Olive, the emblematic Mediterranean fruit crop, owns a great varietal diversity, which is maintained in ex situ field collections, such as the World Olive Germplasm Bank of Córdoba (WOGBC), Spain. Accurate identification of WOGBC, one of the world’s largest collections, is essential for efficient management and use of olive germplasm. The present study is the first report of the use of a core set of 96 EST-SNP markers for the fingerprinting of 1273 accessions from 29 countries, including both field and new acquired accessions. The EST-SNP fingerprinting made possible the accurate identification of 668 different genotypes, including 148 detected among the new acquired accessions. Despite the overall high genetic diversity found at WOGBC, the EST-SNPs also revealed the presence of remarkable redundant germplasm mostly represented by synonymy cases within and between countries. This finding, together with the presence of homonymy cases, may reflect a continuous interchange of olive cultivars, as well as a common and general approach for their naming. The structure analysis revealed a certain geographic clustering of the analysed germplasm. The EST-SNP panel under study provides a powerful and accurate genotyping tool, allowing for the foundation of a common strategy for efficient safeguarding and management of olive genetic resources.

Pyrethrin is a specialized metabolite of Dalmatian pyrethrum (Tanacetum cinerariifolium (Trevir.) Sch. Bip.), Asteraceae, known worldwide as an effective bioinsecticide. It consists of six active compounds: Pyrethrin I and II, cinerin I and II, and jasmolin I and II. Pyrethrin accumulates mainly in the flower heads and its content depends on numerous factors, such as the flower developmental stage. This study aims to investigate the accumulation patterns of six pyrethrin compounds in the flower heads of Dalmatian pyrethrum over the eight developmental stages (FS1 to FS8), and to make a comparison in six natural populations. Ultrasound assisted extraction was used to extract the pyrethrin, while qualitative and quantitative analysis was performed by High performance liquid chromatography. The accumulation patterns of different pyrethrin compounds were generally similar and also synchronous between different populations, while the pyrethrin I/pyrethrin II ratio showed irregular patterns. In all populations studied, the highest increase of all compounds was observed from FS1 to FS2. Their concentration continuously increased, reaching the highest values at FS4 stage (2–5 rows of open disc flowers), and generally decreased gradually towards FS6 or FS7 and then stagnated until the FS8 stage. Despite the very similar accumulation pattern of pyrethrin compounds in the different populations, the significant differences in their content suggest a different genetic background. Knowledge of the dynamics of pyrethrin compounds accumulation across flower development stages is valuable for determining the optimal harvest time of pyrethrum flower heads.

Olive growing in Croatia has a long tradition and is of great economic and social impact. The present study includes a set of 108 tree samples (88 samples corresponding to 60 presumed cultivars and 20 trees of unnamed ones) collected from 27 groves in the entire olive growing area, and is the most comprehensive survey to be conducted in Croatia. The genetic diversity, relationships, and structures of olive plants were studied using eight microsatellite loci. All loci were polymorphic and revealed a total of 90 alleles. A total of 74 different genotypes were detected that were subjected to further diversity and genetic relationship studies. The Fitch–Margoliash tree and Bayesian analysis of population structure revealed a complex relationship between the identified olive genotypes, which were clustered into three gene pools, indicating different origins of Croatian olive germplasms. Excluding the redundant germplasms, 44 different genotypes among the sampled trees of well-known cultivars and 16 new local germplasms were identified. In addition, we provide the etymology of 46 vernacular names, which confirms that the vast majority of traditional Croatian cultivars have common and widespread names. The results presented herein underline the importance of safeguarding local cultivars and conducting continuous surveys.

The influence of different irrigation regimes on olive fruit morphological parameters and on the quantity and quality (marketable indices, phenolic content, fatty acid composition, and sensory profile) of virgin olive oil (VOO) obtained from the Croatian cultivar Oblica, grown on an extremely rocky and dry reclaimed karst soil, was studied over three years. Four treatments were applied: rain-fed and three treatments calculated as 50%, 75%, and 100% of the crop’s irrigation requirement (Irr). Principal component analysis separated growing seasons (GS) that differed in precipitation. In the 2016 season, which had a low number of fruits per kilogram and provided a higher amount of balanced VOO with medium to intense bitterness and pungency (rain-fed treatment), the oil yield increased by irrigation (Irr 75 and Irr 100) up to 18%, while unchanged phenolics, bitterness, and pungency were observed for the VOOs obtained. In the drier GS (2017), which under rain-fed conditions had high fruit per kg, smallest fruit sizes, and lowest oil yield, and in which the VOOs had high phenolic content and intense sensory taste attributes, fruit weight, fruit sizes, and oil yield increased by 35% in all irrigation treatments, while phenols, bitterness, and pungency decreased, balancing the sensory profile of the VOOs. The results obtained here led us to conclude that the irrigation of young olives resulted in a positive effect, with the indication that an abundant water supply is more effective in drought conditions.

Pistacia terebinthus L. ili smrdljika je listopadni grm ili nisko stablo iz porodice Anacardiaceae. Autohtona je vrsta Mediterana, a u Hrvatskoj je široko rasprostranjena od Istre, preko Hrvatskog primorja, Dalmacije, Dalmatinske zagore do krajnjeg juga. Kserofitna je vrsta, koja raste na osunčanim položajima u makijama i šikarama eumediteranske i submediteranske zone na suhim, toplim, kamenitim i stjenovitim mjestima. Na području prirodne rasprostranjenosti tradicionalno se koristila u prehrani, kao i u liječenju mnogih zdravstvenih tegoba, kao što su respiratorne i urinarne infekcije, želučane tegobe, reumatizam, itd. U novije vrijeme, analize kemijskog sastava vrste upućuju na znatan sadržaj mnogobrojnih aktivnih sastojaka visoke nutritivne vrijednosti i ljekovitog djelovanja (npr. eterična ulja, proteini, tanini, nezasićene masne kiseline, flavonoidi), a najpoznatija je po sadržaju smole iz koje se izdvaja terpentin. Zbog veće otpornosti na sušu, temperaturne ekstreme, bolesti i štetnike te s obzirom na rasprostranjenost na našem području, smrdljika ima najveći potencijal kao podloga za cijepljenje prave tršlje ili pistacije (P. vera L.), cijenjene zbog svojih plodova, što danas predstavlja upotrebu od najvećeg gospodarskog značaja, a prvi nasadi već se podižu u srednjoj Dalmaciji. Najčešći način cijepljenja je okuliranje koje se provodi na dobro razvijenim dvogodišnjim podlogama smrdljike. Izvjesni problem koji se javlja kod proizvodnje podloga je niska klijavost sjemena smrdljike zbog fiziološke i fizikalne dormantnosti, partenokarpije i abortiranja sjemenki. Dostupna znanstvena i stručna literatura kao i rezultati preliminarnih terenskih istraživanja upućuju na postojanje velikog potencijala upotrebe smrdljike u agronomiji, šumarstvu, farmaciji i prehrambenoj industriji.