans. Amer. Philosophical Soc. 67:1–84.
Gruzinski, S. 1994. Gli Aztechi: il tragico destino
di un impero. Electa/Gallimard, Trieste, Italy.
Inglese, P., Basile, F. and Schirra, M. 2002. Cactus
pear fruit production. p.163-184. In: P.S. Nobel
(ed.), Cacti Biology and Uses, Univ. Califonia
Press, Berkeley.
Mondragon Jacobo, C. 2001. Cacus pear domestication
and breeding. Plant Breed. Rev. 20:135-
166.
Nerd, A., Tel-Zur, N. and Mizrahi, Y. 2002. Fruits
of vine and columnar cacti. p.185-199. In: P.S.
Nobel (ed.), Cacti Biology and Uses, Univ.
Califonia Press, Berkeley.
VV.AA. (Various Authors). 1995. Archivio general
de Indias. Lunwerg Eds, S.A. Barcelona.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Paolo Inglese
Paolo Inglese is a Professor in the Dipartimento di
Colture Arboree in the Universitá degli Studi
di Palermo, Italy. He is presently Chair of the
ISHS Working Group on Cacus Pear and
Cochenille and President of the Italian Society
for Horticultural Science (SOI). Email:
Pinglese@unipa.it
ISHS • 18

Integrated Crop Management Strategies
for Sustainable Production of
Non-Traditional Agricultural Exports:
Snow Peas in Guatemala
Stephen C. Weller and Guillermo E. Sanchez
INSTITUTIONALIZATION OF
PRODUCTION PRACTICES
Production systems in vegetables and small
fruits throughout the Central American region
have been heavily dependent on pesticides as
the primary tools for controlling insect, disease,
and weed pests. Problems arise in production of
these crops since the current availability of
effective registered pesticides for non-traditional
crops, the use of pest resistant crop cultivars,
and the adoption of non-chemical pest
management strategies have been low. As food
safety concerns continue to diminish the availa-
Map of Guatemala.
bility of approved pesticides, and consumers
demand more strict enforcement of pesticide
residue tolerances, alternative integrated pest
management strategies must be developed in
the region for producers to remain competitive
in the export markets so vital to small farmers’
continued economic sustainability (Julian et al.,
2000). The Integrated Pest Management
Collaborative Research Program (IPM CRSP) of
the U.S. Agency for International Development
(USAID) has worked hard to achieve development
of such alternative pest management and
integrated crop management strategies
through research, technology transfer, education
and farmer-based participatory program
Snow pea is an important Non-Traditional
Agricultural Export crop for Guatemala.
development with institutions throughout the
region. In order for these programs to be
adopted, all key players must be involved,
including farmers, researchers, government,
regulatory agencies and exporters. Our primary
focus has been to conduct research that leads
to improved production practices.
Our major successes have been in snow pea,
broccoli, and tomato through development of
integrated crop management (ICM) programs.
Research with ICM in snow peas has been well
documented (Sullivan et al., 1999, 2000).
Pesticide applications in ICM fields were significantly
reduced, averaging about one-third of
the number of applications as in control plots.
The ICM plots required only 3.7 pesticide applications
to fully achieve pest management
objectives, while traditional chemical control
plots required 10.4 pesticide applications.
Application reduction resulted in lower production
costs and increased returns to household
labor for the producers. Snow pea yields were
23.4% higher in the ICM plots compared to
control plots, and product quality was higher
based on marketable yields, while product
rejections averaged 6% less.
A second example is the IPM approach evaluated
to manage the whitefly (Bremisia spp.) virus
complex that had crippled the tomato industry
in Guatemala often reducing yields by greater
than 60% (Morales et al., 1998). IPM research
involved testing five approaches to reduce incidence
of the whitefly-gemini virus complex and
validating these in farmer fields. The tactics
included: (1) seed-beds covered by a foamy
cloth (anti-aphid covering); (2) tomato seedlings
CHRONICA HORTICULTURAE •VOL 49 • NUMBER 1 • 2009 • 19

A
B
C
D
Snow pea production in Guatemala. (A) Production field showing yellow sticky traps for insect control. (B) Typical field in full bloom showing trellis
system of production. (C) Integrated pest management research demonstrating the benefit of using a trap crop of faba beans for leaf miner control
in snow pea. (D) Handheld leaf miner trap for minimizing leaf miner injury in snow peas.
grown in newspaper transplant plugs; (3) use of
sorghum barriers planted 45 days before tomato
transplant; (4) use of plastic sticky traps; and
(5) rotational use of insecticides (rotating chemical
groups) and sampling of whitefly populations.
These were compared to grower practices
which included: (1) purchased tomato seedlings;
(2) no sorghum barriers; (3) no sticky traps; and
(4) programmed use of insecticides (without
rotating chemical groups) and without sampling
populations. IPM production costs were
$700/ha lower, profits were $1,700/ha greater
and pesticide sprays were reduced from more
than 23 in grower plots to 13 in IPM plots.
In these two examples, IPM strategies were
developed that effectively controlled pests,
reduced pesticide use and resulted in increased
yields and profits. These programs are transferred
to the growers as a first step in the institutionalization
of IPM CRSP programs. The
transfer of this IPM technology (Sandoval et al.,
2001) is mainly through field visits to the
research and validation plots. Over the course
of one growing season 32 different extension
USAID FUNDED IPM CRSP
Global Purpose: Develop and implement replicable and sustainable
approaches to integrated crop management that:
(1) reduce agricultural losses due to insect, disease and weed pests and
rely less on pesticides and chemicals,
(2 reduce damage to regional ecosystems,
(3) enhance the socio-economic welfare of small farmers and rural
communities, and
(4) achieve sustainable export trade development in non-traditional
agricultural export crops.
In Central America, this is being accomplished through institutional
research collaborations and technology transfers that target the development
of ‘total system’ management strategies to achieve greater
sustainability at the producer level, and increased competitiveness in
non-traditional crops for export such as fruits, vegetables and cut flowers,
representing relatively new cropping opportunities.
NON-TRADITIONAL AGRICULTURAL EXPORT
(NTAE): CHALLENGES AND APPROACH
Challenge: Produce crops that are accepted in the international marketplace
by altering production inputs and standards such as:
(1) high dependence on chemicals,
(2) lack of sustainable biorational production practices,
(3) the lack of institutionalized sanitary and phytosanitary postharvest
standards,
(4) establishing preinspection protocols that lead to product preclearance
and certification.
Future success is dependent on a more market-driven focus in the production
and postharvest practices of countries seeking sustainable
access to international markets (Julian et al., 2000).
Approach: Develop production and postharvest handling strategies
that generate safer food supplies, greater access to US and world markets,
greater production sustainability and greater export competitiveness
for producers throughout the region.
ISHS • 20

activities, involving over 1,000 participants (half
were farmers and half were field technicians
from export companies, chemical companies,
private and public organizations) were held. Six
field days, in which growers and technicians
were taken to IPM tomato fields, took place in
eastern Guatemala, while snow pea ICM was
demonstrated at 16 different locations. In addition,
interested farmers and technicians
observed organically grown snow pea field
trials. Workshops and field practices demonstrations
were organized for organic snow
peas, rational pesticide use, good agricultural
practices (GAP) and integrated pest management.
This was the first step in the broad-based
implementation of sustainable NTAE production
and has led to the institutionalization of successful
pre-inspection programs.
SNOW PEA CASE STUDY
Snow pea (Pisum sativum) has become one of
the main non-traditional agricultural export
(NTAE) crops produced in Guatemala. Snow pea
is a temperate climate crop, cultivated in the
central highland districts of Chimaltenango and
Sacatepequez. Guatemalan snow pea production
was negatively impacted by insect and
disease infestations that led to excessive reliance
on chemical control measures. In 1995 the
leaf miner (Liriomyza huidobrensis) crisis occurred
and was an example of how excessive
and improper use of pesticides and insect pest
contamination can result in restrictions on crop
exports. As a result of these problems, a USDA
Plant Protection Quarantine (PPQ) at US portsof-entry
on all Guatemalan snow pea shipments
was implemented. This resulted in the
IPM CRSP in Guatemala to react in an aggressive
manner to address the problem and seek a
quick solution.
In response to the quarantine the Government
of Guatemala, in collaboration with the IPM
CRSP and the United States Department of
Agriculture Foreign Agricultural Service
Guatemala, initiated technical assistance pro-
grams to help resolve the immediate quarantine
problem and develop long-term solutions that
lead to increased sustainability in the NTAE sector.
Research protocols were established to
address the USDA PPQ snow pea leaf miner
quarantine problem in March, 1996. The IPM
CRSP research scientifically documented that
the Guatemalan leaf miner problem was not
the result of a species exotic to the United
States, and consequently not a threat to US producers.
Parallel with these findings, the IPM
CRSP recommended several testable strategies
to reduce chemical residues on snow peas and
enhance product quality. In April 1997, the
USDA PPQ on Guatemalan snow peas at US
ports-of-entry was removed, thus helping
re-establish nearly US $5 million in snow pea
shipments annually. This led IPM CRSP
researchers, in collaboration with the
Guatemalan Ministries of Agriculture and
Finance and USDA/FAS Guatemala, to the
second objective of developing long-term solutions
to insect control problems by testing production
strategies that rely less on chemical
control methods and subsequently result in
greater sustainability at all levels within the
NTAE sector.
Research Approach
Nine field test sites were established in the
Departments of Chimaltenango and Sacatepequez
in the Guatemalan Highlands (Sullivan
et al., 2000). These two areas account for nearly
80% of all snow pea production in
Guatemala. Snow pea production sites and
participating producers were selected to
represent typical production in the region. In all
cases, the main pest control strategy relied on
the application of chemical pesticides using a
7-10 day calendar programmed schedule. Most
participating producers were small family farming
operations with less than 0.5 ha of snow
pea production. One participating producer was
a larger commercial operation with nearly 4 ha
of snow pea production. Few were acquainted
with IPM strategies, and most relied heavily on
agrochemical distributors for their pest
management information.
Primary data acquisition included assessment of
participating growers’ current production and
pest management practices as well as an
assessment of existing pest problems. Leaf
miner insects were found to be the major pest
problem in snow peas. Data regarding postharvest
practices and problems were also collected.
The control plots, using current traditional production
management methods, were entirely
managed by the individual producers according
to their normal cultural and pest control practices.
The test plots were managed by IPM CRSP
trained agronomists and field technicians.
The IPM test plots were established in plantings
parallel to the control plots, with all case study
plots representative of small farm commercial
fields at 1100 m 2 each. Tested IPM tactics
included pest scouting for insects, pathogens
and weeds on a bi-weekly basis. The main
insect pests monitored were leaf miners and
thrips (Frankliniella spp.). Disease monitoring
included Ascochyta (Ascochyta pisi), Fusarium
wilt (Fusarium oxysporum f.sp. pisi) and powdery
mildew (Oidium spp.). Leaf miner samplings
were conducted once a week to determine
adult insect pressure and threshold based
pesticide applications. Insecticide applications in
the IPM test plots were based on prior IPM
CRSP research that established threshold-based
application strategies. Sticky traps were incorporated
to reduce adult insect leaf miner pressures
and help determine adult insect thresholds.
Row hilling also was incorporated into the
IPM test plots to reduce adult leaf miner reproductive
capacities. Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA) approved pesticides were applied
to the IPM plots only at critical threshold points
where insect pressure and stage of life cycle dictated.
EPA approved fungicides were applied
sparingly depending on environmental conditions
favorable to disease development. The
grower-managed control plots followed
(A) Typical cropping systems in Guatemalan highlands. (B) Farmer field day for transfer of integrated production strategies for snow peas.
A
B
CHRONICA HORTICULTURAE •VOL 49 • NUMBER 1 • 2009 • 21

Locality
Table 1. Yields and total insectide applications in snow pea field evaluations of the
integrated pest management program (Sullivan et al., 2000).
traditional calendar pesticide application schedules
at 7-10 day intervals regardless of insect
pressure or growing conditions.
Results
Insect and disease incidences were similar in
both the IPM and control case study test plots.
The most prevalent insect pressure was from
leaf miners, with some presence of thrips.
Ascochyta leaf and pod blight were the most
common fungal diseases. Pesticide applications
in the IPM plots were significantly reduced,
averaging about one-third of the number of
applications in the control plots (Table 1). The
IPM plots required an average of only 3.7 pesticide
applications to fully achieve our pest management
objectives, while the traditional chemical
control plots required an average of 10.4
pesticide applications to achieve the same
objectives. Application reduction resulted in
lower production costs and increased returns to
household labor for the producers. In addition,
snow pea yields were 23.4% higher in the IPM
plots on average compared to the control plots.
Production in seven of the nine IPM plots
recorded higher yields. Moreover, the product
quality was found to be higher in the IPM plots
as measured by marketable yields at the shipping
point grading facilities. Product rejections
at the shipping point averaged 6% less from
the IPM plots.
CONCLUSIONS
Planting date
Our research concludes that NTAE producers
and exporters throughout Central America can
benefit from a serious effort to institutionalize
policies that encourage the adoption of fully
integrated biorational crop management practices.
Performance proven component pest
Yields (t/ha)
Total insecticide sprays
IPM plot Test plot IPM plot Test plot
Xenimajuya 1 August 9.6 9.5 6 10
Patzic’a August 10.8 10.6 5 14
Magdalena M.A. March 3.3 4.7 1 12
Xenimajuyu 2 August 3.5 1.8 2 >15
Chuchuca August 12.0 9.4 2 7
El Sitio 1 August 9.3 9.1 4 9
El Sitio 2 August 7.1 5.1 6 11
Tres Cruces August 3.7 5.6 2 6
Xeabaj August 5.1 4.7 5 10
management strategies, when fully integrated
into a holistic production and post-harvest
management system, result in more effective
insect and disease control with less reliance on
chemicals. Further, these fully integrated crop
management systems generate higher marketable
yields, safer food supplies, and greater economic
sustainability at all levels. Perhaps even
more importantly, biorational crop management
systems help assure long-term sustainability to
the fragile natural resources and overall ecosystem,
which serves as the foundation of all NTAE
production activity in Central America (Weller et
al., 2001).
USAID sponsored research in Central America
clearly validates the underlying premise of the
IPM CRSP; when current scientifically tested and
proven production technologies are properly
integrated and precisely managed, the production
goals of immediate economic gain and
long-term sustainability are mutually reinforcing.
The research and development initiatives
of the IPM CRSP have shown that when integration
is the critical focus of IPM, Central
American NTAE producers can expand production
in a manner commensurate with market
expectations and consistent with their economic
and socioeconomic development objectives.
In both the near and long-term, fully integrated
crop management strategies along with proper
postharvest handling help ensure that regional
non-traditional export crops meet marketplace
demands and product quality standards for safe
food supplies. These programs encourage
growth and sustainability in this important sector
of rural economies throughout Central
America by helping them compete more
successfully in an increasingly demanding international
marketplace.
REFERENCES
Julian, J.W., Sullivan, G.H. and Sánchez, G.E.
2000. Future market development issues impacting
Central America’s nontraditional agricultural
export sector: Guatemala case study. Amer.
J. Agr. Econ. 82:1177-1183.
Morales, M., Dardón, D., Calderón L. and
Edwards, C.R. 1998. Integrated management of
white fly in tomato at El Progreso, Guatemala.
Integrated Pest Management in NTAE Crops,
Seminar III Proc. p.40-41.
Sandoval, J.L., Sánchez, G.E., Sullivan, G.H. and
Weller, S.C. 2001. Transfer of IPM CRSP
generated technology. Integrated Pest Management
in NTAE Crops, Seminar IV Proc. p.31.
Sullivan, G.H., Sánchez, G.E., Weller, S.C. and
Edwards, C.R. 1999. Sustainable development
in Central America’s non-traditional export
crops sector through adoption of integrated
pest management practices: Guatemalan case
study. Sustainable Development International,
London, England, Lauch Edition. p.123-126.
Sullivan, G.H., Sánchez, G.E., Weller, S.C.,
Edwards, C.R. and Lamport, P.P. 2000.
Integrated crop management strategies in snow
pea: a model for achieving sustainable NTAE
production in Central America. Sustainable
Development International, Autumn 2000
Edition. p.107-110.
Weller, S.C., Sanchez, G.E., Edwards, C.R. and
Sullivan, G.H. 2001. IPM CRSP success in NTAE
crops leads to sustainable trade for developing
countries. Sustainable Development International,
Autumn 2001 Edition. p.135-138.
ABOUT THE AUTHORS
Stephen C. Weller
Guillermo E.
Sanchez
Stephen C. Weller is Professor of Horticulture at
Purdue University, West Lafayette Indiana,
USA. His specialties include integrated pest
management strategies and development of
sustainable production systems for horticulture
crops. Steve has been involved since 1992
with the USAID funded IPM CRSP in Central
America. Email: weller@purdue.edu
Guillermo E. Sanchez, formerly Professor and
Head of the Department of Agricultural
Sciences and Forestry, Universidad del Valle
de Guatemala, is currently director of ICATA
in Guatemala. He was host-country site
chair for the IPM CRSP in Central America
when research was conducted. Email:
gsanchez1@intelnet.net.gt
ISHS • 22

THE WORLD OF HORTICULTURE
Horticultural Economy of Guangxi
Province, China
PRODUCTION STATUS
Climatic Resources
Guangxi is located between 104° to 112° East
Longitude and 20° to 26° North Latitude and
straddles the Tropic of Cancer. As a result, it has
one of the most favorable climates in China for
horticulture, such as mild temperatures, adequate
light and abundant rainfall, long summers
and short winters. The annual average
temperature is between 16 and 23°C with the
coldest temperatures in January (5°C) and
hottest in July (28°C). The frost-free period is up
to 300 days, the annual light ranges from 1,400
to 1,800 hours and the annual rainfall ranges
from 1,000 to 2,800 mm. The rainy season is
May-September, which receives 75% of the
annual precipitation.
The area south of the Tropic of Cancer is known
as the southern subtropical region, which contains
48% of the province’s land area and 25%
of the southern subtropical area of China. The
annual average temperature is between 20 and
22°C, the growing degree-days (≥ 10°C) ranges
from 7000 to 8000, the rainfall ranges from
1,100 to 2,800 mm, and the typhoon season
comes relatively late and has little effect on
summer fruit ripening. The climate is very conducive
to growing subtropical fruit, such as
litchi, longan, banana, and mango. These fruit
are of superior quality, compared with
Southeast Asia where the growing temperature
is higher and the temperature difference
between day and night (DIF) is smaller. The part
of Guangxi that is north of the Tropic of Cancer
is known as the mid-subtropical climate region
with an annual average temperature between
Weijiang Ruan and Robert K. Prange
Guangxi, the most southerly province, is one of the most productive agricultural areas of China.
It is located on the Beibu Gulf along the southwestern coast with 240,000 km 2 and a population
of 48 million people. The horticulture industry in Guangxi is booming and has become the
most important industry in the rural economy followed by livestock, rice and sugarcane, and also
serves an important social function. Horticultural production is a high input and labor-intensive
industry that needs a large labor force from cultivation to processing. An abundant labor force
in Guangxi and a unique climate lead to low cost horticultural production, currently lower than
the national level, and only 1/8th to 1/5th the cost in developed countries. The horticultural
industry contributes 30% of farmer income, and uses almost 40% of the rural labor force. More
than 15 million people work in related activities, and employment opportunities in horticulture
are increasing. Farmer income is highest for vegetables (¥34,500/ha) [¥1 (Yuan) = $0.13 USD or
€ 0.09], followed by ¥22,500 for sugarcane, ¥15,000 to ¥19,000 for rice, ¥9,000 for cassava
and only ¥4,500 for soybeans. Land utilization rate is one of the important factors of comparative
advantage in Guangxi. Its crop index (crops per ha/year x 100) is 235%, which is one of the
highest crop indexes in China, and it has a potential to increase 10%.
17 and 21°C, the growing degree-days
(≥ 10°C) ranges from 5900 to 6550, and rainfall
ranges from 1000 to 2500 mm. This region
is suitable for subtropical fruits and some deciduous
fruit trees, such as ‘Peng’ tangerine, sweet
Figure 1. Map of Guangxi with locations of major fruits.
YUNNAN
orange, mandarin, ‘Shatin’ pomelo, pear, persimmon,
plum, peach, and grape.
Many different vegetables can be planted
throughout the year in Guangxi especially in
hilly and mountainous areas that have diverse
geological landforms. Cultivation of vegetables
in fall and winter is easier and less expensive,
compared with other parts of China. Generally,
in the fall, temperature will decrease 0 to 0.6°C
per 100 m rise in altitude, thus temperatures at
500 m above sea level in the mountain region
are about 3°C lower than the nearby plains.
From August to September in the high-elevation
mountains, the average temperature is
about 25°C, DIF is large, and the influence of
heat, torrential rains, and typhoon weather is
less than in the plain region. The high-elevation
mountains are very conducive to growing fruitbearing
vegetables, especially Solanaceous
vegetables, legumes, root and leafy vegetables.
The winter weather in all of Guangxi is warm
and humid. It is essentially an open-air greenhouse
and most vegetables can have normal
citrus bananas longan litchi mango
GUIZHOU
VIETNAM
N. Limit Tropical fruits
GUANGXI
Baise
Nanning
Belhal
GULF OF
TONKIN
Liuzhou
Guigang
Guilin
Wuzhou
HUNAN
Yulin
GUANGDONG
CHRONICA HORTICULTURAE •VOL 49 • NUMBER 1 • 2009 • 23
SOUTH
CHINA SEA

Figure 2. Farmhouses in Guangxi countryside.
growth without winter protection. The minimum
temperature ranges from 5 to 15°C on
the coldest month (January), growing degreedays
(≥ 10°C) is 1000, the frost period is ≥ 60
days, illumination ranges from 460 to 545
hours, and rainfall ranges from 150 to 300 mm
(December to February). In the southern region
and the Youjiang River Valley region the degreedays
are always above 2000 and there is never
any winter frost, making Guangxi an important
source of winter vegetables for northern China.
The crop index exceeds 300% for some of
vegetable-growing areas in the southern region
and the Youjiang River Valley region of Guangxi.
To fully utilize the light, temperature, water
resource, the land in these areas has been converted
to various combinations of rice and
vegetables totaling 3 crops per year, e.g. rice -
vegetable - rice, or rice - vegetable - vegetable.
Fruit Production
Since 2002, Guangxi has been the fifth largest
fruit producing province in China. Production of
fruits in 2006 was estimated at about 6.18 million
t with 8.65 million ha under cultivation.
Production of tropical fruits, such as longan,
litchi, banana, are in the top three nationwide,
and it leads the country in the production of citrus,
pineapple, gingko, macadamia, avocado,
‘Shatin’ pomelo, and kumquat. The fruits are
consumed fresh and seldom processed, and are
almost entirely sold in the domestic Chinese
market including 30% consumed in Guangxi
province. Only about 5% of the fruits are
exported (to southeast Asia, Japan, the EU, the
US, and Canada).
Citrus production in Guangxi is ranked at the
top in fruit total production nationally with
33%, followed by banana with 23%, longan
and litchi with 12%, mango with 3% and other
fruits at 29%. Citrus production annually is ca.
2.05 million t in Guangxi. Tangerine (Citrus reticulata)
accounts for 34% of this production
with the major cultivars being ‘Peng’ (or
‘Ponkan’), ‘Shatang’ and ‘Nanfeng’. Kumquat
(Fortunella crassifolia) is included in this group.
Sweet Orange (C. sinensis) production is ca.
24% with the major cultivars being ‘Navel’,
‘Valencia’, and ‘Liucheng’. Mandarin (C. unshiu)
production is 19% with the major cultivar being
‘Satsuma’ and Pomelo (C. pyriformis) production
is 17% with the major cultivar being
‘Shatin’. Citrus fruit is available in the market
year-round (fresh and stored) but freshly-picked
citrus fruit is only on the market between
August and May.
Banana production is 1.43 million t, mainly
planted in the southern region of the province
and provided year-round. Longan production of
ca. 0.38 million t is 6% and litchi production of
0.35 million t is 5% of the total fruit production
in Guangxi. Longan and litchi are mainly produced
in the southern region of Guangxi and
harvested from early May to the end of
September. Mango production of 0.20 million t
is mainly in the Youjiang River Valley region,
which is located in the western part of the
province. Guangxi is the most important source
of Chinese longan, litchi and mango fruit. A
number of other minor fruit crops in Guangxi
include persimmon, plum, pear, peach, grape,
and pineapple.
Vegetable Production
In 2006 Guangxi had ca. 1.66 million ha of
vegetables with an estimated yield of 22.8 million
t, valued at ¥22.13 billion. This production
area was 8.7% of Chinese production, ranking
Guangxi seventh in the country. Most of the
vegetables are marketed fresh with only a small
portion of the vegetables processed.
There are ca. 4,316 cultivated vegetable and
wildlife species and cultivars in Guangxi of
which only about 33 are considered major. The
vegetables grown in Guangxi, in order of portion
of total production, are: Chinese cabbagetype
vegetables (19.1%), comprising both
Pekinensis and Chinensis groups; leafy vegetables
(12.7%), mainly lettuce, spinach, water
spinach, and celery; fruit-bearing vegetables
(11.4%), mainly melon, bitter gourd, cucumber,
and pumpkin; root and tuberous vegetables
(11.2%), mainly radishes, carrots, taro, ginger,
Chinese yam; cole vegetables (10.5%), mainly
head cabbage cultivars, Chinese kale, and broccoli;
Solanum vegetables (9%), mainly tomato,
bell pepper, and eggplant; leguminous vegetables
(5.5%), mainly French or Green bean, pea,
mung bean; bulb vegetables (3.9%), mainly
garlic, onion, and leek; and aquatic vegetables
(3%), mainly watercress, water spinach, lotus
root, and chufa (tubers of Eleocharis dulcis, also
known as Chinese water chestnut). Guangxi is
now the largest white button mushroom-producing
province in China followed by Fujian
province. In 2006 0.27 million t were produced.
The expansion of the vegetable production area
and improved productivity has led to year-round
availability of fresh vegetables in the market at
reasonable prices. There is no longer a vegetable
“off” season in the summer and fall in
Guangxi.
PROBLEMS
The Guangxi fruit and vegetable industry at
present is not positioned to quickly and efficiently
meet changing markets. China’s admission
to the World Trade Organization (WTO) has
made this more obvious because it increases the
exposure of Guangxi to globalization and
increased market competition. The major problems
in the industry are imperfect marketing,
low investment capacity with small scale farmers,
shortage of postharvest technologies, and
lack of scientific-based management of crop
production.
The development of the fruit and vegetable
industry is seriously constrained by insufficient
development of an efficient marketing system,
which is currently dominated by many small
producers trying to supply a larger market.
Currently, in Guangxi, 60% of agricultural production
is sold by the farmers to wholesale
dealers and only some farmers sell their product
at retail prices to consumers in farm markets.
The agricultural product markets are dominated
by a large number of wholesalers or middlemen,
which means not only that the producers
(farmers) have a lower profit but also the consumer
does not have access to lower-priced
fruits and vegetables. According to a survey in
Guangxi, farmers only receive 30% or even
lower of the retail price. For example a consumer
will buy bananas at $1.20 - $3.00 / kg in
the market in Beijing, Shanghai and other cities,
while in Guangxi they are sold for $0.60 - $1.00
/ kg by the farmer. This situation where agricultural
produce marketing profit is much higher
than grower profit is a large problem.
Poor postharvest handling in Guangxi is responsible
for large losses, which may exceed 40% of
production. Current harvest and handling practices
are not providing sufficient high-quality
production for storage or processing; with only
about 6.5% of fruits being processed, and in
vegetables only 1% are stored and 2%
processed.
ISHS • 24

Farmer income is low, approaching only ¥3,000
a year. There are insufficient investments in storage
and irrigation facilities while fruit production
investment is only about 50% of what is
needed. Many of farmers are poorly-educated
and rely on experience rather than scientific
management. It is estimated that less than a
half of the production of fruits and vegetables is
up to standard for improving market competitiveness,
despite high productivity, and in
Guangxi only 10% of ‘Navel’ orange is up to
the international standards (Shi et al., 2005).
There are huge problems in developing exports.
Currently, only 0.7% of the fruits and 0.5% of
the vegetables are exported, which is quite low
considering Guangxi is a major fruit and vegetable-producing
province in China. Although
Guangxi is a major area of tropical fruit production
in China, the tropical fruits, such as litchi,
longan, banana, mango, pineapple, are rarely
directly exported by sea to other countries
because of deficiencies in international marketing
structure and technology.
Figure 3. Vegetables of Guangxi: (A) mixed vegetables; (B) potato under rice straw; (C) white
mushroom processing factory; (D) Mr. Zhang Meipei (left) (Leader, Guangxi Ministry of
Agriculture) talking with a tomato farmer.
MEASURES TO IMPROVE THE
HORTICULTURAL INDUSTRY
The fruit and vegetable industry is now in a
transition period that is developing from
expanding quantity to increasing quality and
efficiency. It is facing the double pressure of trying
to improve production technology and
improve market competitiveness. The key to
market competitiveness is to exploit the comparative
production advantages that exist in
Guangxi and provide innovations to improve
the competitive market advantages.
Market Development
Fruit and vegetable products are agricultural
products with high elasticity of demand, which
means that the development of desire to consume
them will pull market demand. To
improve Guangxi fruit and vegetable production
there is a need to vigorously develop export
markets by changing to a single dedicated
export channel that can move immediately into
international markets. This will rely on market
research to determine the consumer demand
and the competitiveness of similar products in
the target market, to understand the agricultural
product import and export legislation, to
know the brand image and market share for
Chinese agricultural products in the target market,
to set up a good relationship for mutual
trust with foreign-related industry associations
and non-governmental organizations. At the
same time, the government should increase its
efforts to support the agricultural export trade.
The agricultural financial subsidies of the government
should focus on supporting agricultural
production areas, expanding employment,
increasing the income of the farmers and guiding
the farmers to increase investment for
human capital. Another thing that must be
done is to train more personnel who either
understand foreign languages or have a background
in fruit and vegetable production, processing,
and management.
Improve Postharvest Handling
To improve market prices and reduce postharvest
losses, the fruit and vegetable industry
must improve postharvest handling and expand
processing productivity. Postharvest techniques
would allow quality to be retained over an
increasingly longer period. Very good handling
practices can decrease postharvest product losses
and thereby, maximize the inputs of labor,
materials and capital. However, modern
postharvest handling technologies can cost
more than what the average Guangxi farmer
can afford. This problem could be solved by
larger enterprises, and/or by farmers joining
together, especially if it is supported by the government.
This will have to be done in order to
develop a cold chain logistics implementation
model to reduce product losses in the Guangxi
industry.
Technological Innovation
Innovation is ever more important in today’s
increasingly global economy. Competitiveness
depends on innovation and this truly applies to
the Guangxi fruit and vegetable industry. First, it
should actively introduce commercial postharvest
technology from developed countries,
which have had a history of over 100 years of
research and development of such technologies,
so that deterioration of produce is reduced
as much as possible during the period between
harvest and end use. Secondly, advertising
should be strengthened and product packaging
should be improved to promote the brands and
improve the visibility in the international market.
A change to first-class quality and first-class
packaging would completely change the current
image of Guangxi fruits and vegetables,
which is “poor products, crude packaging.”
Thirdly, innovative production technology must
be introduced to improve productivity and quality.
This would involve improving the farmers’
crop production knowledge, promoting better
seed, and improving irrigation.
Scale of Production
On average, each farmer in Guangxi has no
more than 1 ha of fruit and no more than 1/3
ha of vegetables. To improve the market competitiveness
of the fruit and vegetable industry
there has to be a change to reduce the dispersal
of production on widely-scattered small
fields, improve the choice of cultivars to ones
that can be marketed together, and improve
production efficiency. Thus, work needs to be
done to organize the many farmers who are
small business operators into larger partnerships
such as: (1) marketing or processing company
+ small farmers; (2) marketing or processing
company + one or more large specialized
farms + small farmers; or (3) taking advantage
of the Farmer Organization for Economic
Cooperation or agricultural trade associations
to improve the organization of the industry and
increase the scale of operation. The large specialized
farms should be central production
bases of moderate size, at least 60 ha for fruits
and 30 ha for vegetables, that have a unified
CHRONICA HORTICULTURAE •VOL 49 • NUMBER 1 • 2009 • 25

cultivar base, and advanced technologies and
management.
CASE STUDIES
Figure 4. Fruit of Guangxi: (A) orange ready for harvest in April; (B) typical banana handling
system used to reduce mechanical injury; (C) extension worker advising a grape farmer; (D)
litchi harvesting; (E) kumquats under rain shelter produce more valuable fruit; (F) ‘Shatin’
pomelo.
Citrus
Citrus is the most important fruit in Guangxi
and ranked fourth in output in the country.
Since Guangxi is one of the areas in China
where citrus production is optimum, it was
included in the national plan, which determines
the most competitive products for each region
of China. The citrus production region is currently
in northern Guangxi (Guilin), but could
be also expanded into southern Guangxi.
Experts believe (Chen et al., 2004) that citrus
would mature about 10 days earlier for every
drop in latitude degree, if the same cultivars
were cultivated in different latitudes from the
South to the North in ecologically-appropriate
citrus regions of China. Since Guangxi spans
about 4º latitude, the same species could have
at least 40 days to supply the market. As a
result, Guangxi could supply the market with
fresh citrus fruit starting with precocious
‘Satsuma’ in early August and continue into
March-May of the next year with late ‘Valencia’
orange.
The future of the citrus industry looks promising
since there is good domestic consumer
market demand, citrus farmers are technologically
advanced and, in particular, with China’s
accession to the WTO and its participation in
the China-ASEAN (countries of the Association
of Southeast Asian Nations) Free Trade Area,
citrus fruit exports could be increased to
Southeast Asian countries (because citrus production
is low in ASEAN countries), Europe,
and the United States. The greatest concern for
the citrus industry is Asian citrus greening disease
(huang long bing), which is not effectively
controlled. This disease can only be prevented,
it cannot be eliminated. The best method to
prevent the disease is to eradicate diseased
trees and use disease-free seedlings. However,
only a few of the farmers understand and
accept this advice. Most of them think it is a
waste of time and money. The citrus industry
currently stores ca. 45% of the annual production,
but 80% of this stored crop is stored onthe-farm
(Liang, 2006; Fan, 2006). Since most
of this storage capacity does not use modern
storage technology citrus quality drops quickly
from February to April.
The goals for the Guangxi citrus industry are to
improve the ratio of high quality fruit; to stabilize
the planting area of tangerine citrus and
grapefruit; to accelerate the development of
early-maturing mandarin, late-maturing ‘Navel’
and ‘Valencia’ orange cultivars, and kumquat;
to modernise storage systems; to improve
export volume; and to improve economies of
scale in production of precocious mandarin,
late-maturing ‘Navel’ and ‘Valencia’ orange cultivars,
kumquat, and ‘Shatin’ pomelo.
Banana
Banana has great potential for development of
domestic and foreign markets because it is the
largest-selling fruit in the world. In recent years,
the world’s banana market annual increase is
12%, which has a powerful market ‘pull’ for
the Guangxi banana industry. Guangxi is one of
the areas in China that is ecologically suited for
banana production. It has the advantage of a
subtropical climate, which can produce bananas
of first-class quality, appearance and taste.
Future development of the banana industry
would rely on the following three factors: (1)
improving postharvest handling; (2) using seed
and adjusting maturity; and (3) increasing the
scale of operation. In recent years, Guangxi
banana producers have begun to improve commercial
postharvest handling (Li, 2004, 2006) by
not allowing the fruit to rest on the ground
after removal from the plant and reduction of
“mechanical injury.” This is improving the marketable
percent and quality of banana. These
fruit are more visually appealing and are what
the retailer and consumer prefer. To increase
production to achieve market availability
throughout the year the banana industry needs
to focus on increasing the proportion of virusfree
plantings from the currently-low 10% as
well as strongly promoting cultivation techniques
that improve both quality and yield.
Moreover, larger-scale production needs to be
achieved with the help of farmer organizations
and promotion of specialized banana production.
Longan and Litchi
Longan and litchi have been cultivated for a
long time in Guangxi, probably more than two
thousand years. The excellent natural conditions
in Guangxi produce longan and litchi that
are excellent quality with bright color, special
flavor and good taste. In China they were traditional
luxury fruits with the name “China lingnan
good fruit” for longan, and “the king of
fruits” for litchi. However, in recent years it is
difficult to find luxurious longan and litchi. The
increase in planted area and production with
poor storage, processing, and transport has led
to lower quality and prices. At present, longan
ISHS • 26

and litchi farmers make very little profit or are
losing money.
Development of the longan and litchi industry is
seriously restricted by poor handling technology
and postharvest facilities. Longan and litchi fruit
have a short harvest period, during the summer
season when temperatures are high, and this
makes it more difficult to preserve, store and
transport the fruit, resulting in a fast decline in
the quality and a short shelf life. Currently,
there are very poor methods to handle longan
and litchi fruit, with the most popular method
being SO 2 fumigation and cold storage, which
is not very effective (Lu et al., 2004). As a result
of a postharvest loss rate of 20% to 40%, most
of the longan and litchi fruit are only sold in
Guangxi Province and this also seriously limits
exports into the rest of China and the international
market. The quantity of processed fruit
currently is insignificant compared with fresh
fruit output, at less than 5% of litchi production
and 30% of longan production, respectively.
There are no popular processed products for
longan and litchi in China except dried longan
fruit and canned litchi. The selection of current
cultivars also puts marketing pressure on fresh
fruit sales. Currently, 80% of the longan and
litchi are mid-maturing cultivars and only 15%
are early cultivars and the remaining 5% are
late-maturing cultivars. Thus, much of the fruit
is available at the same time in mid-season and
not evenly spread over time. The litchi fruit
availability is concentrated in early June to mid
July and the longan fruit in late July to mid
August.
Despite these issues, it is believed that the longan
and litchi industry has a great opportunity
for expansion in Guangxi. Experts point out
(Qin, 2005), because of appropriate ecological
zones, there are a few countries in the world
where longan and litchi can be cultivated. Since
longan and litchi are most suitably grown in a
subtropical climate the climate of Guangxi
makes it one of the best places to grow longan
and litchi. It is the main producing area in China
and also the main producing area in the world.
Longan and litchi production is a competitive
industry in Guangxi (mainly in the southern
part). Currently, the industrial developments
have two main problems to improve yield and
extend the market period: (1) improving precooling
postharvest technology and (2) adjusting
cultivar structure to plant good quality cultivars
from early to late maturity, with a ratio of
3:5:2 (early, mid, late).
Deciduous Fruit Trees
Generally, deciduous fruit trees planted in
Guangxi have a very poor competitive advantage
with the exception of southern Asian
pears, and grape cultivars ripening in spring and
summer. The southern Asian pears are on the
market on July or August, which is 30 to 50
days earlier than pears from northern China,
which allows them to fetch a high market price.
Since some of the farmers who have planted
the southern Asian pears and grapes in northern
Guangxi have received significant economic
benefits, it is believed there is room for further
development, especially in Northern
Guangxi.
The Vegetable Industry
Although no new plantations have been undertaken
recently in Guangxi, the economics have
steadily improved with more specialized production.
Problems associated with growing vegetables
are the shortage of reliable high quality
seeds, inadequate irrigation, and insufficient
large-scale production. Production remains low,
despite cultivar replacement in recent years
resulting in improved vegetable cultivars being
used on 80% of the area.
In Guangxi vegetables can be planted throughout
the year but the most promising area for
REFERENCES
Chen, T., Gan, H., Chen, G. and Wen, Q. 2004.
Exploring the conditions and development of
Guangxi Early Satsuma production. Guangxi
Horticulture 15(6):12-13.
Fan, R. 2006. Postharvest commercial handling and
the competition ability for Guangxi citrus industry.
Guangxi Horticulture 17(5):7-9.
Huang, S. and Huang, K. 2007. Increased U.S.
Imports of Fresh Fruit and Vegetables. FTS-328-
01, September 2007, Economic Research Service/
USDA, available at: http://www.unitedfresh.org/
assets/files/Increased U.S. FFV Imports.pdf.
Li, D. 2004. The current situation and possible solutions
for the banana industry in Guangxi.
Guangxi Horticulture 15(5):12-15.
Li, D. 2006. The postharvest technology of banana
in use commercially. China Tropical Agriculture
2006 (4):17-18.
ABOUT THE AUTHORS
Weijiang Ruan
Robert K. Prange
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
We are grateful to Mr. Hanlin Qin, Senior
Agronomist of the Ministry of Agriculture,
Guangxi Province, China, and Mr. Dean Li, Senior
development is in fall and winter vegetables.
The industry depends mainly on the domestic
market and it could expand if it exported into
the international market. In 2007 China’s share
of the EU-27’s fresh fruit and vegetable import
market was 6.8% (Martinez-Palou and Rohner-
Thielen, 2008), and, in 2006 the Asian countries’
share of the U.S. fresh fruit and vegetable
import market was 2.7% (Huang and Huang,
2007), however, very little of this was from
Guangxi. Therefore, the vegetable industry in
Guangxi, especially fall and winter vegetable
producers, could improve their competitiveness
in exports to Europe and the Americas. Main
products should be the vegetables that are
popular in these markets, such as cabbage, lettuce,
spinach, celery, cucumber, cauliflower,
Chinese cabbage, tomato, bell pepper, eggplant,
radish, carrot, bean, taro, ginger and
chufa.
Liang, S. 2006. A discussion of the current situation,
advantages and development of the Guangxi
citrus industry. China Fruit News 23(7):8-11.
Lu, M., Guo, W., Pan, J. and Zuo, R. 2004. Analysis
of production and trade of lichee and longan in
the world and its countermeasures. World
Agriculture 304(8):23-26.
Martinez-Palou, A. and Rohner-Thielen, E. 2008.
Fruit and vegetables: fresh and healthy on
European tables. Eurostat, Statistics in focus,
60/2008, available at: http://www.epp.euro
stat.ec.europa.eu/cache/ITY_OFFPUB/KS-SF-08-
060/EN/KS-SF-08-060-EN.PDF.
Qin, R. 2005. The problems and countermeasures in
Guangxi litchi production. China Fruit News
22(3):13-14.
Shi, J., Chen, T., Shen, L. and Chen, G. 2005. The
current situation and possible solutions for
Guangxi orange production. South China Fruits
34(4):19-21.
Mr. Weijiang Ruan is Senior Agronomist and Vice-
Director of Guangxi Agricultural Technology
Extension General Station of the Ministry of
Agriculture, Guangxi Province, China and has
been conducting extension and teaching of agricultural
techniques at this Station since 1987. He
is presently a guest researcher at the Atlantic Food
and Horticulture Research Centre of the
Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada. Email:
rwj2659@hotmail.com
Dr. Robert K. Prange, Senior Research Scientist at
the Atlantic Food and Horticulture Research
Centre of Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, is
Chair of the ISHS Commission “Sustainability
through Integrated and Organic Horticulture”.
Email: Robert.Prange@agr.gc.ca
Agronomist of Guangxi Fruit Technology
Extension General Station of the Ministry of
Agriculture, Guangxi Province, China, for providing
data and pictures.
CHRONICA HORTICULTURAE •VOL 49 • NUMBER 1 • 2009 • 27

New Books, Websites
The books listed here are non-ISHS-publications.
For ISHS publications covering
these or other subjects, visit the ISHS website
www.ishs.org or the Acta
Horticulturae website www.actahort.org
BOOK REVIEWS
The Peach: Botany, Production and Uses.
Desmond R. Layne and Daniele Bassi (eds.).
2008. CABI Publishing, Wallingford,
Oxfordshire, UK. 615p. ISBN 978-1-84593-
386-9. €215 / £135 / $270. www.cabi.org
This multi-authored treatise covers the horticulture
of the peach under the editorial leadership
of Desmond R. Layne and Daniele Bassi. This is
a new and welcome addition to CABI books on
horticultural crop monographs and it represents
the most comprehensive source on peach information
available today. The coverage is international;
of the 49 authors, 23 are currently
researchers in the US, 9 in Italy, 5 each in Spain
and France, 4 in China, 2 in Australia, and 1 in
Brazil. The volume is dedicated to Richard E.C.
Layne (father of Desmond) and Silviero
Sansavini. The 22 chapters cover Botany and
Taxonomy; History in China; Genetics and
Breeding (6 chapters); Propagation; Physiology
and Management (5 chapters); Pests (5 chapters);
and Preharvest and Postharvest
Technology (3 chapters). The volume is extensively
illustrated and 245 black and white figures
are also shown in color in three sections of
inserts (underwritten by various individuals and
organizations). Each chapter is well referenced.
The index is necessary to navigate through this
voluminous work but I was a bit disappointed
in its construction. For example 1-MCP is only
found under ethylene, the University of Florida
breeding program discussed extensively in
Chapter 5 is not included, and nectarine is only
found under breeding goals.
Most of the chapters are written as a general
review and will be an invaluable resource for
students, especially those who are unfamiliar
with this crop species. Chapter 1 by D. Bassi
and R. Monet on botany and taxonomy is a key
resource to those who would wish to understand
the peach. This chapter also briefly
reviews the history of the peach in the West as
does Chapter 6 but I would have liked this
information consolidated. The excellent chapter,
History of Cultivation and Trends in China
by H. Huang, Z. Cheng, Z. Zhang, and Y. Wang,
has new information on the story of peach in
China that is unavailable elsewhere. The chapter
on Genetic Engineering and Genomics by
A.G. Abbott, P. Arus, and R. Scorza will be welcomed
by both traditional and new wave
breeders. All researchers, especially breeders
and pathologists, will find this book especially
useful as a source of references, both historical
and current. Growers will find this book only
valuable as a general guide but will be especially
interested in the chapter entitled Orchard
Planting Systems by L. Corelli-Grappadelli and
R.P. Marini. The very high price of this book will
unfortunately keep this book out of the hands
of students who need it most. I recommend you
encourage your library to purchase this volume.
Reviewed by Jules Janick, Purdue University, USA
The Drawings of Antoine Nicolas Duchesne
for his Natural History of the Gourds. Harry
S. Paris. 2008. Muséum National d’Histoire
Naturelle, Publications Scientifiques,
Diffusion 57 Rue Cuvier, F-75231 Paris
Cedex 05, France. 454p. 258 color plates.
ISBN 9782856536049, hbk. $257.
French horticulturalist and botanist Antoine
Nicolas Duchesne (1747–1827) was born at
Versailles. Duchesne became a careful observer
of nature under the tutelage of his scholarly
and well-traveled father, and later under
Bernard de Jussieu (the second of the five de
Jussieus of botanical history) at the King’s
Garden in Paris, who was himself tutored by
Linnaeus. Duchesne corresponded with
Linnaeus on botanical matters, particularly on
his first interest, in the relationships and hybridization
of strawberries. Though it was unusual
at the time for a botanist to restrict himself to
in-depth studies of the type that we now call
monography, in one of his letters to Duchesne,
Linnaeus said, “When you have completed the
history of the wild strawberries, you will have
accomplished something which I long have
hoped that some botanists would do; namely,
that they would each choose their plant family
and examine it most thoroughly; in this manner
would soon be attained the ultimate knowledge
of plants which now floods botanists with
its abundance.”
Duchesne’s first work, L’Histoire naturelle des
frasiers (Natural history of the strawberries),
was published in 1766 when he was only 19
years old. One product of this research included
his own botanical illustrations, in pencil and ink
(though he lacked the funds to see them published
in his lifetime). Duchesne was particularly
interested in plant sexual systems as they pertained
to the creation of domesticated plants,
and through cross-pollination experiments he
developed (and attempted to retrace the
parentage of) various strawberry cultivars. His
experiments led him to the idea of what we
now call the biological species concept, a refutation
of the doctrine of constancy or immutability
of species as maintained by other naturalists
of his era. He called himself a “cultivator
botanist,” distinct from other botanists who
observed without experimentation. After all,
this was the Age of the Enlightenment.
His next major work focused on pumpkins,
squash, and gourds of the genus Cucurbita. All
Cucurbita species arose in the New World and
thus only became known to Europeans after
1492. Initially the various species and cultivars
of Cucurbita pepo were grown in Europe for
ornamental interest only, but over time many
more were developed that were more palatable
and better suited to the long day lengths of
northern summers. Duchesne was drawn to
Cucurbita for its incredibly varied fruit characteristics
(pleasing to the eye and hand of a botanical
artist), but he also found this to be a genus
perfectly suited to more cross-breeding experiments,
and a similar mystery of origins of forms,
recalling his first love of strawberries.
Most of Duchesne’s writing and illustrations
produced from this period did not come to light
until recently, and in this book his entire collection
of illustrations of Cucurbita is published for
the first time. The author Dr. Harry Paris, one of
the foremost experts on Cucurbita, is responsible
for finally locating Duchesne’s rumored illustrations
in the Library of the Natural History
Museum in Paris. Contained in this massive
tome (falling somewhere between a folio and
ISHS • 28

elephant folio at 44.5 cm in length and weighing
approximately 6 kg) are 361 of Duchesne’s
illustrations, mostly of those cultivars commonly
called gourds. These illustrations include pencil
sketches and pen-and-ink works but the
majority are full-color watercolors (258 color
plates). The primary focus is on the form and
color patterns of fruits, and their textures, with
a loving attention to warty protrusions of all
kinds. Since this book is gigantic, many of these
illustrations approach life-size. The works range
from hazy impressionistic arrangements to
startlingly photo-realistic pieces worthy of any
Dutch Master’s still life. Included here too are a
number of Duchesne’s illustrations of Cucurbita
flowers and their developmental stages, and
pencil studies of the growth patterns of the
vines, which are more delicate works in general.
Also included are a number of brief yet substantial
chapters (in both English and French) interpreting
the biography of Duchesne and botanical
significance of his work, as well as a chapter
on the botany of the genus Cucurbita, and a
glossary and index to scientific names. This is
the sine qua non coffee table book for any fan
of cucurbits, horticulture, or botanical illustration,
but with the interpretive chapters
bookending the illustrations, this book is also of
significance and utility to systematists.
(Reprinted with permission from the Journal of
the Botanical Research Institute of Texas.)
Reviewed by Amanda K. Neill, Botanical Research
Institute of Texas, USA
NEW TITLES
Jain, S. Mohan and Priyadarshan, P.M. (eds.).
2009. Breeding Plantation Tree Crops:
Temperate Species. Springer, Heidelberg,
Germany. 290p. ISBN 978-0-387-71202-4
(hardcover). € 169.95. www.springer.com
Jain, S. Mohan and Priyadarshan, P.M. (eds.).
2009. Breeding Plantation Tree Crops: Tropical
Species. Springer, Heidelberg, Germany.
654p. ISBN 978-0-387-71199-7 (hardcover).
€ 169.95. www.springer.com
Louppe, D., Oteng-Amoako, A.A. and Brink, M.
(eds.). 2008. Plant Resources of Tropical Africa
7(1). Timbers 1. PROTA Foundation, Wageningen,
Netherlands / Backhuys Publishers, Leiden,
Netherlands / CTA, Wageningen, Netherlands.
704p. ISBN 978-90-5782-209-4 / 978-3-8236-
1541-5 (book only). € 40 (industrialized countries),
€ 20 (developing countries). ISBN 978-
90-5782-210-0 / 978-3-8236-1542-2 (book +
CD-Rom). € 50 (industrialized countries), € 25
(developing countries). www.prota.org
Louppe, D., Oteng-Amoako, A.A. and Brink, M.
(eds.). 2008. Ressources végétales de l’Afrique
tropicale 7(1). Bois d’œuvre 1. Fondation
PROTA, Wageningen, Pays-Bas / Backhuys
Publishers, Leiden, Pays-Bas / CTA, Wageningen,
Pays-Bas. 785p. ISBN 978-90-5782-
211-7 / 978-3-8236-1543-9 (livre seul). € 40
(pays industrialisés), € 20 (pays en développement).
ISBN 978-90-5782-212-4 / 978-3-8236-
1544-6 (livre + CD-Rom). € 50 (pays industrialisés),
€ 25 (pays en développement).
www.prota.org
Schmelzer, G.H. and Gurib-Fakim, A. (eds.).
2008. Plant Resources of Tropical Africa 11(1).
Medicinal plants 1. PROTA Foundation,
Wageningen, Netherlands / Backhuys
Publishers, Leiden, Netherlands / CTA,
Wageningen, Netherlands. 791p. ISBN 978-90-
5782-204-9 / 978-3-8236-1531-6 (book only).
€ 40 (industrialized countries), € 20 (developing
countries). ISBN 978-90-5782-205-6 / 978-
3-8236-1532-3 (book + CD-Rom). € 50 (industrialized
countries), € 25 (developing countries).
www.prota.org
Schmelzer, G.H. and Gurib-Fakim, A. (eds.).
2008. Ressources végétales de l’Afrique tropicale
11(1). Plantes médicinales 1. Fondation
PROTA, Wageningen, Pays-Bas / Backhuys
Publishers, Leiden, Pays-Bas / CTA,
Wageningen, Pays-Bas. 869p. ISBN 978-90-
5782-206-3 / 978-3-8236-1533-0 (livre seul).
€ 40 (pays industrialisés), € 20 (pays en développement).
ISBN 978-90-5782-207-0 / 978-3-
8236-1534-7 (livre + CD-Rom). € 50 (pays
industrialisés), € 25 (pays en développement).
www.prota.org
Courses and Meetings
The following are non-ISHS events. Make sure to check out the
Calendar of ISHS Events for an extensive listing of all ISHS meetings.
For updated information log on to www.ishs.org/calendar
Stevia World 2009, 14-15 May 2009, Shanghai, China. Info: Jaime Ng,
Marketing Manager, Centre for Management Technology, Singapore,
Phone: (65) 6346 9145, email: jaime@cmtsp.com.sg, web:
www.cmtevents.com
11e Colloque du Conseil Scientifique de la Société Nationale
d’Horticulture de France: “Jardins, environnement et santé”, 15 May
2009, Nantes, France. Info: Cindy Vimercati, Société Nationale
d’Horticulture de France, 84 rue de Grenelle, 75007 Paris, France, Phone:
01 44 39 78 78, Fax: 01 44 39 78 95, email: communication@snhf.org,
web: www.snhf.org
Congrès de la Société Nationale d’Horticulture de France, 16 May 2009,
Nantes, France. Info: Cindy Vimercati, Société Nationale d’Horticulture de
France, 84 rue de Grenelle, 75007 Paris, France, Phone: 01 44 39 78 78,
Fax: 01 44 39 78 95, email: communication@snhf.org, web:
www.snhf.org
3rd Annual Meeting of the American Association of Wine Economists,
18-20 June 2009, Reims, France. Info: Dr. Karl Storchmann, Whitman
College, Walla Walla, USA, email: storchkh@whitman.edu, web:
www.wine-economics.org
35th National Agricultural Plastics Congress, 13-16 July 2009,
Pennsylvania, USA. Info: American Society for Plasticulture, 174 Crestview
Drive, Bellefonte, PA 16823, USA, Phone: 814-357-9198, Fax: 814-355-
2452, email: info@plasticulture.org, web: www.plasticulture.org
Go...Organic 2009: A View toward Food Safety and Security, 19-21
August 2009, Bangkok, Thailand. Info: Dr. Kullanart Obsuwan, Co-
Covener, Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Silpakorn University,
Nakorn Pathom, Thailand, Phone: +6634-243429 ext. 28283, Fax:
+6634-273046, or Dr. Apiradee Uthairatanakij, Convener, King
Mongkut’s University of Technology Thonburi, Bangkok, Thailand,
Phone: +662-470-7722-24, Fax: +662-470-7729, email:
go_organic2009@yahoo.com, web: www.goorganic2009.com
VIII Master in Olive Growing and Oil Technology, September 2009,
Córdoba, Spain. Info: Secretariat of the Master in Olive Growing and Oil
Technology, Universidad de Córdoba, Campus de Rabanales, Edificio C4,
Carretera de Madrid km. 396, 14071 Córdoba, Spain, Phone: +34 957
218 351, Fax: +34 957 218 569, email: masterolivicultura@uco.es, web:
www.masterolivicultura.org
9th African Crop Science Society Conference, 28 September to 1 October
2009, Cape Town, South Africa. Info: Dr. G.D. Joubert, Vice- President,
ACSS Council, Chairman LOC, South Africa, P.O. Box 236, Robertson,
6705, South Africa, Phone & Fax: + 27 23 6266354, email:
joub@absamail.co.za, web: www.acss.ws
CHRONICA HORTICULTURAE •VOL 49 • NUMBER 1 • 2009 • 29

SYMPOSIA AND WORKSHOPS
Section Medicinal and Aromatic
Fourth World Conference on Medicinal
Plants
and Aromatic Plants (WOCMAP IV)
Post conference excursion in Karoo National Botanical Garden. Photograph by courtesy of Prof. Eloff.
The 4th WOCMAP, the most important meeting
in the field of medicinal and aromatic plant
research, was organized in Cape Town on
November 9-14, 2008 by the Phytomedicine
Programme, University of Pretoria, South Africa
under the auspices of the International Council
for Medicinal and Aromatic Plants (ICMAP) and
the International Society for Horticultural
Science (ISHS) under the banner “using plants
for the benefit of people”. The major sponsors
for the scientific part of the conference were
University of Pretoria, National Research
Foundation, Pretoria (NRF), ICMAP, the
Department of Science and Technology (DST),
Pretoria and Cognis.
The conference is organized every five years in
a different continent with the main objective of
promoting understanding of the role of medicinal
and aromatic plants in science, medicine
and industry and to improve the exchange of
information between different national and
international organizations working in the field
of MAPs. Different issues on plants as sources
of human and animal health products were discussed
in 14 plenary sessions along with 160
oral and 115 poster presentations in parallel
sessions by scientists and researchers from different
parts of the world. The following topics
and perspectives were highlighted in the conference
during different sessions:
❚ Biodiversity, prospecting and ethnopharmacology
❚ Conservation, cultivation, breeding genetics
and sustainable use
❚ Perspective in natural products chemistry
❚ Targeted screening approaches for drugs and
cosmetics
ISHS • 30

Dr. Krish Bharuth-Ram, Vice President
National Research Foundation of South
Africa, opening WOCMAP. Photograph by
courtesy of Prof. Eloff.
❚ Quality, efficacy and safety of phytomedicines
and phytocosmetics
❚ Developments in industrial processing of
MAPs
❚ The economics and marketing of medicinal
and aromatic plants
❚ Laws and regulations regarding the use of
MAPs
❚ Traditional medicine and health systems for
new and old diseases
❚ Nutraceuticals
❚ Veterinary medicine
❚ Other diverse aspects not accommodated in
the above themes
The plenary sessions emphasized the importance
of biodiversity as a resource for developing
novel medicines and the need for adopting
a holistic approach instead of a single moleculesingle
receptor approach with elaboration on
traditional Chinese medicine as a classical
example. The importance of hyphenated analytical
techniques such as LC-DAD/UV, LC/MS
and LC/NMR for the evaluation of the quality of
crude extracts was also discussed. Actions to
regulate and harmonize the legal status of
herbal products in the form of medicine, dietary
supplements, functional foods or cosmetics in
terms of quality, safety and efficacy among
European Union members, and in comparison
with other concepts worldwide, were discussed.
On the regional level, the biological diversity,
historical uses of African medicinal plants and
its potential for both business and the agricultural
sector were highlighted. Furthermore, the
major constraints to African herbal industry
such as the lack of suitable technical specifications
and quality control standards were discussed.
A comparison of the African traditional
medicine with other existing concepts worldwide
in terms of trade, sustainable use and
industry and the challenges facing conservation
were highlighted.
On a local South African level, the importance
of South Africa as a global epicenter of medicinal
and aromatic plants was handled from two
different angles. The chances of utilization of
these resources by the pharmaceutical, fragrance
and flavour industries were discussed
and speakers identified the constraints that
hampered its exploration. The second aspect
related to the conservation of overexploited
species. Aspects related to seed germination, in
vitro propagation and cultivation of medicinal
plants for small scale farming were detailed.
The conference, without doubt, succeeded in
revealing many plants of potential in the treatment
of chronic and emerging diseases such as
diabetes, hypertension, cancer and HIV. The latest
techniques that could be used for safety,
efficacy and quality assessment were also
emphasized. Horticultural aspects such as germination,
micro- and macro propagation, cul-
Travel Grant recipients. Photograph by
courtesy of Ms. Mortensen.
tural practices and conservation that are essential
for yield improvement and sustainability
were highlighted.
The conference provided educational opportunities
for those involved in the research, evaluation,
development and marketing of herbal
remedies and their products for use in healthcare.
One of the major differences of this conference
from previous WOCMAP conferences is
its side events such as the WOCMAP Business
Forum and Trade Fair. These events helped to
bring exporters, importers, growers of MAPs
and traditional healers together in one meeting
with scientists.
CONTACT
Esam E. Elgorashi
Dr. Esam E. Elgorashi, Phytomedicine
Programme, Department of Paraclinical
Sciences, University of Pretoria, Private Bag
X04, Onderstepoort 0110, South Africa,
email: elgorashie@yahoo.com
The Journal of Horticultural Science
& Biotechnology
Available online at www.pubhort.org
CHRONICA HORTICULTURAE •VOL 49 • NUMBER 1 • 2009 • 31

Section Medicinal and Aromatic Plants –
First Int’l Jujube Symposium
Section Pome and Stone Fruits – Section
Tropical and Subtropical Fruits
Participants of the Symposium.
The First International Jujube Symposium
(IJS2008) was held from September 21 till 25,
2008, at Agricultural University of Hebei,
Baoding, China. It shared the opening ceremony
with the First China Jujube Congress with a
total of over 300 participants of relevant scientists,
officials, and enterprisers. The opening
ceremony was presided over by Prof. Zhigang
Wang, President of Agricultural University of
Hebei. Yucai Li, Deputy Head of State Forestry
Bureau, P.R. China, Yongrui Liu, Standing
Member of Hebei Provincial Committee of the
Chinese Communist Party, Prof. Akos Mathe,
Chair of the ISHS Section Medicinal and
Aromatic Plants, Prof. Zhenhai Han, Vice
Chairman of the Chinese Society for
Horticultural Science, Shuyu Tang, Chairman of
Hebei Association for Science and Technology,
and Guotang Wu, Head of Hebei Provincial
Forest Bureau attended the opening ceremony.
Fifty-five scientists from 13 countries including
India, America, Brazil, Chile, Israel, Iran, Kuwait,
Hungary, Czech Republic, Romania, Slovenia,
Tunisia and China participated in the First
International Jujube Symposium, presenting 32
oral papers and 40 posters on a broad range of
topics relating to jujube. There were three
keynote speakers: Prof. Amos Blumenfeld from
Israel addressed “Selected issues in modern cultivation
of fruit trees relevant to jujube”, and
Prof. O.P. Awasthi from India “Genetic diversity
and status of Ziziphus in India”. Prof. Mengjun
Liu from China presented “Germplasm
resources and production of jujube in China”.
Five papers described general information of
jujube in Kuwait, India, China, Iran and Tunisia.
Another five papers addressed Germplasm and
breeding of jujube such as infraspecific classification,
genetic diversity, male-sterile germplasm
and genetic improvement. More studies focused
on biotechnology and physiology. Seven
researchers addressed papers on tissue culture,
molecular markers and physiology. Secondary
metabolites from tissue cultures and plant parts
of Ziziphus mauritiana were reported.
In the session of orchard management and
plant protection, the effects of arbuscular
mycorrhizae on the growth of jujube and
measures improving fruit set were reported.
Researchers from India, China and Iran
described the diseases and insect species,
damage status and management methods. The
strategy and techniques for controlling jujube
witches’ broom disease were also reported.
In addition, three papers were addressed on
nutrition and utilization of water-soluble polysaccharides
in Chinese jujube fruits, sensory
evaluation of Chinese jujube, and nutrition and
physico-chemical properties of ripe (Ziziphus
jujuba) fruits grown in Istria.
In postharvest treatment and processing session,
three papers were reported. Suitable temperature
and O 2 / CO 2 ratio for fresh fruit storage
of Ziziphus jujuba cv. Dongzao was reported.
Storage of ‘Umran’ ber-temperature optimization
and quality assessment was
addressed. Effects of freezing methods and
storage temperatures on the firmness of jujube
fruits were also reported.
At last, a special report “A survey and textual
research on the names of genus jujube and its
main species” was given by Prof. Mengjun Liu,
Convener of the symposium. The proper scientific
names and English names for genus jujube
Prof. Akos Mathe (left) handed out the ISHS
medal to Prof. Mengjun Liu, Convener of
IJS2008 (right).
Participants during the mid-symposium tour.
and its main species and their pronunciation
were warmly discussed and confirmed.
Moreover, a large-scale jujube exhibition with
over 200 kinds of jujube production was held
during the symposium. And a one day mid-symposium
tour impressed all the participants. They
visited the Haoxiangni Jujube Industry
Development Co. Ltd, Cangzhou AG biology
production Co. Ltd, Cangzhou Jinsixiaozao
major producing areas, Huanghua Dongzao
major producing areas, etc.
In this symposium, the ISHS Working Group on
Jujube was set up.
The Second International Jujube Symposium
will be held in India and organized by Central
Institute for Arid Horticulture in 2011.
CONTACT
Mengjun Liu
Prof. Mengjun Liu (Chairman of IJS2008,
Chairperson of the ISHS Working Group on
Jujube), Research Center of Chinese Jujube,
Agricultural University of Hebei, Baoding, Hebei,
071001, China, email: kjliu@hebau.edu.cn,
lmj1234567@yahoo.com.cn
ISHS • 32

Section Ornamental Plants
First Int’l Symposium on Woody
Ornamentals of the Temperate Zone
Participants of the Symposium.
The First International Symposium on Woody
Ornamentals of the Temperate Zone was held
at Průhonice, a traditional centre for Czech horticultural
research from May 26-30, 2008. The
Symposium was co-organized by the Silva
Tarouca Research Institute for Landscape and
Ornamental Gardening and the Section
Ornamental Plants of the International Society
for Horticultural Science. Eighty two research
scientists from twenty six countries attended.
There were thirty four lectures and fifty poster
presentations. Five different themes were
addressed and are as follows: Assortment of
woody ornamentals, evaluation of the gene
pools and new perspective taxa; Breeding of
woody ornamentals; Propagation and cultivation
methods for woody ornamentals, stress
and disease resistance; Preservation of rare and
endangered taxa; and Woody plants in the
human environment.
ASSORTMENT OF WOODY
ORNAMENTALS,
EVALUATION OF THE GENE
POOLS AND NEW
PERSPECTIVE TAXA
The keynote presentation for this theme was
given by Alain Cadic from France. He traced the
development of the woody ornamentals market
since 1945. He outlined how the market continues
to enlarge, albeit slowly with increased
demand for both new and specialist plant lines,
greater choice, enhanced quality and competitive
prices. Paralleling this, he stated that producers
of woody ornamentals face an ever
growing demand to produce a greater range of
xerophytic plants together with those that are
disease and pest resistant, tolerant of pollution
and are more scented, floriferous, colourful and
easy to grow. The following four lectures were
delivered: Variety trials of Weigela by M.H.A.
Hoffman; of Camellia by V. Scariot; The natural
population as a potential gene-pool, using
Arbutus and Acer pentaphyllum as model
plants by G. Zizzo and M. Roh, respectively.
BREEDING OF WOODY
ORNAMENTALS
The keynote lecture on breeding strategies for
woody ornamentals was delivered by J. Van
Huylenbroeck. In it he stated that although the
generation of novelty morphological deviant
characteristics such as flower and fruit variation,
plant growth habit and leaf colour traits
remains very important breeding attributes
today, physiological features such as winter hardiness,
growth vigour, enhanced flowering period,
multiplication rate and disease resistance
are now more and more being demanded by
the nursery industry. In woody ornamentals,
deliberate and planned breeding and selection
programmes are followed in just a limited number
of species, the most notable being Clematis,
Hibiscus, Hydrangea, Malus, Populus, Rosa,
Rhododendron. This is because the market
share is too low to justify expensive breeding
programmes for a wide species range. Thus,
new introductions to the trade or market place
are often the result of spontaneous mutations
and “lucky findings”. However, where selected
woody ornamentals are deliberately targeted,
modern breeding techniques offer an extended
potential to introduce genetic variation resulting
in new phenotypes. This was elaborated on
in the following lectures. M. Dobres delivered a
lecture on transgenic ornamentals and argued
that genetic engineering represents a powerful
tool in breeding. He suggested that it was economic
reasons that prevented the wide scale
application of this technology to woody plants.
He stated that although there are currently
more than sixty varieties of transgenic ornamental
plants derived from seventeen genera
available only two are woody plants; rose and
rhododendron, respectively. However, there is
no commercially propagated variety to date. K.
Van Laere discussed cytogenetic techniques and
their use for hybrid characterisation for more
efficient breeding and selection of woody ornamental
plants. T. Rinehart explained how the
use of SSR (simple sequence repeat) markers
was used for cultivar identification, hybrid verification,
and marker assisted breeding of the
genus Lagerstroemia. S. Hokanson presented
results from a long-term woody plant breeding
project that was established at the University of
Minnesota in 1954. Its remit was to develop an
extended palette of cold-hardy woody landscape
plants for northern landscapes. Over the
years many woody plant cultivars including
large stature shade trees, small stature flowering
trees, shrubs, roses, and deciduous azaleas
CHRONICA HORTICULTURAE •VOL 49 • NUMBER 1 • 2009 • 33

have been released to the trade. Currently, a
major effort is focusing on resistance breeding
in several plant taxa.
PROPAGATION AND CULTIVA-
TION METHODS FOR WOODY
ORNAMENTALS, STRESS AND
DISEASE RESISTANCE
I. Iliev delivered the keynote lecture on this
topic. His address reflected on the problems
associated with the propagation of difficult to
produce trees using classical propagation methods.
He also introduced the concept of micropropagation
as a technique of mass multiplication
to overcome these problems using Betula
pendula varieties as a model example. The
theme of T. Shadrina’s lecture was similar; in
vitro propagation of Betula pendula, B. pubescens,
and B. nigra. M. Papafotiou documented
how micropropagation can be used to increase
horticultural use of rare and endangered plant
species.
There were several technical contributions too.
G. Amorozo spoke about non-chemical alternatives
for weed control in containerized plants. F.
Larcher presented results of an experiment
using peat-reduced growing media for Camelia.
A. Fini described the effect of shading on photosynthesis,
water relations and growth of three
woody plant species; Azalea japonica, Choisya
ternata and Viburnum x pragense. He showed
how shading simultaneously decreased both
water consumption and growth. Metabolic
changes accompanying cold acclimation and
the correlation between metabolic changes and
the degree of cold hardiness were presented in
two lectures by M. Pagter and M.C. Van
Labeke.
Zdeněk Kiesenbauer, Head of the Dendrological Garden (right), showing the participants
round the Dendrological Garden.
In recent times, the official borders between
different countries have faded away resulting in
a major increase in both trans-national and
international trade for many products including
plant material. Paralleling this development is
the increased risk of disease dissemination
between countries potentially threatening the
production of woody plants in many nurseries.
This was expounded upon by L. Orlikowski who
drew attention to the inimical and potentially
devastating effects that a disease occurrence or
outbreak of Phytophthora would have on the
Participants planting Quercus frainetto tree on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the
Austro-Hungarian Dendrological Society establishment. From left to right: Zdeněk Kiesenbauer,
Hartmut Balder, Alan Hunter and Stan Hokanson.
Polish hardy ornamental nursery stocks industry.
Similarly, M. Jensen spoke about disease susceptibility
and hedge quality aspects in
Ligustrum.
PRESERVATION OF RARE
AND ENDANGERED TAXA
William Graves elaborated on a unique project
on ecology, genetics and propagation methods
of several North American species such as Alnus
maritima, Dirca palustris, D. occidentalis, D.
mexicana, Leitneria floridana and Styrax americanus.
He showed how one research programme
can have two goals; the preservation
of rare species and simultaneously their horticultural
use. Conservation of threatened plants
can be used in different ways; one possibility is
the planting of plant material on favourable
localities. Such an approach was documented
by J. Šedivá using Daphne cneorum, which was
propagated both from seeds and in vitro methods.
WOODY PLANTS IN THE
HUMAN ENVIRONMENT
The keynote speech for this theme was delivered
by H. Balder who dealt with the problems
associated with tree planting and their maintenance
in cities. He suggested that integrated
concepts are necessary to guarantee a sustainable
function of the manifold elements of
urban horticulture. As important factors, he
considered optimal planning, professional
preparing of the planting area, choosing the
correct trees for the location, using small plant
heights, using either bare rooted or ball
ISHS • 34

wrapped material, maintaining adequate planting
distances between trees and structures
together with a regional cultivation of the trees
that decrease a negative evolution, damage
and plant failure and thus guarantee favourable
costs and a solid landscape.
As for the suitability of different woody plant
taxa, resistance to abiotic and biotic stress is a
very important property. Jelle Hiemstra presented
experiments with Ulmus hollandica cultivars
resistant to Dutch elm disease (Ophiostoma
ulmi) where the level of resistance, the effect of
propagation method (root-stock, own-rooted)
and growth vigour were observed in two large
scale plantings in the city of Amsterdam. A
steadily discussed question was whether indigenous
or exotic woody plants should be used. A.
Hunter showed that planting indigenous
species had a positive effect on biodiversity of
insect populations.
In the general meeting following the close of
the symposium, S. Hokanson proposed that a
second symposium on woody ornamentals
should be organized and held. This was unanimously
agreed. It was also agreed the next symposium
should be held in four years time with
the likely venue being in Belgium or the United
States.
The Symposium programme included excursions
and a one-day trip. The participants visited
the Dendrological Garden of the Silva
Tarouca Research Institute at Průhonice and
Visit to Prague’s historic gardens.
Průhonice Castle Park. In the evening a concert
was arranged at the castle courtyard. During
the one-day trip the participants visited some of
Prague’s historic gardens and Arboeco Obříství
nursery, the latter which belongs to the most
important producers of woody ornamentals in
the Czech Republic. Director Pavel Kafka with
his co-workers informed us about their growing
programme and about their view of problems
of nursery sector in the Czech Republic.
František Šrámek and Alan Hunter
CONTACT
František Šrámek, Silva Tarouca Research Institute
for Landscape and Ornamental Gardening,
Květnové náměstí 391, 292 43 Průhonice,
Czech Republic, email: sramek@vukoz.cz
Section Pome and Stone Fruits –
Ninth Int’l Symposium on Integrating
Section Tropical and Subtropical
Canopy, Rootstock and Environmental
Fruits
Physiology in Orchard Systems
Tree fruit scientists from around the world
met in Geneva, New York State, USA, August 4-
8, 2008, for the Ninth International Symposium
on Integrating Canopy, Rootstock and
Environmental Physiology in Orchard Systems.
The meeting was sponsored by three working
groups of the Pome and Stone Fruits Section of
the International Society for Horticultural
Sciences: the Orchard and Plantation Systems
working group, the Rootstock Breeding and
Evaluation working group, and the
Environmental Physiology of Fruit Crops working
group. The symposium focused on the complex
interaction of rootstock, canopy architecture,
training and pruning system, and environmental
physiology – all integrated into a great
puzzle we call the orchard system.
The meeting was held in Geneva, New York
State, USA on the campus of Hobart/William
Smith Colleges (a small private university) and
on the campus of the New York State
Agricultural Experiment Station of Cornell
University. The meeting was attended by 230
participants from 35 countries. The symposium
began with a welcome address by the
Convener Terence Robinson after which the
participants were welcomed to Geneva and
Cornell University by the Director of the New
York State Agricultural Experiment Station, Dr.
Tom Burr. The oral sessions focused on Orchard
Systems, Rootstock Genomics, Genetics,
Evaluation and Breeding, and Environmental
Physiology. The keynote lecture for the orchard
systems session was given by Dr. John Palmer of
HortResearch, New Zealand and was titled
“Changing Concepts of Efficiency in Orchard
Invited lecture for Environmental Physiology
session by Alan Lakso of Cornell University.
CHRONICA HORTICULTURAE •VOL 49 • NUMBER 1 • 2009 • 35

Participants of the Symposium.
Systems”. The keynote lecture for the rootstock
session was delivered by Dr. Gennaro Fazio of
the USDA-ARS Plant Genetics Resources Unit at
Geneva titled “Implementation of Molecular-
Marker Technologies in the Apple Rootstock
Breeding Program in Geneva – Challenges and
Successes”. The keynote lectures for the environmental
physiology session were delivered by
Dr. Alan Lakso and Dr. Fritz Lenz of the
University of Bonn, Germany. Dr. Lakso’s lecture
was titled “Early Fruit Growth and Drop: The
Role of Carbon Balance in the Apple Tree” and
Dr. Lenz’s lecture was titled “Reflections on My
40 Years of Fruit Research”. In each session,
excellent oral presentations were given with a
total of 79 oral presentations. Poster sessions
were held each day with 130 posters presented.
Collectively, these research reports provided
substantial information on recent advances in
fruit science and culture that will ultimately
benefit fruit growers and fruit consumers
worldwide. We expect that this meeting will
lead to significant changes in orchard systems,
rootstocks and management.
The symposium was organized by a team of
Cornell University scientists. Terence Robinson
was the meeting Convener while Herb
Aldwinckle and Gennaro Fazio chaired the
rootstock portion of the program, Alan Lakso
and Lailiang Cheng chaired the environmental
physiology portion and Terence Robinson and
Gabino Reginato (University of Chile) chaired
the orchard systems section. The orchard tours
were led by Steve Hoying. Herb Aldwinckle
chaired the social events. The meeting was
supported by Cornell University, The New York
State Horticultural Society, The New York
Apple Association and the United States
Department of Agriculture-Agricultural
Research Service.
There was a technical tour of the New York
State Agricultural Experiment Station on
Tuesday afternoon August 5. The tour included
field experiments on cherry planting systems
and rootstocks, apple orchard systems and rootstocks,
the national USA apple germplasm
repository, pear rootstocks and planting systems
and physiology research plots. On Wednesday
August 6 the participants toured commercial
apple and peach fruit orchards and a nursery
along the shores of Lake Ontario just north of
Geneva where they toured some of the most
modern orchards in the world.
The pre-symposium tour which was led by
Steve Hoying had 45 participants. It began with
a tour of New York City and the “green mar-
John Palmer (left) receiving the lifetime
achievement award from the Orchard and
Plantation Systems working group.
Jim Cummins (left) and Herb Aldwinckle
(right) receiving the lifetime achievement
award from the Rootstock Breeding and
Evaluation working group.
Fritz Lenz (left) receiving the lifetime
achievement award from the
Environmental Physiology of Fruit Crops
working group.
ISHS • 36

Terence Robinson (Convener) during the field tour of the New
York State Agricultural Experiment Station of Cornell University.
Gennaro Fazio of the USDA-ARS discussing apple rootstocks during
the field tour of the New York State Agricultural Experiment
Station of Cornell University.
kets” in the city where farmers sell their produce
directly to consumers. They then visited
fruit farms in the Hudson Valley and then
toured the Cornell University campus in Ithaca,
New York and fruit research plots at Ithaca and
Lansing. The post symposium tour was enjoyed
by 80 participants and began with visits to commercial
fruit orchards and research plots west of
Rochester NY followed by a visit to the world
famous Niagara Falls.
The symposium participants also enjoyed several
social events including the symposium
banquet at the Seneca Lake Yacht club. At the
banquet each of the three working groups
Steve Hoying leading the pre- and post-symposium tours.
awarded lifetime achievement awards to scientists
who have made significant contributions to
fruit science. The award from the Orchard and
Plantation Systems working group went to Dr.
John Palmer of HortResearch and Dr. John
Jackson formerly of East Malling for numerous
contributions including their work on light
interception and utilization efficiency. The
award from the Rootstock Breeding and
Evaluation working group went to Dr. Jim
Cummins and Dr. Herb Aldwinckle from Cornell
University for the development of the fire blight
resistant Geneva rootstocks. The award from
the Environmental Physiology of Fruit Crops
working group went to Dr. Fritz Lenz formerly
of University of Bonn for numerous contributions
to fruit physiology including significant
photosynthesis research.
At the business meeting of the three working
groups, Terence Robinson stepped down as
Chair of the Orchard and Plantation Systems
working group after 12 years; Stuart Tustin was
elected Chairman. Károly Hrotkó of Hungary
stepped down as Chair of the Rootstock
Breeding and Evaluation working group and
Gennaro Fazio was elected Chairman. John
Palmer continues as the Chairman of the
Environmental Physiology of Fruit Crops working
group. The participants voted to hold the
next meeting in South Africa in 2012.
The meeting by all accounts was a resounding
success, and the camaraderie and friendship
between the various participants from the 35
countries was clearly evident. It was a privilege
for the local Organizing Committee to host our
many friends from around the world in Geneva,
New York. We were especially proud to showcase
the Geneva Station and the fruit growers
of New York State. We hope what transpired at
this symposium leads to new collaborations in
fruit research and a greater appreciation and
understanding among individuals from different
parts of the world.
Terence Robinson
CONTACT
Terence Robinson, Professor of Horticulture, New
York State Agricultural Experiment Station,
Cornell University, 630 W. North Street, Geneva,
NY 14456, USA, email: tlr1@cornell.edu
CHRONICA HORTICULTURAE •VOL 49 • NUMBER 1 • 2009 • 37

Section Pome and Stone Fruits –
First Int’l Symposium on Biotechnology
Commission Biotechnology and
of Fruit Species
Molecular Biology
Participants of the Symposium.
The First International Symposium on
Biotechnology of Fruit Species took place in
Dresden, Germany, 1-5 September 2008.
Participants came from more than 50 countries
of Europe, North, Central and South America,
Asia, Africa, Australia and New Zealand, and
included 180 researchers from national and
international institutions, universities, and the
private sector. The Symposium was organized
by the Institute of Breeding Research on
Horticultural and Fruit Crops Dresden of the
Julius Kühn-Institute (JKI) in cooperation with
the Saxon Agency for Environment, Agriculture
and Geology (LfULG) and the University of
Applied Sciences Dresden (HTW). Overall 40
oral presentations and 150 posters were included
into the program that comprised four days
of oral and poster sessions, and one day visit to
a packinghouse and apple orchards. Scientific
results presented were obtained in 38 different
tropical, subtropical and temperate fruit crop
species.
After an official welcome by Magda-Viola
Hanke (Convener of the Symposium, JKI),
Georg F. Backhaus (President of the JKI, Federal
Research Centre of Cultivated Plants), Norbert
Eichkorn (President of the LfULG), Reiner
Klewen (Dean of the Faculty for Agriculture,
Horticulture and Landscape Management HTW)
and Roderick Drew (Chair ISHS Commission
Biotechnology and Molecular Biology) opened
the Symposium.
Five major themes provided the focus for the
Symposium, namely: 1) Non-GM biotechnological
approaches; 2) New strategies in gene technology;
3) Genomics – underpinning technology
for molecular breeding and biotechnology;
4) Advances in agronomic important traits, like
biotic and abiotic stress, and fruit growth and
development, product quality; and 5)
Integration of transgenic fruit crops into breeding
programs – release and commercialization
of transgenic varieties.
Five keynote speakers presented an overview on
specific aspects of the major themes. Henk
Schouten (Plant Research International,
Wageningen, The Netherlands) presented a talk
on genetic modification of a recipient plant
with a natural gene from a crossable, sexually
compatible plant. Such a gene includes its
introns and is flanked by its native promoter
and terminator in the normal sense orientation.
This approach is referred to as cisgenics and is
designed to allay concerns about the development
and commercialization of genetically
modified organisms (GMOs). Cisgenic plants
can harbor one or more cisgenes, but they do
not contain any transgenes. Schuyler Korban
(University of Illinois, USA) gave a talk on isolation
and functional analysis of genes encoding
flavonoids as important secondary metabolites
in fruits. Lazlo Sagi (Katholieke Universiteit
Leuven, Belgium) reported on the No.1 fruit
crop on Earth, banana, and summarized the
ISHS • 38

Opening ceremony.
knowledge on genome sequencing and annotation,
transcriptome analysis and gene tagging.
Herb Aldwinckle (Cornell University
Geneva, USA) summarized recent progress in
use of biotechnology to improve important
traits in temperate fruit crops. Many successes
have been reported in which many traits of
temperate fruit crops have been improved using
genetic engineering (GE). However, temperate
fruit crops have not benefited from GE to the
same extent as the tropical fruit papaya and the
temperate vegetable squash. Nevertheless, a GE
plum pox-resistant plum cultivar has partial
approval for commercial use in the U.S. The difficulties
associated with the commercialization
of any transgenic fruit crop were highlighted.
Joachim Schiemann (JKI Quedlinburg, Germany)
presented an overview on environmental risk
assessments of GM plants at the European
level.
SCIENTIFIC PROGRAM
Non-GM Biotechnological Approaches
Presentations focused on the improvement of
somatic embryogenesis, axillary shoot proliferation
and rooting directed at propagation and
regeneration of fruit crop species. Cryo-
Roderick Drew thanking the meeting
organizer Magda-Viola Hanke.
preservation for conservation and use of seed
and clonal genetic resources was also addressed
in detail.
New Strategies in Gene Technology
Michel Ravelonandro from INRA Bordeaux and
Ralph Scorza from USDA-ARS Kearneysville,
West Virginia (WV), USA presented results on
silencing in genetically engineered Prunus
domestica, which provides durable and safe
resistance to Plum pox virus (sharka disease).
The successful story of PPV resistance in C5
(named ‘Honey Sweet’) was also reflected
through more than 10 years of field tests. The
subsequent oral and poster presentations
focused on systemic acquired silencing of a
transgene, gene stacking using transgenic
short-generation plants, the detection of
chimeras in transgenic fruit tree plants, etc.
Genomics – Underpinning Technology for
Molecular Breeding and Biotechnology
The focus of this session was on the use of
genomics to identify genes responsible for
various important horticultural traits such as
disease resistance, fruit ripening, fruit color, and
fruit flavor. The objective of this approach is to
develop genetic markers that can be used by
breeders to shorten the time needed to develop
new varieties with specific horticultural traits.
John L. Norelli from USDA-ARS Kearneysville,
WV, USA reported on using functional genomics
to identify molecular markers for fire blight
resistance in apple. Several contributions on
genomics and development of markers for fruit
quality in apple demonstrated the rapid progress
obtained in the last few years which will
accelerate the development of novel cultivars
with improved quality and consumer appeal.
Progress and perspectives in the European
Golden Delicious apple genome sequencing
project were also reported. Beside apple, results
on functional genomics, identification of candidate
genes and genome mapping were given
for other fruit crop species, like strawberry,
grapevine, Actinidia, etc.
Advances in Agronomic Important Traits
Some contributions were presented on GE technology
to improve scab and fire blight resistances
as well as abiotic stress resistance in apple,
resistance to fungal diseases in strawberry and
grapevine, virus resistance in Prunus and lime.
There is also progress studying transcriptomic
and proteomic response of fruit trees to low
temperatures and drought stress. Progress in
obtaining non-browning apple cultivars using
GE was described as a new product for consumers
and processors. GE is also an important
tool to control plant size in apple.
Integration of Transgenic Fruit Crops into
Breeding Programs
The last session dealt in detail with using a
transgenic approach to provide resistance to
Field visit to genebank.
plum pox virus in plum. A new approach in
combining early flowering GMOs and application
of molecular markers was presented to
speed up the breeding cycle in apple.
FIELD TRIP
There was an excursion to the fruit sorting and
storage facilities of the VEOS Nickern
Cooperative outside of Dresden at which local
fruit production and marketing were discussed.
In the Business meeting of the Working Group
on Biotechnology of Fruit Species it was
decided that the next Symposium on
Biotechnology of Fruit Species will be held in
New Zealand, in 2012, with Sue Gardiner,
HortResearch New Zealand, as Convener.
The proceedings for this Symposium will be
published by the International Society for
Horticultural Science (ISHS) as part of the
standing series of Acta Horticulturae.
In conclusion, feedback received is very encouraging
stressing the friendly atmosphere
throughout the meeting, the high scientific
level and the excellent organization of the
event.
CONTACT
Magda-Viola Hanke
Magda-Viola Hanke, Julius Kühn-Institut (JKI),
Bundesforschungsinstitut für Kulturpflanzen,
Institut für Züchtungsforschung an gartenbaulichen
Kulturen und Obst, Pillnitzer Platz 3a,
01326 Dresden, Germany, email:
viola.hanke@jki.bund.de
CHRONICA HORTICULTURAE •VOL 49 • NUMBER 1 • 2009 • 39

Section Tropical and Subtropical
Second Int’l Symposium on Papaya
Fruits
Participants of the symposium.
The Second International Symposium on
Papaya was held at Madurai, India from 9 to 12
December 2008 under the aegis of the
International Society for Horticultural Science
(ISHS) and Tamil Nadu Agricultural University
(TNAU), Coimbatore, India. This symposium
was also co-sponsored by National Horticultural
Board, Gurgon, India, Agricultural and
Processed Food Products Export Development
Authority (APEDA), New Delhi, India and
National Bank for Agriculture and Rural
Development (NABARD), Mumbai, India.
Organized by Dr. N. Kumar, Professor
(Horticulture), TNAU, Coimbatore, this symposium
attracted 162 participants from 8 different
countries (South Africa, Fiji, Brazil, Philippines,
Vietnam, USA, Mexico, India). In this symposium,
a total of 129 research papers, including
one or two lead papers in each session, were
presented. Due importance was also given to
poster presentations in each session, which
were evaluated by expert scientists. The theme
of the symposium “Papayas for Nutritional
Security” addressed the need for cultivating
papaya from traditional small holdings to commercial
orchards to alleviate the problem of
malnutrition, especially Vitamin A deficiency, in
many developing countries.
The symposium was inaugurated on the 9th of
December, 2008 by Dr. K.L. Chadha, Former
Deputy Director General (Hort.), Indian Council
of Agricultural Research (ICAR), New Delhi and
National Professor on Horticulture by lighting
the traditional Kuthuvilakku (Lamp) while Dr. C.
Ramasamy, Vice-Chancellor, TNAU, Coimbatore
Dr. K.L. Chadha addressing the delegates.
presided over the function. Dr. K.L. Chadha, in
his inaugural address gave an overview of the
papaya industry at a global level and highlighted
the need to establish a global gene bank
for papaya in line with other tropical fruit crops
ISHS • 40

like banana. Dr. C. Ramasamy underlined the
importance of maintaining the genetic purity of
the released cultivars of papaya because of its
high cross pollinating nature. Eight technical
sessions followed the inaugural address. TNAU
and a few private plantations exhibited their
varietal wealth in papaya at the symposium
venue for the benefit of the delegates.
The whole technical programme was divided
into eight different sessions. The first session
viz., “International Trade, Marketing and
Papaya Industry” was chaired by Dr. S.
Sambandamoorthy, Former Dean, TNAU,
Coimbatore and co-chaired by Dr. P. Subbian,
Director, Agribusiness Development, TNAU,
Coimbatore. A total of 3 papers - one on the
importance of the nutritive value of papaya and
two on the papaya industries in Fiji and South
Africa - were respectively presented. This session
came out with the recommendation to
explore the possibility of increasing the export
potential of papaya in many countries.
The second session on “Genetic Resources and
Crop Improvement” was chaired by Dr. Richard
Manshardt from Hawaii and co-chaired by Dr.
Kulasekharan, Former Professor (Hort.), TNAU,
Coimbatore and Dr. M.R. Dinesh, Principal
Scientist, Indian Institute of Horticultural
Research (IIHR), Bangalore acted as the
Rapporteur. A total of 5 papers were presented
during the session. The recommendations from
this session are that there should be a free flow
of germplasm with strict quarantine between
the countries and more studies on inheritance
of quantitative characters and mutation breeding
to create more variability should be carried
out.
The next session on “Biotechnology” was
chaired by Dr. Shyi-Dong-Yeh, Taiwan and cochaired
by Dr. P. Balasubramanian, Director,
Centre for Biotechnology, TNAU, Coimbatore
Delegates with fruit exhibits at HC&RI, Periyakulam.
Delegates enjoying the traditional welcome at HC&RI, Periyakulam.
and Dr. D. Sudhakar, Professor acted as the
Rapporteur. Dr. Yeh in his lead paper discussed
the reasons for non-adoption of transgenic
Papaya Ringspot Virus (PRSV) resistance technology
in countries other than Hawaii due to
variation in the strains, anti-GM attitude, regulatory
and quarantine barriers. In his lead paper
Dr. Jain, Virologist, Indian Agricultural Research
Institute (IARI), New Delhi brought out the
genetic diversity within PRSV isolates originating
from different locations.
The IV A session, “Nursery Practices, Planting
and Cropping Systems in Papaya”, chaired by
Dr. I. Irulappan, Former Dean, TNAU,
Coimbatore, co-chaired by Dr. Peter Allan from
South Africa and with Dr. P. Selvaraj, Former
Professor as Rapporteur had seven papers presented
and brought out the following recommendations:
1. A comprehensive trial including seedlings,
cuttings and grafts should be conducted to
study the growth, productivity and quality in
papaya.
2. Studies on the influence of rootstock on scion
has to be investigated in detail.
3. Systematic studies on suitable cropping systems
including high density planting are to be
taken up.
The IV B session, “Growth Regulators, Nutrient
and Water Management in Papaya”, chaired by
Dr. B.M.C. Reddy, Director, Centre for Sub-
Tropical Horticulture, Lucknow, India, co-chaired
by Dr. O.K. Yamunishi from Brazil and with Dr.
Edward Raja, Principal Scientist, IIHR, India as
Rapporteur had five papers presented and came
out with the following recommendations:
1. Isolation and characterization of native
microbial organisms to identify efficient
strains of bio fertilizers for papaya.
2. Monitoring soil health to recommend integrated
nutrient management (INM) practices
for sustainable papaya production.
3. Foliar nutrition studies to enhance nutrient
use efficiency and faster nutrient disorder
corrections.
The fifth session on “Pest and Disease
Management” was chaired by Dr. S.J. Singh,
Former Virologist, IARI, Pune and co-chaired by
Dr. Krishna Reddy, Virologist, IIHR, Bangalore.
Dr. N.K. Krishnakumar, Entomologist, IIHR,
Bangalore presented a lead paper on “Aphid
vectors of Papaya Ringspot Virus (PRSV): bionomics,
transmission efficiency and factors contributing
to epidemiology”. Besides there were 4
presentations on vector management, field
CHRONICA HORTICULTURAE •VOL 49 • NUMBER 1 • 2009 • 41

appraisal and management of PRSV, papaya
leafcurl management, etc., and this session
emphasized the following:
1. A need to prevent the spread of papaya
mealy bug using local quarantine. Efforts
must be made to locate suitable natural enemies
for its management.
2. Monitoring the incidence and extent of
aphid vectors at a national level would be of
immense value in initiating PRSV management
strategies.
3. More studies on basic and strategic research
for the management of papaya leafcurl
virus.
4. Biotechnological approaches on PRSV
management should be in the lines of work
in Taiwan through gene silencing based on
gene sequence of PRSV-p and PRSV-W.
5. A global network on PRSV is required to
tackle this disease consisting of virologists,
biotechnologists and entomologists.
At the end of the second day a meeting of the
Working Group on Papaya was convened by Dr.
S. Mitra, Chair of the Working Group and Vice
Chair of the ISHS Section Tropical and
Subtropical Fruits. The participants developed a
series of recommendations around three pertinent
issues:
1. There is an urgent need to establish a Global
Field Gene Bank for papaya. It was decided
that India will explore the possibility to establish
this global gene bank for which ICAR
and Bioversity International global fiat may
be requested.
2. Papaya researchers attending the symposium
wanted an “Electronic News Letter”
through which the researchers could interact
and focused on the research activities going
on in different countries.
3. The researchers also felt that there is an
immediate need to compile all the research
information in the form of a book (may be
published in an international publication) so
that the researchers could have all the information
on papaya production, post harvest,
value addition, breeding, and biotechnology.
Dr. N. Kumar, the Organizing Secretary
thanking the delegates on the last day.
Participants interacting at papaya field.
4. It was decided that the Third International
Symposium on Papaya will be held in Fiji in
2011 and for any reason if Fiji could not do
it, it will be in Mexico.
5. The Fourth International Symposium will be
held in 2014 in Australia.
Mid Symposium Tour
After the two days of hectic technical sessions
on the 9th and 10th, the delegates were taken
on a mid-symposium tour on the 11th of
December, 2008 to a farmer’s field with papaya,
Horticultural College and Research Institute
(HC&RI), Periyakulam. This institute is a premier
one for horticultural education under the
umbrella of TNAU, which offers B.Sc (Hort.) and
M.Sc. (Hort.) degree programmes, and the delegates
were able to see an array of tropical and
subtropical fruits, vegetables, flowers, spices,
medicinal and aromatic crops kept as live
exhibits.
The delegates were then taken to grape
orchards in Cumbam Valley, where the farmers
are harvesting grapes throughout the year, a
unique phenomenon in viticulture. In the afternoon
the delegates visited the Periyar National
Park and Tiger Reserve, Thekkady in the launches
that cruised the lake to see biodiversity of
tropical forest including some wild animals.
The last day (12th of December, 2008) had two
technical sessions; the first one viz., “Post
Harvest Handling and Storage”, was chaired by
Dr. T. Thangaraj, Former Dean, TNAU,
Coimbatore and co-chaired by Dr. Jan
Schripsema from Brazil. There were five papers
presented in this session including one lead
paper on “An insight into the post harvest
handling and storage of papaya (Carica papaya
L.)” by Dr. T. Thangaraj. The following were the
recommendations:
1. All the papaya growing countries need to
have their priority shifting towards post production
research and to this effect the
research infrastructure and networking are
to be strengthened.
2. The expertise on post harvest handling,
packing, transport in Brazil is an excellent
base and a role model for other countries.
Effective exchange programmes need to be
worked out on both technologies and
machineries/infrastructure.
3. There is an urgent need to encourage scientists
working on post harvest technologies so
as to develop sufficient human resources in
this relatively neglected field.
The last session (VII) “Product Development and
Processing” was chaired by Dr. Susheela
Thirumaran, Former Vice-Chancellor, Thiruvalluvar
University, Vellore, Tamil Nadu, India.
The session had two papers presented and the
recommendation is to develop a number of
products from papaya and also the possibility of
blending it with other cheaper fruits in view of
the escalating price of papaya fruits.
Dr. B.M.C. Reddy, Director, Central Institute for
Subtropical Horticulture (CISH), Lucknow who
chaired the plenary session appreciated the
efforts of various committees to have successfully
and purposefully conducted this great
event at Madurai. He also distributed prizes to
the best oral presentation and poster in each
session to encourage the participating scientists.
Dr. N. Kumar, the Organizing Secretary concluded
with a vote of thanks.
CONTACT
N. Kumar
Dr. N. Kumar, Professor (Hort), Tamil Nadu
Agricultural University, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu-
641003, India, email: kumarhort@yahoo.com
ISHS • 42

Section Vegetables
Brassica 2008 - Fifth ISHS Int’l
Symposium on Brassicas and Sixteenth
Crucifer Genetics Workshop
Participants of the Brassica 2008 Symposium.
The 5th ISHS International Symposium on
Brassicas and 16th Crucifer Genetics Workshop
was held in Lillehammer, Norway, from 8 to 12
September 2008. The Convener and Chairman
of the Symposium was Prof. Magnor Hansen
from the Norwegian University of Life Sciences.
The Symposium was a great success with 220
scientists and specialists from 28 countries. The
scientific programme was varied and of high
quality with 14 invited keynote presentations,
27 oral presentations and 110 posters.
In addition to the Symposium, there were three
workshops: i) a “Phylogenomics Workshop”
chaired by Prof. Martin Lysak and Prof. Eric
Scranz dealing with diversity, classification, evolution,
and phylogenomics of brassicas; ii) a
“Clubroot Workshop” chaired by Prof. Geoff
Dixon dealing with detection, control and
genetics of Plasmodiophora brassicae, the
cause of the clubroot disease; and iii) a “META-
PHOR metabolomics Workshop” chaired by Dr.
Robert Hall, that brought together
metabolomics experts, crop biologists and
nutritionists to develop and to get a broad
application of the analytical technology of
metabolic extraction, separation, detection and
identification. Focusing on the latest separation
Prof. Magnor Hansen, the Convener, during
the Opening Session.
technologies (e.g. LC and GC) together with
MS and NMR, this workshop considered the
biochemical composition of brassicas to develop
better data management, data mining tools
and biostatistics in order to convert data generated
into biologically relevant knowledge. All
these workshops were well attended and there
were interesting contributions and enthusiastic
discussions reflecting the global importance,
opportunity and interest of these topics.
The scientific programme was designed to
encourage debate and dialogue, and so it was
an excellent opportunity to launch new ideas or
to establish personal contacts for future collaborative
projects.
Looking back to previous symposia one of the
big changes in this Symposium was the high
number of talks about health effects of vegetable
brassicas. Glucosinolates have been
selected for many of the talks as the most interesting
bioactive compounds in these vegeta-
CHRONICA HORTICULTURAE •VOL 49 • NUMBER 1 • 2009 • 43

les. Several speakers also discussed the impact
of specific food preparation methods on the
final human intake of brassica health protective
bioactive compounds and the effectiveness of
these compounds in cancer protection.
Another significant change, looking back again
to previous symposia, was the lack of talks
dealing with agronomy. It was a gap that needs
to be changed in the future. Although for the
first time there were talks about brassicas in
sustainable production and organic farming
pointing out that Brassica plant species show
some interesting characteristics in their use and
recycling of soil plant nutrients and in the
desinfestation and sterilization of the soil.
Besides the “Clubroot Workshop” dealing with
this specific disease, there were many other
presentations concerning with detection, control
and genetics of other major and minor
brassica diseases. There was also one interesting
talk about controlling root-flies in brassica
vegetables using exclusion fences.
The core themes of the Symposium were
genetics as well as comparative and applied
genomics. Genome sequencing data and information
presented are valuable resources for the
future. In order to maximize the impact of high
quality crop science, three primary database
modules were presented and reflect the relationships
understood and manipulated by
genomic researchers and brassica breeders.
The Symposium ended with an excursion visiting
local brassica vegetable growing areas as
well as a brassica producer in Stange. During
the excursion we had the pleasure to see the
beautiful lakes and sightseeings of the region
and there was a scientific and cultural visit to
Participants in the cauliflower field during the visit to the brassica producer in Stange.
The Convener and local Organizing Committee traditionally dressed during the visit to the
Maihaugen open air Museum.
the Herb Garden and to the Hedmark Museum
in Hamar. On the first day of the Symposium,
we had a very interesting welcoming reception
at the Maihaugen open air Museum, the largest
open-air museum in Europe presenting 185
rural houses (including homes and churches),
scenes from rural life, farm yards and tools from
the Gudbrandsdalen valley, north from
Lillehammer. Both these events were not only
an escape from the full and intensive scientific
programme but also an excellent opportunity to
know each other and scientific activities and, of
course, to know a little of Norway, its history
and people, folk and traditions, and cultural values.
Congratulations to the Chairman and all the
members of the Organizing and Scientific
Commitees involved in the preparing and
arrangement of this Symposium for their excellent
work.
The 6th ISHS International Symposium on
Brassicas and 17th Crucifer Genetics Workshop
will be in November 2012 at Catania, Italy and
the Convener and Chairman will be Prof.
Ferdinando Branca from the University of
Catania.
João Silva Dias,
Chair of the ISHS Working Group on Brassica
CONTACT
Prof. João Silva Dias, Instituto Superior de
Agronomia, Tapada da Ajuda, 1300 Lisboa
Codex, Portugal, email: mirjsd@gmail.com
ISHS • 44

Section Vegetables
Fourth Int’l Symposium on Toward
Ecological Sound Fertilization Strategies
for Field Vegetable Production
Most of the participants outside the main building of the Findus food company.
The Fourth International Symposium concerning
Ecological Sound Fertilization Strategies for
Field Vegetable Production was held at Malmö
Börshus in the City of Malmö, in the south of
Sweden, from the 22nd to the 25th of
September, 2008. The four day symposium was
organised by Mr. Rolf Larsen and Mr. Håkan
Sandin of the Swedish University of Agricultural
Sciences (SLU), assisted by Mr. Jan Larsson, and
other university staff members. Apart from
being organised by the ISHS and SLU, it was
also sponsored by the Swedish Board of
Agriculture, the Region of Scania and the
County Administrative Board of Scania. A scientific
committee, consisting of 15 researchers,
had also been involved in the initial planning
work. The meeting attracted participants from
5 continents and 22 countries, with 29 oral presentations
and 23 scientific posters.
The symposium programme consisted of sessions
dealing with the topics: Problems and pol-
lution, Climate, policy tools and advice, Water
quality, Assessing and managing of nutrient
losses, Techniques for improving fertilizer use,
and Use of landscape elements. The ecological
importance of the topics presented at the meeting
cannot be over emphasised and are of specific
importance to the people living in the
region around the Baltic Sea. A minor press
conference was therefore organised at the
beginning of the meeting to underline its
importance to the local press.
During the sessions a number of keynote topics
were presented, some of which were concerned
with the use of prediction systems. Dr.
Ian Burns from the University of Warwick HRI,
UK, made a presentation concerning tools for
policy and advice related to pollution and N-
leakage. This was to some extent focused on
the use of the N-Able model. Dr. Clive Rahn,
from the same institute, presented the EU
project EU-Rotate-N, where researchers from a
number of countries have developed a model
for predicting the effect of crop rotation and
fertilizer strategies on N-leakage. This was later
followed by presentations by Dr. Kristian Torup
Kristensen, University of Aarhus in Denmark,
and Dr. Hugh Riley, of Bioforsk in Norway, who
both showed results related to work concerning
the EU-Rotate-N model. The work by the
Swedish Meteorological and Hydrological
Institute (SMHI) concerning modelling and
monitoring catchment and coastal zone management
was presented by Dr. Berit Arheimer.
A presentation by Dr. Anna Jonsson of
Linköping University gave an interesting
description of how predictions from the SMHI
model could be used as a tool when communicating
the effects of fertilizing strategies to
involved farmers. Dr. Iver Thysen, Denmark,
presented a web based prediction tool used by
farmers in southern Scandinavia. Apart from
CHRONICA HORTICULTURAE •VOL 49 • NUMBER 1 • 2009 • 45

the modelling issues, Dr. Jacques Neeteson, of
the WUR in the Netherlands, gave a presentation
concerning the potential effects of climate
changes and the consequences for agriculture.
His conclusion was that the consequences in
northern Europe were not entirely negative.
Apart from the mentioned topics, a number of
studies were presented most of which were
dealing with production issues related to the
varying cultural, ecological and geographical
conditions, and legislation in different parts of
the world.
On the third day of the symposium, a field trip
had been organised involving visits to different
production sites in Scania that were dealing
with issues of fertilizer management in different
ways. This was combined with a visit to the
Findus food company, which generously treated
all participants to lunch. Towards the end of the
meeting Dr. Roland Gustavsson, of the SLU,
gave an interesting talk concerning the use of
landscape elements as a potential method of
minimising nutrient leakage from neighbouring
production areas. Unfortunately, no data is
available on the specific effects of the different
elements, but the presentation indicates on
need to go into further detailed studies in this
area. After a series of minor workshops Dr.
Participants at Tågerup Garden being informed about the re-circulating fertigation system and
water cleaning system.
Discussion between Dr. Lars Mogren of SLU and a participant from South Korea during the
poster session.
Clive Rahn gave a summary of research areas
that would be needed in the near future. The
meeting was formally closed by Dr. Francesco
Tei, Chair of the ISHS Working Group on
Vegetable Nutrition and Fertilization, and Dr.
Silvana Nicola, Chair of the ISHS Section
Vegetables, and it was suggested that the next
meeting would be hosted by Egypt. The symposium
gave a good example of how the ongoing
work within the area is taking on a holistic
approach where a further interaction is needed
between horticulture, agriculture, landscaping,
ecology, meteorology and hydrology, and legislation.
Rolf Larsen
CONTACT
Dr. Rolf Larsen, Department of Crop Science,
Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, P.O.
Box 44, S-230 53 Alnarp, Sweden, email:
Rolf.Larsen@ltj.slu.se
www.actahort.org
+43,000 articles on-line
ISHS • 46

Section Vegetables – Section Root
Fourth Balkan Symposium on Vegetables
and Tuber Crops
and Potatoes
Participants of the Symposium in front of the Central Building of the Institute of Plant Genetic Resources, Sadovo.
The IV Balkan Symposium on Vegetables and
Potatoes was held in Plovdiv, Bulgaria on
September 9-12, 2008. At the Symposium, the
latest results and experiences of a series of participants
concerning different aspects of breeding,
new varieties and cultivars, agri-technology,
organic growing, processing, health benefits,
management and commerce and trading were
presented.
The Symposium was organized by the Institute
of Plant and Genetic Resources (IPGR), Sadovo
in collaboration with the International Society
for Horticultural Science (ISHS); Ministry of
Agricultural and Food Supply of Bulgaria;
National Center of Agricultural Science,
Bulgaria; Association Regional Unions of
Science and Technology with House of Science
and Technology, Plovdiv; Vegetable Crop
Research Institute “Maritsa”, Plovdiv;
Agricultural University, Plovdiv; Institute of
Genetics, Sofia; Canning Research Institute,
Plovdiv. This scientific forum was impossible
without financial support of all Bulgarian and all
international companies that are selling vegetable
seeds, greenhouse equipment, irrigation
equipment and drip irrigation systems in
Bulgaria. The main sponsors were City Council
of Sadovo, Hazera, Vandi, Geosem, etc.
The Symposium was opened with welcoming
words by the Convener Prof. DSc. Liliya
Krasteva. Guests of the Symposium were members
of the ISHS Board: Dr. Norman E. Looney –
ISHS President, Prof. Dr. Ian J. Warrington - ISHS
Vice President and Scientific Co-ordinator, Prof.
Jules Janick - Director of ISHS Publications, Jozef
Van Assche – Executive Director ISHS
Secretariat, Dr. Robert Bogers – ISHS Treasurer,
Prof. Dr. Jung-Myung Lee – ISHS Secretary and
Prof. Dr. Antonio Monteiro - President of the
International Horticultural Congress Lisbon
2010.
In the opening session as a plenary lecture Dr.
Norman Looney presented the activities of ISHS.
“Trends of the research work in vegetable crops
and potatoes in Bulgaria” was a plenary report
of Stoyka Masheva and Miroslav Mihov who
are, respectively, the Director and Vice Director
of Maritsa Vegetable Research Institute, Plovdiv.
“Vegetables for food and nutrition security”
presented by Dr. Prem Nath, former assistant
DG of the FAO, gave interesting data about
development and production of the vegetables
sector in an international context and its significance
for international economy and for feeding
the population on the Planet.
Each of the sessions was opened by a lecture
from an invited speaker, who were: Haim Davidi
– “A historical survey of cucumber breeding in
Israel”, Rene Klein Lankhorst – “Sequencing
the tomato genome and the use of fluorescent
in-situ hybridization” and Elazar Fallik – “Can
colored shade nets maintain sweet pepper
quality during storage and marketing?”
The Symposium was attended by 55 participants
from 24 countries: Bulgaria, Serbia,
Macedonia, Poland, Estonia, Armenia, Bosnia
and Herzegovina, Croatia, Czech Republic,
Egypt, England, Germany, India, Iran, Israel,
Japan, Kosovo, Lithuania, Moldova,
Netherlands, Poland, Spain, Turkey and
Albania. Sixty-nine scientific papers were presented
at this international event: 26 oral presentations
and 43 posters. The scientific articles
were included in the following six topics:
1. Plant and genetic resources;
2. Genetics and breeding;
3. Technologies in vegetable growing;
4. Plant protection and agroecology;
5. Molecular breeding and biotechnologies;
6. Postharvest storage of fresh produce.
The work of the Symposium was organized in
CHRONICA HORTICULTURAE •VOL 49 • NUMBER 1 • 2009 • 47

two sections – Genetics, Breeding and
Biotechnology, and Technology in Vegetable
Growing. Nine sessions were conducted. The
chairpersons were eminent Bulgarian and foreign
scientists: Milko Jordanov, Maria
Alexandrova, Ivan Poriazov, Nikolay Panayotov,
Valentina Petkova, Astrit Ballu, Bistra
Atanasova, Vanda Pandey, etc. Main scope of
the presented researches covered problems
such as new techniques and methods of breeding,
biotechnology and genetic aspects in vegetable
crops and potatoes, modern technology
elements for vegetable and potato growing,
organic vegetable production, plant protection
and variety resistance, etc. Except for official
discussions during the sessions, the conversations
and experience exchanges continued in
friendly informal conditions.
The ISHS President Dr. Norman Looney gave the
“ISHS Medal Award” to the Convener Prof.
DSc. Liliya Krasteva to acknowledge her efforts
for the organization of the Symposium.
Participants had the opportunity to visit the
Institute of Plant and Genetic Resources (IPGR),
Sadovo near Plovdiv. There they were introduced
with field experiments, National Gene
Bank, Botanical garden for wild species,
Biotechnological Laboratory, etc. On the next
day researchers also visited Canning Research
Institute, Plovdiv.
Dr. Norman Looney, ISHS President, handing
out the ISHS Medal Award to Prof. DSc.
Liliya Krasteva, Convener of the
Symposium.
During the Symposium in Plovdiv the Board of
ISHS also conducted its biannual meeting.
On the last day in the final session scientific
conclusions were drawn. The four days of the
Symposium were a friendly course of excellent
scientific presentations and discussions. It was
also a good opportunity to introduce new
aspects and local habits of the Plovdiv region.
The Fifth Balkan Symposium on Vegetables and
Potatoes will be held in Tirana, Albania in 2012.
Papers will be published as a volume of Acta
Horticulturae in the near future.
CONTACT
Liliya Krasteva and Nikolay Panayotov
Prof. DSc. Liliya Krasteva, Convener, Institute
of Plant Genetic Resources, 2 Drujba Str.,
4122 Sadovo, Bulgaria, email:
krasteva.liliya@gmail.com
Assoc. Prof. Dr. Nikolay Panayotov, Deputy
Convener, Agricultural University, 12
Mendeleev Str., 4000 Plovdiv, Bulgaria, email:
nikpan@au-plovdiv.bg
Commission Fruits and Vegetables and
The Asia-Pacific Symposium on Assuring
Health
Quality and Safety of Agri-Foods
The Asia-Pacific Symposium on Assuring
Quality and Safety of Agri-Foods (APS 2008)
held in Thailand on August 4-6, 2008 at the
Radisson Hotel, Bangkok was organized by the
Division of Postharvest Technology, King
Mongkut’s University of Technology Thonburi
(KMUTT) under the auspices of the International
Society of Horticultural Science (ISHS)
Commission Fruits and Vegetables and Health.
The focus of the symposium was on assuring
quality and safety of fruits, vegetables, flowers
and grains, but there were also presentations
that touched upon the effect of fruits and vegetables
for human health, quality determination
and evaluation, maintaining quality on horticultural
chains, storage and transport technology,
nutrition value and new technology to improve
shelf life and safety of agri-foods.
At the opening ceremony, Assoc. Prof. Dr.
Kraiwood Kiattikomol, President of King
Mongkut’s University of Technology Thonburi
(KMUTT) welcomed 132 participants from more
than 22 countries to the symposium. Dr. Yves
Desjardins, Chair of the ISHS Commission Fruits
and Vegetables and Health, gave an update of
Group picture of the President of King Mongkut’s University of Technology Thonburi (man with
the black suit in the middle); Dean, School of Bioresources and Technology (lady on the left hand
side of the President), invited speakers and organizer.
ISHS • 48

ISHS activities. In the first keynote presentation,
Dr. Yves Desjardins from Laval University,
Canada delivered his experience on tropical
fruits and vegetables bioactive molecules as
determinant of quality in relation to human
health. The symposium brought together many
eminent researchers and industry experts from
several disciplines to discuss the development
and innovation in assuring quality and safety
management with the goal to supply quality
agri-foods in an affordable and sustainable
manner to consumers in the future global economy.
The first two days of the symposium were
devoted to 10 keynote and invited speakers, 10
oral and 41 poster presentations on a diversity
of topics including the effect of photochemicals
on human health, quality modeling, quality
management in supply chains, postharvest
technology and innovations, physical treatments
and marketing and distribution system.
There was considerable discussion among the
symposium delegates on the trend for research
needs in finding the potential of tropical plant
extracts for use as nutraceuticals and at the
same time taking into consideration the safety
concerns. Dr. David O’ Beirne, University of
Limerick, Ireland presented his keynote address
on “Fate of antioxidants in fresh-cut produce:
processing and storage conditions to maximise
retention”. There was also consideration given
to the influence of polyphenols on the sensory
and nutritional quality of agri-foods and the
potential of molecular approaches to development
of fresh fruit quality.
The final day of the symposium was a study
tour to the biggest wholesale market in
Thailand “Talaad Thai” in Pathumtani and the
tour continued to “The Ancient City” in
Ayudhaya.
Dr. Jean-Claude Pech, Dr. David O’Beirne, Dr. Yves Desjardins and participants are interested in
Santol, a tropical fruit.
Participants and accompanying persons were
entertained at the welcome reception featuring
a wide variety of wonderful Thai foods and
entertainment including Thai classical music
and dances, performed by graduate students of
the Division of Postharvest Technology, King
Mongkut’s University of Technology Thonburi.
This Asia-Pacific Symposium on Assuring
Quality and Safety of Agri-Foods was highly valued
as exemplified by the internationally recognized
scientists from many countries. This symposium
emphasized the need for assuring quality
and safety in relation to human health and
quality management throughout the supply
chain in particular for tropical fruits and vegetables.
Dr. Sirichai Kanlayanarat presents a souvenir
to Dr. Yves Desjardins, Chair of the ISHS
Commission on Fruits and Vegetables and
Health.
Dr. Yves Desjardins talks with guava seller at Talaad Thai, the biggest fruits and vegetables
distribution center located in Pathumtani Province, Thailand.
The proceedings of the symposium will be published
as a volume of Acta Horticulturae and
copies of the proceedings will be available from
ISHS.
Sirichai Kanlayanarat and Varit Srilaong
CONTACT
Dr. Sirichai Kanlayanarat, Postharvest Technology
Programme, King Mongkut’s University of
Technology Thonburi, Bangkhutein Campus,
Bangkhuntein, Bangkok 10150, Thailand,
Phone: 662-470-7721, Fax: 662-452-3750,
email: sirichai.kan@kmutt.ac.th
Dr. Varit Srilaong, Postharvest Technology
Programme, King Mongkut’s University of
Technology Thonburi, Bangkhutein Campus,
Bangkhuntein, Bangkok 10150, Thailand,
Phone: 662-470-7726, Fax: 662-452-3750,
email: Varit.sri@kmutt.ac.th
CHRONICA HORTICULTURAE •VOL 49 • NUMBER 1 • 2009 • 49

FROM THE SECRETARIAT
New ISHS Members
ISHS is pleased to welcome the following
new members:
NEW INSTITUTIONAL
MEMBERS:
Australia: ABADS, Rabarl Pty. Ltd.; Egypt:
Horticultural Export Improvement Association;
Japan: Sakata Seed Corp.; Luxembourg: CRP -
Gabriel Lippmann; Serbia: Department of Oil
Crops – Novi Sad; United Kingdom: Pershore
College
NEW INDIVIDUAL MEMBERS:
Argentina: Dr. Mariana Garbi; Australia: Ms.
Megan Brennan, Mr. Charlie De Domenico, Ms.
Terri Evans, Dr. Daryl Firth, Mr. Terry Fogliani, Mr.
Gavin Gibson, Mr. Anthony Kachenko, Rachel
Lancaster, Mr. Scott Ledger, Dr. Simon McKirdy,
Stephanie Muirhead, Dr. Penta Pristijono, Robin
Roberts, Mr. Michael Smith, Dr. Guoyou Ye;
Austria: Mr. Martin Boden, Dr. Heidi Halbwirth,
Johannes Pankarter; Belgium: Ms. Annemarie
Auwerkerken, Dr. Cindy Figueira, Leen Leus;
Brazil: Paulo Vitor Brambila; Bulgaria: Ms.
Yuliyana Bogdanova, Dr. Zarya Rankova;
Canada: Mr. Christian Coholan, Philip Hudson,
Mr. Shalin Khosla, Ms. Lisa Klassen, Terry
Lattimer, Mr. Harvey Li, Ms. Paula MacDonald,
Ms. Laiwon Ou, Dr. Line Rochefort, Ms. Ruth
Stoner; Chile: Mr. Rodrigo Cifuentes, Mr. Marco
de Martino, Dr. Erwin Krauskopf, Maria
Consuelo Medina; China: Dr. Qiubo Chen, Dr.
Yun Kong, Prof. Dr. Liangju Wang; Costa Rica:
Dr. José Joaquín Campos Arce, Prof. Laura
Pérez; Croatia: David Mrakovcic; Czech
Republic: Mr. Petr Franc; Denmark: Mr.
Ofentse Walls; Ecuador: Eduardo Letort;
Finland: Ms. Jaana Laamanen; France: Ms.
Celine Baty-Julien, Mr. Rene Lenain, Ms. Gaëlle
Leroy, Dr. James Taylor, Ms. Agnès Verhaeghe;
Germany: Julia Behr, Ms. Eva Maria Birken, Dr.
Klaus Olbricht; Greece: Dr. Daoud Abusafieh,
Dr. Peter Roussos; Guadeloupe: Claudia
Philibert; India: Prof. Chandji Kaul, Mr. Rajaram
Prabakaran, Mr. B.T.R. Lalbiaktluanga, Mr. Kvsn
Raju, Ms. Silpa Sagheer, Mr. Prasenjit Singh;
Indonesia: Mr. Kusumo Subagio; Iran: Ms.
Sahar Ashari, Mr. Abolfazl Jowkar, Prof. Dr.
Abdolhossein Rustaiyan; Ireland: Mr. Franck
Hennequart; Israel: Dr. Dani Eshel; Italy: Dr.
Maria Luisa Amodio, Aurelio Aquilanti, Ms.
Daniela Ascari, Adelmo Campana, Ms. Manuela
Donetti, Federica Larcher, Dr. Solange
Ramazzotti, Dr. Gianfranco Romanazzi, Dr.
Antonella Sirigu, Dr. Lorenzo Vecchietti, Mr.
Rodolfo Zaniboni; Jamaica: Mr. Frederick Boyd,
Dr. Alexandre Cooman; Japan: Ms. Ghada El-
Shafei, Dr. Kazutoshi Hamada, Mr. Seiji
Matsuda, Prof. Dr. Yoshinori Matsuda, Dr.
Takako Narumi, Prof. Dr. Tsuneo Ogata, Prof. Dr.
Hideyoshi Toyoda; Kenya: Dr. Ephraim A.
Mukisira; Korea (Republic of): Dr. Seong
Cheol Kim; Kuwait: Mr. Mohammad Alawadhi;
Latvia: Ms. Anta Sparinska; Luxembourg:
Philippe Delfosse, Mr. Michaël Hissette, Dr. Kjell
Sergeant; Malaysia: Mr. George Ginibun, Ms.
Seng Yee Goh, Dr. Rashidi Othman, Mr.
Vickneswarren Vytheswaran; Malta: Dr.
Everaldo Attard; Mexico: Prof. Manuel
González Ledesma, Mr. Rodolfo G. Madero R.,
Marco Antonio Pea Guzmán, Dr. Angel
Rebollar-Alviter; Montenegro: Dejan Maretic;
Morocco: Ms. Ibtissam Zine Filali;
Netherlands: Mr. Gerrit de Groot, Mr. Roel
Jansen, Dr. Gerard Jongedijk, Alwin Scholten,
Simon Schouten, Mr. Sjoerd Smits, Mr. Gert van
Dijk, Annemiek van Waarden, Prof. Dr. P.A.Th.J.
Werrij; New Zealand: Mr. Dean Astill, Mr. Ross
Legh, Mr. Nigel Warnes; Nigeria: Mr. Alexander
Giwa; Norway: Mr. Erik Svanes; Pakistan: Prof.
Muhammad Amjad, Anwaar Sardar; Peru: Mr.
Carlos Balmaceda, Mr. Francis Watson;
Philippines: Mr. Danilo Manayaga; Puerto
Rico: Mr. Juan Bauza-Salas; Romania: Katja
Perrey, Assist. Prof. Cristian George Popescu;
Russian Federation: Yury Bokov, Dr. Dmitry
Lashin; Saudi Arabia: Dr. Sulieman Alfaifi, Ms.
Zainab Al-mutiri, Dr. Ahmed Altayaran;
Senegal: Abdoulaye Seck; Serbia: Mr. Zoran
Beslic, Mr. Slavica Colic, Assist. Prof. Dragan
Terzic; Somalia: Mr. Casey Kuhlman; South
Africa: Ben Breedlove, Mr. Charl Marais; Spain:
Dr. Evangelina Medrano, Mr. Juli Pascual Lluís,
Dr. Jorge Pinochet, Manuel Raventós, Rafael
Perucho Maez; Sweden: Dr. Lena Ansebo, Mr.
Per Holgerson, Sune Skold; Switzerland: Mr.
Mazhar Pepemehmet, Jonas Schenk; Thailand:
Dr. Kullanart Obsuwan, Ms. Valairat Phanrang,
Assist. Prof. Niramol Rangsayatorn, Ms. Kawita
Sukjamsai; Trinidad and Tobago: Joan
Petersen; Turkey: Dr. Yildiz Aka Kacar, Nevzat
Kamisli; Ukraine: Mr. Roland Thiessen; United
Arab Emirates: Dr. Moustafa Fadel; United
Kingdom: Dr. John Bell, Ms. Michelle Brook,
Ms. Claire Bushell, Mr. Luca Colantuoni, Mr.
Mark Duffell, Mr. Kenneth Freeman, Dr. Alan
Gash, Mr. Chris Genter, Mr. Richard Harris, Lori
Hartman, Nicola High, Mr. Frank Kuhne, Dr.
James Monaghan, Mr. Neil Munro, Ms. Carey
Nicholson, Mr. Senthilkumar Palaniappan, Mr.
Charlie Paton, Mr. Gary Peyper, Antony Keith
Richardson, Mr. Bennie Smidt, Mr. Thiruchelvam
Thanaraj, Dr. George Thorburn, Mr. Iain
Valentine, Mr. Paul Ward, Mr. Akin Williams;
United States of America: Ms. Rebecca Aaby,
Mr. Ken Adams, Natalie Anderson, Rochelle
Arellano, Dr. John Balles, Prof. Dr. William
Bauerle, Dr. Tony Bello, Joel Benavides, Mr.
Pierre Benoit, Benjamin Blaxton, Terence
Bradshaw, Ron Caird, Mr. Brent Carr, Dr. Jim
Cervantes, Camara Clifton, Ms. Jessica Conner,
Mr. Andrew Corker, M. Kathy Crosby, Mr. Travis
DeHart, Mr. David Del Porto, Mr. Doug Ensz,
Mike Fahner, Kevin Forsyth, Dean Francis, Josh
Hermsmeyer, Gary Hickman, Mr. Mark
Holtzinger, Soe Won Hwang, Mr. Steve
Jarahian, Lindsay Johnson, Maria Kaempf, Craig
Kaprielian, David Keen, Mark Kelley, Edward
Kim, Gary Kolbasuk, Dr. Fred Ledeboer, Alrena
Lightbourn, Dr. Eike Luedeling, Joshua
MacAdam, Shellee Machado, Dr. John MacKay,
Kirk Martin, Dr. Michelle McGinnis, Gilbert
Miller, Dr. Aliya Momotaz, Mr. Joseph Monson,
Mr. Rainer Muller, Kathryn Neptune, Jeremy
Pattison, Dr. Thomas Ranney, Dr. Neil Reid, Mr.
Adam Richardson, Mr. Alberto Ricordi, Dr. Frank
Ross, Ms. Hayati Samsudin, Paul Sandefur, Mr.
Stephen Santos, Mr. Howard Sawada, Greg
Schmick, Dr. Christian Schobert, Jesse Servis,
K.A. Siddiqui, Ronald Skloss, Dale Softley, Chris
Tetrault, Maurice Tougas, Mark Uchanski, Mark
Vasi, Mr. Otis Walley, John Warmerdam, Dr.
Yiqun Weng, Ms. Teri Wiedeman-Rouse, Ms.
Mary A. Wilkowski, Holly Yurukov, Dr. Cecilia
Zapata, Dr. Byron Zhao
ISHS • 50

Calendar of ISHS Events
NEW
NEW
NEW
For updates and more logon to www.ishs.org/calendar. To claim
the reduced registration for ISHS members make sure your ISHS
membership is current and mention your membership number
when registering. See www.ishs.org/directory/ if in doubt regarding
your ISHS membership status.
YEAR 2009
■ March 26-28, 2009, Jerba (Tunisia): III International Symposium on
Medicinal and Aromatic Plants SIPAM2009. Info: Dr. Mohamed
Neffati, Institut des Regions Arides (IRA), 4119 Medenine, Tunisia.
Phone: (216)75633839, Fax: (216)75633006,
E-mail: neffati.mohamed@ira.rnrt.tn E-mail symposium:
SIPAM2009@ira.rnrt.tn Web: http://www.sipam.ira.rnrt.tn/
■ April 4-7, 2009, Antalya (Turkey): X International Controlled and
Modified Atmosphere Research Conference. Info: Dr. Mustafa
Erkan, Dep. of Horticulture, Fac. of Agric. Akdeniz Univ., 07058
Antalya, Turkey. Phone: (90) 242 3102428, Fax: (90) 242 2274564,
E-mail: erkan@akdeniz.edu.tr Web: http://www.cama2009.com/
■ April 5-8, 2009, Leuven (Belgium): I International Symposium on
Cryopreservation in Horticultural Species. Info: Dr. Bart Panis,
Kasteelpark Arenberg 13, 3001 Leuven, Belgium. Phone: (32)16-
321690, Fax: (32)16-321993, E-mail: bart.panis@biw.kuleuven.be or
Prof. Rony Swennen, Lab. Tropische Plantenteelt, Kasteelpark
Arenberg 13, 3001 Leuven, Belgium. Phone: (32)16321421, Fax:
(32)16321993 E-mail symposium: ISHSPlantCryo@biw.kuleuven.be
Web: http://www.agr.kuleuven.ac.be/dtp/tro/ISHSplantcryo/index.htm
■ April 8-12, 2009, Antalya (Turkey): VI International Postharvest
Symposium. Info: Dr. Mustafa Erkan, Dep. of Horticulture, Fac. of
Agric. Akdeniz Univ., 07058 Antalya, Turkey. Phone: (90) 242
3102428, Fax: (90) 242 2274564, E-mail: erkan@akdeniz.edu.tr
Web: http://www.postharvest2009.com/
■ April 15-18, 2009, Dharwad (Karnataka State) (India):
II International Symposium on Pomegranate and Minor, including
Mediterranean, Fruits. Info: Dr. Jagadish Hanamant Kulkarni,
University of Agricultural Sciences, UAS, Dharwad 580 005,
Karnataka, India. Phone: (91)8362447783, Fax: (91)8362448349,
E-mail: jhkulkarni@yahoo.co.in or Dr. Mohammed Kaiser Sheikh,
College of Agriculture, Department of Horticulture, Bijapur 586 104,
Karnataka, India. Phone: (91)08352267378, Fax: (91)08352267378,
E-mail: dr_mksheikh@yahoo.co.in Web: http://www.uasd.edu/pomegranatesymposium/
■ May 20-24, 2009, Krokos, Kozani (Greece): III International
Symposium on Saffron Biology and Technology: Forthcoming
Challenges in Cultivation, Research and Economics. Info: Dr.
Maria Tsimidou, Aristotle University Thessaloniki, Chemistry
Department, Lab. FD Chemical Technology, 54124 Thessaloniki,
Greece. Phone: (30)2310997796, Fax: (30)2310997779, E-mail: tsimidou@chem.auth.gr
Web: http://www.saffronsymposium2009.org/
■ May 24-29, 2009, Gifu (Japan): V International Symposium on
Rose Research and Cultivation. Info: Prof. Yoshihiro Ueda, Gifu
International Academy of Horticulture, 1094-8 Shio, Kani-shi, Gifu
Pref., Japan. Phone: (81)574605547, Fax: (81)574605547,
E-mail: ueda-yoshihiro@horticulture.ac.jp E-mail symposium:
rose2009@jecs.org Web: http://www1.gifu-u.ac.jp/~rose/index.html
■ June 1-5, 2009, Charlotte, NC (United States of America):
II International Symposium on Growing Media and
Composting. Info: William C Fonteno III, North Carolina State
University, Dept. of Horticultural Science, Box 7609 - 152 Kilgore Hall,
Raleigh, NC 27695-7609, United States of America. E-mail:
NEW
NEW
NEW
NEW
bill_fonteno@ncsu.edu Web: http://substratesymposium.ncsu.edu/
■ June 8-11, 2009, Lleida (Spain): VII International Peach
Symposium. Info: Dr. Joan Girona, Centre UdL-IRTA, Rovira Roure,
177, 25198 Lleida, Spain. Phone: (34)973 702587, Fax: (34)973
238301, E-mail: joan.girona@irta.es E-mail symposium:
secretaria@ipcongressos.com
Web: http://www.ipcongressos.com/tags/congresses/22
■ June 9-13, 2009, Bologna (Italy): II Conference on Landscape and
Urban Horticulture. Info: Prof. Dr. Giorgio Prosdocimi Gianquinto,
Dip. Scienze e Tecnologie Agroambientali, DISTA, Università degli
Studi di Bologna, Viale Fanin, 44 - 40127 Bologna, Italy. Phone: (39)
0512096641, Fax: (39) 0512096245, E-mail:
giorgio.gianquinto@unibo.it or Prof. Dr. Alessandro Chiusoli, Dept.
DCA, via Fanin 46, 40127 Bologna, Italy. Phone: (39)051 2096446,
Fax: (39)051 2096450, E-mail: alessandro.chiusoli@unibo.it E-mail
symposium: dista.luh2009@unibo.it Web: http://www.luh2009.org
■ June 14-19, 2009, Quebec City (Canada): International
Symposium on High Technology for Greenhouse Systems -
Greensys2009. Info: Prof. André Gosselin, Université Laval, Pavillon
ENVIROTRON, Ste-Foy (Quebec), G1K 7P4, Canada.
Phone: (1)4186562131ext2068, Fax: (1)4186567871, E-mail:
andre.gosselin@crh.ulaval.ca or Ms. Martine Dorais, Horticultural
Research Center, Laval University, Envirotron Bldg, Room 2120,
Quebec G1K 7P4, Canada. Phone: (1)418-6562131, Fax: (1)418-
6567871, E-mail: doraisma@agr.gc.ca E-mail symposium:
info@greensys2009.com Web: http://www.greensys2009.com/
■ June 16-19, 2009, Saint-Pol de Léon (France): VII International
Symposium on Artichoke, Cardoon and their Wild Relatives.
Info: Christophe Bazinet, Bretagne Biotechnologie Végétale (BBV),
Pen Ar Prat., 29250 Saint-Pol de Leon, Brittany, France. Phone:
(33)298290644, Fax: (33)298692426, E-mail: bazinet@bbv.fr
E-mail symposium: contact@bbv.fr
Web: http://www.vegenov.com/artichoke_symposium/
■ June 17-21, 2009, Ljubljana (Slovenia): IV International
Symposium on Breeding Research in Medicinal and Aromatic
Plants. Biodiversity conservation and use of genetic resources.
Info: Prof. Dr. Dea Baricevic, University of Ljubljana, Biotechnical
Faculty, Jamnikarjeva 101, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia.
Phone: (386)41776653, Fax: (386)14231088,
E-mail: dea.baricevic@bf.uni-lj.si
■ June 28 - July 3, 2009, Chiang Mai (Thailand): V International
Symposium on Horticultural Research, Training and Extension.
Info: Dr. Peter J. Batt, Horticulture, Curtin University of Technology,
GPO box U1987, Perth, WA 6845, Australia. Phone: (61)8 9266
7596, Fax: (61)8 9266 3063, E-mail: p.batt@curtin.edu.au or
Associate Professor Dr. David Aldous, 37 McCartney Street,
Ormiston, QLD 4160, Australia. Phone: (61)07 3821 2082
Web: http://www.muresk.curtin.edu.au/conference/ishset
■ June 28 - July 3, 2009, Chiang Mai (Thailand): XVI International
Symposium on Horticultural Economics and Management. Info:
Dr. Peter J. Batt, Horticulture, Curtin University of Technology, GPO
box U1987, Perth, WA 6845, Australia. Phone: (61)8 9266 7596,
Fax: (61)8 9266 3063, E-mail: p.batt@curtin.edu.au or Prof. Dr. Peter
P. Oppenheim, Deakin Business School, Deakin University, 70 Elgar
Rd, Burwood, VIC 3125, Australia. Phone: (61)3 9244 5549,
Fax: (61)3 9244 5040
Web: http://www.muresk.curtin.edu.au/conference/ishsem
■ July 20-24, 2009, San Jose (Costa Rica): International Symposium
on Advances in Postharvest Technology and Quality Assurance
CHRONICA HORTICULTURAE •VOL 49 • NUMBER 1 • 2009 • 51

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for Fruits and Vegetables of Interest for the Tropics. Info: Dr.
Felipe Arauz, Universidad de Costa Rica, Instituto de Investigaciones
Agrícolas, 2050 San Jose, San Pedro de Montes de Oca, Costa Rica.
Phone: (506) 2511 3183, Fax: (506) 2225 0064,
E-mail: lfarauz@cariari.ucr.ac.cr E-mail symposium:
lfarauz@gmail.com Web: http://agro.ucr.ac.cr/postharvest/
■ July 29 - August 1, 2009, Corvallis, Oregon (United States of
America): International Symposium on Molecular Markers in
Horticultural Species. Info: Dr. Nahla V. Bassil, Plant Geneticist,
Nat’l Clone Germplasm Repository, 33447 Peoria Road, Corvallis, OR
97331-23521, United States of America. Phone: (1)5417384214,
Fax: (1)5417384205, E-mail: nahla.bassil@ars.usda.gov
E-mail symposium: conferences@oregonstate.edu Web: http://oregonstate.edu/conferences/molecularmarkers2009/
■ August 3-5, 2009, Bangkok (Thailand): Southeast Asia Symposium
on Quality and Safety of Fresh and Fresh Cut Produce:
SEAsia2009. Info: Dr. Sirichai Kanlayanarat, King Mongkut’s
University of Technology, Thonburi, Division of Postharvest
Technology, Thungkru, Bangkok 10140, Thailand. Phone: (66)2 470
7720, Fax: (66)2 452 3750, E-mail: sirichai.kan@kmutt.ac.th
E-mail symposium: seasia@kmutt.ac.th Web:
http://www.kmutt.ac.th/SEAsia2009
■ August 31 - September 3, 2009, Nairobi (Kenya): I All African
Horticultural Congress. Info: Dr. Ephraim A. Mukisira, KARI, PO
Box 57811-00200, Nairobi, Kenya. Phone: (254)204183323, Fax:
(254)204183344, E-mail: eamukisira@kari.org or Dr. Lusike Wasilwa,
KARI, Horticulture and Industrial Crops, PO Box 57811, Nairobi
00200, Kenya. Phone: (254)20 418 3301, Fax: (254)20 418 3344,
E-mail: lusikewasilwa@hotmail.com
■ August 31 - September 4, 2009, Wageningen (Netherlands): XXIII
Eucarpia Symposium on Ornamentals - Colorful Breeding and
Genetics. Info: Dr. J.M. Van Tuyl, Plantbreeding, Wageningen
University & Research Center, Droevendaalse steeg 1, 6708 PB
Wageningen, Netherlands. Phone: (31)317477329,
Fax: (31)317418094, E-mail: jaap.vantuyl@wur.nl
Web: http://www.ornamentalbreeding.nl/
■ September 8-11, 2009, Balsgard (Sweden): II International Rose
Hip Conference. Info: Prof. Hilde Nybom, Balsgard-Dept. Crop
Science, Swedish Univ. Of Agric. Sci., Balsgard Fjalkestadsvagen 459,
S-291 94 Kristianstad, Sweden. Phone: (46)44265802,
Fax: (46)44265830, E-mail: hilde.nybom@ltj.slu.se
■ September 13-18, 2009, Leuven (Belgium): VII International
Symposium on Chemical and non-Chemical Soil and Substrate
Disinfestation. Info: Dr. Abraham Gamliel, Institute of Agricultural
Engineering, Agricultureal Research Organization ARO, P.O. Box 6,
Bet Dagan 50250, Israel. Phone: (972)3-9683505, Fax: (972)3-
9604704, E-mail: agamliel@agri.gov.il or Prof. Dr. Ir. J. Coosemans,
Labo Phytopath.& Plantprotection, K.U. Leuven, Willem de Croylaan
42, 3001 Leuven, Belgium. Phone: (32)16322733,
E-mail: jef.coosemans@biw.kuleuven.be E-mail symposium:
lut.ooms@biw.kuleuven.be
Web: http://ishs-horticulture.org/soildisinfest2009/
■ September 14-18, 2009, Guangzhou, Guangdong (China):
International ISHS-ProMusa Symposium: Global Perspectives
on Asian Challenges. Info: Prof. Dr. Ganjun Yi, Fruit Tree Research
Institute, Guangdong Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Wushan,
Guangzhou Guangdong 510640, China. Phone: (86)2038765869 or
13302200898, Fax: (86)2038765626, E-mail: yiganjun@vip.163.com
or Dr. Augustin B. Molina, Bioversity Asia & The Pacific, 3rd Floor,
Collaborator Centre, c/o IRRI Khush Hall, Los Baños, Laguna 4031,
Philippines. Phone: (63)495360532, Fax: (63)495360532, E-mail:
a.molina@cgiar.org or Dr. Inge Van den Bergh, Bioversity
International, 1990 Boulevard de la Lironde, Parc Scientifique
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Agropolis II, 34397 Montpellier, France. Phone: (33)4-67611302,
Fax: (33)4-67610334, E-mail: i.vandenbergh@cgiar.org
Web: http://www.promusa.org/symposium_2009/home.html
■ September 20-24, 2009, Bologna (Italy): XI International
Symposium on Plant Bioregulators in Fruit Production. Info:
Prof. Guglielmo Costa, Ordinario di Arboricoltura Generale,
Dipartimento di Colture Arboree, Via G. Fanin 46, 40127 Bologna,
Italy. Phone: (39)051 20 9 6443, Fax: (39)051 20 9 6401,
E-mail: guglielmo.costa@unibo.it E-mail symposium:
scientific@bologna2009.it Web: http://www.ishs.pbr.bologna2009.it/
■ September 21-26, 2009, Changsha, Hunan (China):
IV International Cucurbit Symposium. Info: Prof. Xiaowu Sun,
No.587, Dongda Road, Shaoyang City, Hunan, 422001, China.
Phone: (86)739-5050618, Fax: (86)739-5050652 E-mail symposium:
cucurbit2009@188.com Web: http://www.cucurbit2009.org
■ September 27 - October 1, 2009, Murcia (Spain): V International
Symposium on Seed, Transplant and Stand Establishment:
Integrating Methods for Producing More with Less. Info: Dr.
Francisco Perez-Alfocea, Dept. Of Irrigation and Salinity, CEBAS -
CSIC, PO Box 4195, 30080 Murcia, Spain. Phone: (34)968396200,
Fax: (34)968396213, E-mail: alfocea@cebas.csic.es or Dr. Jose A.
Pascual Valero, CEBAS-CSIS, Campus Univ. De Espinardo s/n, 30100
Murcia, Spain. Phone: (34)968396200, Fax: (39)968396213, E-mail:
jpascual@cebas.csic.es E-mail symposium: info@sest2009.com
Web: http://www.sest2009.com
■ September 29 - October 3, 2009, Meknes (Morocco):
IV International Symposium on Fig. Info: Prof. Dr. Messaoudi
Zerhoune, Dept. Arboriculture-Viticulture, Ecole Nationale
d’Agriculture de Meknes, B.P. S/40, 50000 Meknes, Morocco. Phone:
(212)61353653, Fax: (212)35300238, E-mail: messaoudiz@yahoo.fr
E-mail symposium: ficus2009@yahoo.fr
Web: http://www.ficus2009.ma/
■ October 4-6, 2009, Manhattan, KS (United States of America):
X International People Plant Symposium - IPPS. Info: Dr. Candice
Shoemaker, 2021 Throckmorton, Department of Hort, Forestry, Rec
Res, Kansas State University, Manhattan, KS 66506, United States of
America. E-mail: cshoemak@oznet.ksu.edu
■ October 5-8, 2009, Tbilisi (Georgia): International Symposium on
Current and Potential Uses of Nut Trees Wild Relatives. Info: Dr.
Zviad Bobokashvili, Georgian Res. Inst. Of Horticulture, Dept. Fruit
and Vine Crop Germplasm Inv., Gelovani Street #6, Tbilisi 0115,
Georgia. Phone: (995)93335793, E-mail: bobokashvili@hotmail.com
or Dr. Maya Marghania, Kostava 41, Tbilisi, Georgia.
Phone: (995)99905076, E-mail: mmarghania@hotmail.com
Web: http://www.nutssymposium2008.ge/
■ October 6-10, 2009, Sanliurfa (Turkey): V International
Symposium on Pistachios and Almonds. Info: Prof. Dr. Bekir Erol
Ak, University of Harran, Faculty of Agriculture, 63200 Sanliurfa,
Turkey. Phone: (90)4142472697, Fax: (90)4142474480, E-mail:
beak@harran.edu.tr E-mail symposium: bekirerolak@gmail.com
Web: http://ziraat.harran.edu.tr/symposium2009/
■ October 13-16, 2009, Cuneo (Italy): I European Congress on
Chestnut - Castanea 2009. Food, Timber, Biomass and Energy.
Info: Prof. Dr. Giancarlo Bounous, Dipartimento di Colture Arboree,
Università degli studi di Torino, Via Leonardo da Vinci 44, 10095
Grugliasco, TO, Italy. Phone: (39)0116708653, Fax: (39)0116708658,
E-mail: giancarlo.bounous@unito.it E-mail symposium: castanea2009.dca@unito.it
Web: http://www.arboree.unito.it/castanea2009
■ October 18-21, 2009, Avignon (France): III International
Symposium on Human Health Effects of Fruits and Vegetables
- FAVHEALTH 2009. Info: Marie Josephine Amiot Carlin, Université
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Aix-Marseille I & II, Faculté de Médecine de la Timone, 27 Boulevard
Jean Moulin, 13385 Marseille Cedex 5, France. Phone:
(33)491294091, E-mail: marie-jo.amiot-carlin@univmed.fr or Gilles
Fayard, Pole Europeen Innovation Fruits - Légumes, rue Pierre Bayle,
BP 11548, 84916 Avignon Cedex, France. Phone: (33)490315881,
Fax: (33)490315521, E-mail: gilles.fayard@peifl.org
■ October 27-29, 2009, Nasser City, Cairo (Egypt): XIII International
Conference and Exhibition: Medicinal and Aromatic Plants -
Challenges and Opportunities. Info: Prof. Dr. Ismail Abdel-Galil,
Desert Research Center, 1, Mothaf El-Matariya, Cairo, Egypt. Phone:
(20)226374800 or 26332846, Fax: (20)226357858, E-mail:
ismaill@brainy1.ie-eg.com or Dr. Farouk El-Shobaki, ESMAP, 6, Dr.
Farouk El-Shobaki Street, El-Koum El-Akhdar, Pyramids, Giza, Egypt.
Phone: (20)233869898, Fax: (20)233841120,
E-mail: drfarouk@elshobaki.com
■ October 29 - November 1, 2009, Lima (Peru): XII International
Asparagus Symposium. Info: Prof. Andres V. Casas Diaz, Dept. Of
Horticulture, Univ. Nac. Agraria - La Molina, Apdo. 12-056, Lima 12,
Peru. Phone: (51)13485796, Fax: (51)13481660,
E-mail: cda@lamolina.edu.pe, info@iasperu2009.com
Web: http://www.ias2009peru.com/
■ November 2-6, 2009, Viña del Mar (Chile): VI International
Symposium on Irrigation of Horticultural Crops. Info: Dr. Samuel
Ortega-Farias, Casilla 747, Talca, Chile. Phone: (56)71200214, Fax:
(56)71200214, E-mail: sortega@utalca.cl or Gabriel Selles, Inst. De
Invest. Agro., Santa Rosa 11610, Santiago, Chile. Phone:
(56)27575105, E-mail: gselles@inia.cl or Nelson Pereira Muñoz,
National Irrigation Commission, Alameda B. O’Higgins 1449, Piso 4°,
Santiago, Chile. Phone: (56)024257914, Fax: (56)024257901, E-mail:
nelson.pereira@cnr.gob.cl E-mail symposium: information@irrigation2009.cl
Web: http://www.irrigation2009.cl/
■ November 15-19, 2009, Tsukuba (Japan): VI International
Symposium on Light in Horticulture. Info: Eiji Goto, Chiba
University, 648 Matsudo, Chiba 271-8510, Japan. Phone: (81)47-
308-8841, Fax: (81)47-308-8842, E-mail: goto@faculty.chiba-u.jp
E-mail symposium: info@lightsym2009.jp Web: http://www.lightsym2009.jp
■ November 15-19, 2009, Napier (New Zealand): Australasian
Postharvest Conference and Managing Quality in Chains 2009.
Info: Dr. Allan Woolf, Plant and Food Research, Mt Albert Research
Centre, 120 Mt Albert Rd, Mt Albert, Private Bag 92169, Auckland,
New Zealand. Phone: (64)99257267, Fax: (64)99258628, E-mail:
awoolf@hortresearch.co.nz or Prof. Dr. Errol W. Hewett, Emeritus
Professor of Horticultural Science, Institute of Food, Nutrition &
Human Health, PO Box 158, Oneroa, Waiheke Island, 1820
Auckland, New Zealand. Phone: (64) 9 372 7576, Fax: (64) 9 372
7576, E-mail: ewmrhewett@xtra.co.nz E-mail symposium: clamont@hortresearch.co.nz
Web: http://www.postharvestpacifica.org.nz/
■ November 15-20, 2009, Santiago (Chile): VI International Cherry
Symposium. Info: Dr. Marlene Ayala, Departamento de Fruticultura
y Enología, Facultad de Agronomía e Ingeniería Forestal, Casilla 306
Correo 22, Santiago, Chile. Phone: (56)6864159, Fax: (56)5534130,
E-mail: mayalaz@uc.cl or Prof. Juan Pablo Zoffoli, Av Vicuna
Mackenna 4860, Dept. Fruticultura y Enologia, Santiago 30622,
Chile. Phone: (56)2 686 4159, Fax: (56)2 5534130,
E-mail: zoffolij@uc.cl
■ November 25-27, 2009, New Delhi (India): II International
Symposium on Medicinal and Nutraceutical Plants. Info: Dr.
Sushil Chandra Mahapatra, All India Institute for Medical Sciences,
Nutrition&Phytomed. Lab, - Dept. Physiology, Ansari Nagar, New
Delhi 110 608, India. Phone: (91)1126594812,
Fax: (91)1126588641, E-mail: scmahapatra@gmail.com
E-mail symposium: ishs09@gmail.com Web: http://ismnp2009.org/
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■ November 29 - December 3, 2009, Campinas (Brazil): International
Symposium on Genetic Research of Bamboos and Palms. Info:
Dr. Antonio Fernando Tombolato, Instituto Agronomico, Avenida
Barão de Itapura 1481, Caixa Postal 28, 13012-970 Campinas SP,
Brazil. Phone: (55)1932415188, Fax: (55)1932417570, E-mail:
tombolat@iac.sp.gov.br or Prof. Kathia Pivetta, Rodovia Carlos
Tonanni, Km 5, Departamento de Horticultura, 14870-000
Jaboticabal, Brazil. Phone: (55)163232500, Fax: (55)163224275,
E-mail: kathia@fcav.unesp.br
YEAR 2010
■ January 12-15, 2010, Taichung (Taiwan): I International Orchid
Symposium. Info: Dr. Yung-I Lee, Botany Department, National
Museum of Natural Science, N0 1, Kuan-Chien Rd., Taichung 404,
Taiwan. Phone: (886)-4-23226940-153, Fax: (886)-4-23285320,
E-mail: leeyungi@hotmail.com or Prof. Erik Runkle, A240-C Plant &
Soil Sci. Bldg., Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48824,
United States of America. Phone: (1)517.355.5191 x350,
Fax: (1)517.353.0890, E-mail: runkleer@msu.edu
Web: http://hrt.msu.edu/IOS/
■ March 8-12, 2010, Sanya, Hainan Island (China): IX International
Mango Symposium. Info: Dr. Ping Lu, PO Box 42238, Casuarina,
NT 0810, Australia. Phone: (61)889 271547, Fax: (61)889 271547,
E-mail: mango2010sanya@yahoo.com or Dr. Qiubo Chen, Chinese
Academy, Tropical Agricultural Sciences, Danzhou, Hainan Province
571737, China. Phone: (86)89823300207/196,
Fax: (86)89823300157, E-mail: chenqb2003@21cn.com
■ March 8-13, 2010, Singapore (Singapore): International
Conference and Exhibition on Soilless Culture - ICESC2010.
Info: Dr. Mallick F. Rahman M., Hydroponics & Plant Care Pte LTD,
Block461#13-75 Crawford Lane, Singapore 190461, Singapore.
Phone: (65)62918153, Fax: (65)62987978,
E-mail: dr_mallickrahman@singaporehydroponics.com
■ April 19-21, 2010, Shiraz (Iran): International Medicinal and
Aromatic Plants Symposium 2010: IMAPS2010. Info: Dr. Jalal
Ghaemghami, SHMEN Inc., PO Box 320172, West Roxbury, MA
02132, United States of America. Phone: (1)6176782157, Fax:
(1)3174690024, E-mail: jalal@shmen.org
■ May 3-6, 2010, Antakya-Hatay (Turkey): III International
Symposium on Loquat. Info: Prof.Dr. A. Aytekin Polat, Mustafa
Kemal University, Faculty of Agriculture, Dept. of Horticulture,
Antakya Hatay, 31034, Turkey. Phone: (90)6232455605,
Fax: (90)3262455832, E-mail: apolat@mku.edu.tr
■ June 15-19, 2010, (Turkey): I International Mulberry Symposium.
Info: Prof. Dr. Sezai Ercisli, Ataturk University Agricultural Faculty,
Department of Horticulture, 25240 Erzurum, Turkey. Phone: (90)
442-2312599, Fax: (90) 442 2360958, E-mail: sercisli@atauni.edu.tr
E-mail symposium: sercisli@hotmail.com
■ July 6-8, 2010, Guildford and Wisley (United Kingdom):
I International Trials Conference: Assessment of Ornamental
Plants. Info: Dr. Simon P. Thornton-Wood, Royal Horticultural
Society, Wisley, Woking, Surrey GU23 6QB, United Kingdom.
Phone: (44)1483224234, Fax: (44)1483211750
E-mail symposium: ornamentals2010@rhs.org.uk
Web: http://www.rhs.org.uk/ornamentals2010
■ July 25-30, 2010, Ischia (NA) (Italy): III International Symposium
on Tomato Diseases. Info: Prof.Dr. Aniello Crescenzi, Dip.di Biol,
Difesa e Biotech Agro-Forestale, Fac. di Agraria, University of
Basilicata, Via dell’At. Lucano 10, Lotto 3a, Stanza 310, 85100
Potenza (Potenza), Italy. Phone: (39)0971205700,
Fax: (39)0971205703, E-mail: aniello.crescenzi@unibas.it
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■ August 1-5, 2010, Geneva, NY (United States of America):
X International Conference on Grapevine Breeding and
Genetics. Info: Bruce Reisch, NY State Agric. Exp. Station, 630 W.
North Street, Geneva, NY 14456, United States of America.
Phone: (1)3157872239, Fax: (1)3157872216,
E-mail: bir1@nysaes.cornell.edu
■ August 15-19, 2010, Warsaw (Poland): XII International
Workshop on Fire Blight. Info: Dr. Piotr Sobiczewski, Res. Inst. of
Pomology, Ul. Pomologiczna 18, 96-100 Skierniewice, Poland.
Phone: (48)46 8332021, Fax: (48)46 8333228,
E-mail: psobicz@insad.pl
■ August 22-27, 2010, Lisbon (Portugal): XXVIII International
Horticultural Congress - IHC2010. Info: Prof. Dr. António A.
Monteiro, Instituto Superior de Agronomia, Technical University of
Lisbon, Tapada da Ajuda, 1349-017 Lisboa, Portugal. Phone:
(351)213653451, Fax: (351)213623262, E-mail: amonteiro@isa.utl.pt
or Dr. Víctor Galán Saúco, Inst. Canario de Inv. Agrar., I.C.I.A.,
Apartado 60, 38200 La Laguna, Tenerife, Spain. Phone:
(34)922476321, Fax: (34)922476303, E-mail: vgalan@icia.es
E-mail symposium: info@ihc2010.org Web: http://www.ihc2010.org
SYMPOSIA AT IHC LISBOA 2010:
■ August 22-27, 2010, Lisbon (Portugal): Symposium Berries: From
Genomics to Sustainable Production, Quality and Health.
Conveners: Dr. Bruno Mezzetti, Marche Polytechnic University, Italy
and Dr. Pedro Brás de Oliveira, National Institute for Biological
Resources, Portugal. 28th IHC Lisboa 2010, Portugal. Phone: +351
961068237, Fax: +351 214411797, E-mail: info@ihc2010.org,
Web: http://www.ihc2010.org/symposia
■ August 22-27, 2010, Lisbon (Portugal): Symposium on Post-harvest
Technology in the Global Market Conveners: James R.
Gorny, University of California, Davis, USA and Domingos P.F.
Almeida, University of Porto, Portugal. 28th IHC Lisboa 2010,
Portugal. Phone: +351 961068237, Fax: +351 214411797,
E-mail: info@ihc2010.org, Web: http://www.ihc2010.org/symposia
■ August 22-27, 2010, Lisbon (Portugal): Symposium Greenhouse
2010: Environmentally Sound Greenhouse Production for
People. Conveners: Dr. Nicolas Castilla, IFAPA, Spain, Olaf van
Kooten, University of Wageningen, The Netherlands, Dr. Sadanori
Sase, National Institute for Rural Engineering, Japan and Dr. Jorge
Meneses, ISA, Tech. Univ. of Lisbon, Portugal. 28th IHC Lisboa 2010,
Portugal. Phone: +351 961068237, Fax: +351 214411797,
E-mail: info@ihc2010.org, Web: http://www.ihc2010.org/symposia
■ August 22-27, 2010, Lisbon (Portugal): Symposium on
Horticultural Crop Genomics. Conveners: Dr. Kevin Folta,
University of Florida, USA and Dr. Manuel Talón, Centro de
Genómica, Instituto Valenciano de Investigaciones Agrarias, Spain.
28th IHC Lisboa 2010, Portugal. Phone: +351 961068237,
Fax: +351 214411797, E-mail: info@ihc2010.org,
Web: http://www.ihc2010.org/symposia
■ August 22-27, 2010, Lisbon (Portugal): Symposium HortGen: GM
Horticultural Crops, from the Lab to the Field. Conveners: Dr.
Richard E. Litz, Tropical Research Education Centre, University of
Florida, USA and Dr. Fernando Pliego Alfaro, University of Málaga,
Spain. 28th IHC Lisboa 2010, Portugal. Phone: +351 961068237,
Fax: +351 214411797, E-mail: info@ihc2010.org,
Web: http://www.ihc2010.org/symposia
■ August 22-27, 2010, Lisbon (Portugal): Symposium Med Fruit &
Nuts: Plant Material and Cropping Issues of Mediterranean
Fruits and Nuts for Sustainable Production. Conveners: Dr. Ignasi
Batlle, IRTA, Mas de Bover, Spain and Dr. Tiziano Caruso, Università
di Palermo, Italy. 28th IHC Lisboa 2010, Portugal. Phone: +351
961068237, Fax: +351 214411797, E-mail: info@ihc2010.org,
Web: http://www.ihc2010.org/symposia
■ August 22-27, 2010, Lisbon (Portugal): Symposium FAV Health:
Emerging Health Issues in Fruits and Vegetables Conveners:
Yves Dejardins, University of Laval, Canada and Francisco Tomás
Barberán, CEBAS-CSIC, Spain. 28th IHC Lisboa 2010, Portugal.
Phone: +351 961068237, Fax: +351 214411797, E-mail:
info@ihc2010.org, Web: http://www.ihc2010.org/symposia
■ August 22-27, 2010, Lisbon (Portugal): Symposium OliveTrends:
from the Olive Tree to Olive Oil: New Trends and Future
Challenges. Conveners: Dr. Pedro Fevereiro, ITQB, Universidade
Nova de Lisboa, Portugal, Dr. Joan Tous, IRTA-Mas de Bover,
Constantí (Catalonia), Spain and Dr. Riccardo Gucci, University of
Pisa, Italy. 28th IHC Lisboa 2010, Portugal. Phone: +351 961068237,
Fax: +351 214411797, E-mail: info@ihc2010.org,
Web: http://www.ihc2010.org/symposia
■ August 22-27, 2010, Lisbon (Portugal): Symposium Ornamentals:
Diversity and Opportunities in Ornamental Horticulture
Conveners: Julie Plummer, University of Western Australia, Clawley,
Australia and Pedro Cermeño, IFAPA, Sevilla, Spain. 28th IHC Lisboa
2010, Portugal. Phone: +351 961068237, Fax: +351 214411797,
E-mail: info@ihc2010.org, Web: http://www.ihc2010.org/symposia
■ August 22-27, 2010, Lisbon (Portugal): Symposium Horticulture
for Development. Conveners: Dr. Remi Kahane, GlobalHort,
Tanzania, Dr. Lusika Wasilwa, KARI, Kenya and Dr. Manuel Correia,
IPAD, Portugal. 28th IHC Lisboa 2010, Portugal. Phone: +351
961068237, Fax: +351 214411797, E-mail: info@ihc2010.org,
Web: http://www.ihc2010.org/symposia
■ August 22-27, 2010, Lisbon (Portugal): Symposium ISAFRUIT –
Increasing Consumption of Fruit by Meeting Consumer Needs:
Science Overcomes the Bottlenecks. Conveners: Dr. Luca Corelli
Grappadelli, University of Bologna, Italy, Dr. Ole Callesen, University
of Aarhus, Denmark and Dr. Joan Bonamy, IRTA, Spain. 28th IHC
Lisboa 2010, Portugal. Phone: +351 961068237,
Fax: +351 214411797, E-mail: info@ihc2010.org,
Web: http://www.ihc2010.org/symposia
■ August 22-27, 2010, Lisbon (Portugal): Symposium Genetic
Resources: New Tools for the Conservation and Management
of Genetic Resources in Horticulture Conveners: Kim E. Hummer,
USDA-Corvalis, USA and María José Díez, Polytechnic University of
Valencia, Spain. 28th IHC Lisboa 2010, Portugal. Phone:
+351 961068237, Fax: +351 214411797, E-mail: info@ihc2010.org,
Web: http://www.ihc2010.org/symposia
■ August 22-27, 2010, Lisbon (Portugal): Symposium Vegetables:
Quality-Chain Management of Fresh Vegetables: From the
Seed to the Plate Conveners: Eduardo Rosa, University of Trás-os-
Montes e Alto Douro, Vila Real, Portugal; Andres Casas, University of
La Molina, Peru and Changhoo Chun, Seoul National University,
Korea. 28th IHC Lisboa 2010, Portugal. Phone: +351 961068237,
Fax: +351 214411797, E-mail: info@ihc2010.org,
Web: http://www.ihc2010.org/symposia
■ August 22-27, 2010, Lisbon (Portugal): Symposium OrganicHort:
Sustainability through Integrated and Organic Horticulture
Conveners: Uygun Aksoy, Ege University, Turkey and Isabel Mourão,
ESA-Ponte de Lima, Portugal. 28th IHC Lisboa 2010, Portugal.
Phone: +351 961068237, Fax: +351 214411797,
E-mail: info@ihc2010.org, Web: http://www.ihc2010.org/symposia
■ August 22-27, 2010, Lisbon (Portugal): Symposium ClimWater
2010: Horticultural Use of Water in a Changing Climate.
Conveners: Dr. Enrique Fernández, Spanish Research Council (CSIC),
Spain and Dr. Isabel Ferreira, ISA, Tech. Univ. of Lisbon, Portugal.
28th IHC Lisboa 2010, Portugal. Phone: +351 961068237,
ISHS • 54

Fax: +351 214411797, E-mail: info@ihc2010.org,
Web: http://www.ihc2010.org/symposia
■ August 22-27, 2010, Lisbon (Portugal): Symposium Viti&Climate:
Effect of Climate Change on Production and Quality of
Grapevines and their Products. Conveners: Dr. Ben Ami Bravdo,
The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Israel and Dr. Hipólito Medrano,
IMEDEA, (CSIC-UIB) Universitat de les Illes Baleares, Spain. 28th IHC
Lisboa 2010, Portugal. Phone: +351 961068237,
Fax: +351 214411797, E-mail: info@ihc2010.org,
Web: http://www.ihc2010.org/symposia
■ August 22-27, 2010, Lisbon (Portugal): Symposium on Protea
Conveners: Kenneth Leonhardt, University of Hawaii, USA and Maria
José Leandro, Portugal. 28th IHC Lisboa 2010, Portugal. Phone:
+351 961068237, Fax: +351 214411797, E-mail: info@ihc2010.org,
Web: http://www.ihc2010.org/symposia
■ August 22-27, 2010, Lisbon (Portugal): Symposium Bananas and
other Tropical Fruits under Subtropical Conditions: Challenges
and Innovative Solutions. Conveners: Dr. Hamide Gubbuk,
University of Akdeniz, Turkey, Dr. Jens-Norbert Wunsche, University
of Hohenheim, Germany, Dr. Domingo Haroldo Reinhardt, Embrapa,
Brazil and Dr. Charles Staver, Bioversity International, France. 28th
IHC Lisboa 2010, Portugal. Phone: +351 961068237,
Fax: +351 214411797, E-mail: info@ihc2010.org,
Web: http://www.ihc2010.org/symposia
SEMINARS AT IHC LISBOA 2010:
Seminar on Supply-Chain Management: ISPRA, Traceability, Quality
Control, Certification. Sponsored by KULeuven.
CIHEAM Seminar: 2010: The Challenge of Emerging Fruit Crops Diseases
in the Mediterranean Free Trade Area. Convener: Dr. Anna Maria
D'Onghia.
Seminar on Portuguese and Spanish Influence on Garden Culture and
Open Space Development. Convener: Gert Groening.
Seminar on New and Innovative Techniques in Soilless Cultivation.
Convener: Wilfried Schnitzler.
Seminar on Education and Training Related Topic. Convener: Errol
Hewett.
Seminar on Real-Time Monitoring and Modelling of Perennials. Towards
a Plant Production System Approach? Convener: Willem W. Verstraeten.
Seminar on Labour Force, Emigration and Horticulture. Convener:
Manuel Pérez Iruela.
Seminar on GIPB. A Vegetable Breeding Related Topic. Conveners: Lopes
and Elcio Guimeraes.
Seminar on Minor and Underutilised Pome Fruits. Convener: Joseph
Postman.
Seminar on A New Look on Medicinal and Aromatic Plants. Convener:
Akos Máthé.
Embrapa Seminar on a Brazil Related Topic. Convener and subject to be
determined.
Seminar on Reproductive Biology of Fruit Plants. Convener: María Herrero.
COLLOQUIA AT IHC LISBOA 2010:
Topic 1 - Challenges and Opportunities for Horticulture in a Dynamic
Global Economy. Convener to be determined.
Topic 2 - Omics in Horticultural Research. Convener: Pere Arus.
Topic 3 - Nanotechnology Applications in Horticulture. Convener to be
determined.
Topic 4 - Information Technology in Horticulture. Convener: Jim Mc
Pherson.
Topic 5 - Coping with Reducing Pesticides. Convener: Ian Crute.
Topic 6 - Plants, People and Places. Convener: Geoff Dixon.
Topic 7 - Educating the Next Generation of Horticulturists. Convener:
Fred Bliss.
For updates logon to www.ishs.org/calendar
ACTA HORTICULTURAE
Available Issues of Acta Horticulturae
Available numbers of Acta Horticulturae (in print format).
These as well as all other titles are also available
in ActaHort CD-rom format. For detailed information
on price and availability, including tables of content, or
to download an Acta Horticulturae order form, please
check out the ‘publications’ page at www.ishs.org or
go to www.ishs.org/acta
Acta Acta Title Acta
Number
Price (EUR)
811 Sixth International Congress on Cactus Pear and Cochineal 98
810 Ninth International Vaccinium Symposium 186
809 International Symposium on the Socio-Economic Impact
of Modern Vegetable Production Technology in Tropical
Asia 69
808 Second International Symposium on Tomato Diseases 100
807 International Symposium on Strategies towards
Sustainability of Protected Cultivation in Mild Winter
Climate 161
806 International Symposium on Underutilized Plants for Food
Security, Nutrition, Income and Sustainable Development 155
805 VIII International Protea Research Symposium 56
804 Europe-Asia Symposium on Quality Management in
Postharvest Systems - Eurasia 2007 138
803 VIII International Symposium on Modelling in Fruit
Research and Orchard Management 81
802 IV International Symposium on Applications of Modelling
as an Innovative Technology in the Agri-Food-Chain:
Model-IT 100
For an updated list of all titles (in print or ActaHort CD-rom format)
logon to www.actahort.org
CHRONICA HORTICULTURAE •VOL 49 • NUMBER 1 • 2009 • 55

Chronica Horticulturae
Author Information
Chronica Horticulturae is the quarterly publication of the International Society for Horticultural Science (ISHS) and is received by all
members of the Society and numerous libraries throughout the world. Members and non-members are urged to contribute articles
for consideration. However, it needs to be understood that Chronica is not to be construed as a scientific journal that publishes
original research. Research articles appropriate for Acta Horticulturae or horticultural science journals are usually inappropriate for
Chronica. We seek horticultural articles of interest to a broad audience composed of ISHS members and the horticultural, scientific,
and academic communities.
Chronica Horticulturae is currently made up of as many as eight sections as follows:
News & Views from the Board. This section is usually confined to editorials from Board Members as well as general announcements
of the Society.
Issues. Articles of a broad focus that often involve controversial topics related to horticulture including broad social issues and
economic development are appropriate for this section. These articles are intended to stimulate discussion. Often, guest writers are
asked to contribute articles.
Horticultural Science Focus. This section is intended for in-depth articles on a topic of horticulture, generally, but not always,
scientific in nature. Many articles are mini-reviews, and bring current topics of interest to the horticultural community up to date. We
encourage these articles to be illustrated.
Horticultural Science News. Shorter current articles about particular topics including horticultural commodities and disciplines are
welcome.
History. This section includes articles on the history of horticulture, horticultural crops, and ISHS.
The World of Horticulture. This section highlights articles on horticultural industries and research institutions of particular countries
or geographic regions throughout the world. They are meant to be profusely illustrated with figures and tables. This section also
includes book reviews, which are requested by the Science Editor. Members who wish to recommend a book review should arrange
for a copy of the book to reach the Secretariat.
Symposia and Workshops. Meetings under the auspices of ISHS are summarized, usually by a participant of the meeting. These
articles are delegated by the symposium organizers.
News from the ISHS Secretariat. This section contains information on membership, memorials for deceased ISHS members, and a
calendar of ISHS events. Brief memorials (up to 500 words) should be sent to the Secretariat.
Authors who wish to contribute articles for Chronica should contact headquarters and their request will be transmitted to the Science
Editor or another appropriate editor. Authors should be aware that most articles should have a broad international focus. Thus,
articles of strictly local interest, are generally unsuited to Chronica. Illustrated articles are usually 1500 to 5000 words. There are no
page charges for Chronica Horticulturae. Photographs submitted should be of high resolution. We encourage electronic submission.
Send articles or ideas for articles to:
Jules Janick, Science Editor, janick@purdue.edu
Kelly Van Dijck, Associate Editor, kelly.vandijck@ishs.org