Wild fruit species offer significant nutritional, environmental, and economic benefits. Among them, Prunus cerasifera Ehrh. (myrobalan) stands out for its resilience and nutrient-rich fruits, traditionally consumed fresh or dried. This study aimed to assess the morphological and biochemical diversity of 21 wild P. cerasifera accessions from Slovenia, focusing on 18 fruit and stone traits, including size, shape, color, and phenolic compounds such as total monomeric anthocyanins and total phenolic content (TPC). The objective was to identify genotypes with potential for cultivation and food production or as parental components in breeding programs. The results showed variability in fruit length (2.19–2.82 cm), width (2.18–2.99 cm), weight (67.98–150.30 g), firmness, and juiciness, with notable differences in stone characteristics. Phytochemical analysis revealed a wide range of TPC (277–1756 mg/100 g) and anthocyanin levels (0–710 mg/100 g), with higher concentrations in darker fruits. Statistical analysis compared PAM and AGNES clustering methods, finding that PAM with five clusters and AGNES with two clusters provided similar insights. The study emphasized variability in morphological and chemical traits among clusters, with specific accessions showing particularly valuable traits, such as accession RK13, which had high TPC and anthocyanins and a non-adherent stone.

The Slovenian Plant Gene Bank (SPGB) of the Faculty of Agriculture and Life Sciences houses approximately 250 accessions of stone fruit, with most of the material belonging to the species Prunus domestica L. and Prunus cerasifera Ehrh. The main objectives of this study using a set of 11 SSR primers were: 1. to determine the genetic structure of the traditional Slovenian in situ plum material in comparison to the ex situ the SPGB collection; 2. to identify unique material among the in situ collected accessions; 3. to gain insight into the genetic relationship between the two studied species. The genetic structure of 60 plum samples was analyzed using Principal Coordinate Analysis (PCoA) and Bayesian model-based analysis. PCoA separated the P. cerasifera and P. domestic accessions, while Bayesian model-based analysis revealed that many accessions of P. domestica and P. cerasifera shared a common ancestral history. The ex situ material showed greater genetic diversity as it was distributed over more populations than the in situ material. Promising in situ genotypes, especially from the Prekmurje and Lower Styria, were identified as valuable additions to enrich the existing collection.

Wild cherries [Prunus avium (L.) L.] are considered typical trees of the Slovenian landscape and often form vigorous natural populations. The determination of genetic relationships among cultivated and wild cherry tree genotypes is important for scientific and economic reasons. Both old trees and young plants were included in our genetic analysis. Sampling tookplace at two different locations near Maribor, NE Slovenia. The aim of the study was to determine the genetic relationships and variability among plants belonging to the studied populations. We focused on young trees and seedlings growing around old trees, which could be their hypothetical parents. We also analysed genetic uniformity within populations andidentified genetically distant plants that had likely migrated as seeds from other populations. Three microsatellite loci were taken into account, 38 genotypes were examined, and 19 polymorphic alleles were detected, corresponding to an average of 6.3 per locus. Genetic distances between the studied genotypes were calculated using the Jaccard’s coefficientand a dendrogram was constructed. Genetic structure was analysed using both Principal Coordinate Analysis (PCoA) and Bayesian model-based analysis. Our study showed that there were differences between the two populations, however, there was some “communication” between them. We observed genetic relatedness as well as a relatively high level of uniformitywithin each of the wild cherry populations.