ECPGR Homepage


Cucurbits Working Group

Vegetables Network

Report of a Vegetables Network.
Second Meeting,
26–28 June 2007,
Olomouc,
Czech Republic
PART I - DRAFT
(PDF file 484KB)

Report of a Working Group on Cucurbits.
First Meeting,
1-2 September 2005, Plovdiv, Bulgaria
[PDF file 1.6MB]


Workplan agreed in June 2007


Cucurbit taxonomy and GR Web sites

 

Descriptor Lists
Soon available for:
- Cucumber
- Cucurbita spp.
- Melon
- Watermelon


The European Central Cucurbits Database


Cucurbits Working Group members

Cucurbits Meetings & Reports


  Background information   Safety-duplication
  The European Central Cucurbits Database (ECCUDB)   Regeneration guidelines and primary characterization

Background information

In May 2000, in Vila Real, Portugal, the ECPGR Vegetables Network Coordinating Group recommended also extending collaborative activities to Solanaceae, Cucurbits and Leafy Vegetables and included these crops within the Network's mandate.
An Informal Cucurbits Working Group was formed to start collaboration on genetic resources of some Cucurbitaceae species, mainly cucumber, melons, watermelon, gourds, pumpkin, zucchini and other minor cultivated and wild Cucurbits.

Partners in a new European collaboration on Cucurbitaceae genetic resources met for the first time in Adana, Turkey, 19 January 2002, for an ad hoc meeting organized within the framework of the ECPGR Vegetables Network and back-to-back with the second meeting of the EU-funded project RESGEN CT99-108 on "Management, conservation and valorization of genetic resources of Cucumis melo and wild relatives". This ad hoc meeting of the Informal Cucurbits Working Group brought together most of the European institutions (both from EU and non-EU countries) holding important collections of cultivated Cucurbits and their wild relatives.
The Informal Group also met in a parallel session with the other Vegetables Network Working Groups, during the Vegetables Network meeting, held in Skierniewice, Poland, 22-24 May 2003 (see: meeting report [here], PDF file 850KB).

A proposal to establish a formal ECPGR Working Group on Cucurbits was approved by the ECPGR Steering Committee in October 2003. The first meeting of the Working Group was held on 1-2 September 2005 in Plovdiv, Bulgaria. The Group met again in a parallel session during the Second meeting of the Vegetables Network in Olomouc, Czech Republic, on 26–28 June 2007.

The European Central Cucurbits Database (ECCUDB)

The European Central Cucurbits Database (ECCUDB) is being developed at the COMAV, Spain, and it maintains information of passport data belonging to many species of Cucurbits hosted at the European genebanks. The database contains passport information on 27 942 accessions of several Cucurbits species.
The database is being developed following the FAO/IPGRI Multi-Crop Passport Descriptors List.

Safety-duplication

Level of safety-duplication of each collection under long-term conservation conditions and availability of the institutions to host "black boxes" is shown in the Plovdiv Meeting report (Table 1, page 9).
It was recommended that a memorandum of understanding should be signed by the two parties, whenever agreements are made between two institutions to establish safety-duplicates under black box arrangements.

A plan of action was established to improve the level of safety storage for Cucurbits.

Regeneration guidelines and primary characterization

A mode of operation has been defined to improve and harmonize regeneration protocols and for the establishment of a minimum descriptors list for primary characterization of Cucurbits in Europe. As a first step, current information on protocols used in the different genebanks and common regeneration standards will be shared (see: Plovdiv Meeting report).

Establishment of minimum descriptor lists for melon, cucumber, watermelon, pumpkin and minor cucurbits is in progress. Responsibility is shared between the members.



For more information or comments:
Please contact the Chair of the Working Group: Ms Maria José Díez Niclós [click here] and
Vice-Chair: Mr Willem van Dooijeweert [click here]