20th years’ results of Cedrus species and provenance adaptation trials established in cool and semi-arid variant of supra-mediterranean bioclimatic stratum’s in the south western Turkey

Twenty provenances of Atlas Cedar, three provenances of Lebanon Cedar and two provenances of Cyprus Cedar had subjected to 20 year adaptation trials in Soutwestern Mediterrenean Elmalı and Keçiborlu locations where Supra-Mediterranean (cool,semi-arid) Bioclimatic conditions prevail. According to 20 year’s results, it was determined that Algerian Atlas cedar, Lebanon cedar and Cyprus cedar provenances had adaptation capability to mentioned conditions. Nevertheless, Morocco provenances of Atlas cedar had lower adaptation hence vulnerability to expected climate change due to global warming.

Bioexploration and Phylogenetic Placement of Entomopathogenic Fungi of the Genus Beauveria in Soils of Lebanon Cedar Forests

The cedar forests of Lebanon have been threatened by the outbreak caused by climate change of a web-spinning sawfly, Cephalcia tannourinensis (Hymenoptera: Pamphiliidae), which negatively impacted the survival of one of the oldest tree species on earth. In this study, we investigated the occurrence of naturally soil-inhabiting entomopathogenic fungi for their role in containing the massive outbreak of this insect. We used a combination of fungal bioexploration methods, including insect bait and selective media. Morphological features and multilocus phylogeny—based on Sanger sequencing of the transcripts encoding the translation elongation factor 1-alpha (TEF-α), RNA polymerase II second largest subunit (RBP2), and the nuclear intergenic region (Bloc) were used for species identification. The occurrence rate of entomopathogenic fungi (EPF) varied with location, soil structure, forest structure, and isolation method. From 15 soil samples positive for fungal occurrence, a total of 249 isolates was obtained from all locations using different isolation methods. The phylogenetic analysis confirmed the existence of two novel indigenous species: Beauveria tannourinensis sp. nov. and Beauveria ehdenensis sp. nov. In conclusion, the present survey was successful (1) in optimizing the isolation methods for EPF, (2) investigating the natural occurrence of Beauveria spp. in outbreak areas of C. tannourinensis, and (3) in characterizing the presence of new Beauveria species in Lebanese cedar forest soil.

Eco-geographic Study of Mahaleb (Prunus Mahaleb. L) in the Middle and Northern Parts of the Eastern Mediterranean

Background: Mahaleb still exists in most of the eastern Mediterranean forests associated with Cilician fir (Abies cilicica) and Lebanon cedar (Cedrus libani). However, there is an importance of conservation of its germplasm in hereditary banks due to their degradation in natural habitats, as well as there is growing interest in expanding Mahaleb cultivation due to its low requirements and endurance of harsh environments.Methods: The study used the approaches of the autecology concepts to study Mahaleb in situ. The field surveys have been conducted on an investigated homogeneous area of about 100m2 to 400m2 as a (relevé area).Results: Mahaleb occurs in its habitat in isolated individuals form and fragile structures of populations that were largely believed to have been in clumped or linear populations. The spatial distribution is restricted to small isolated zones in half-open, treeless or rocky outcrops areas of deciduous forests or rugged areas of barren mountains. The root sprouting seems to be the dominant mode of recruitment. However, all sites showed missing age classes that may indicate human infringement or the failure of recruitment in some years. The spatial distribution showed that Mahaleb exists in different environmental and climatic conditions regarding soil, landscape, rainfall, temperature. This can be attributed to its possession of genetic capabilities that enable it to adapt to varying environmental conditions in addition to the presence of different genotypes or higher taxa such as subspecies or even it may reflect the differences of environmental resilience inside some species themselves.Conclusions: this reflecting Mahaleb's high ability to withstand environmental, thermal, and water stresses. Notable, strong, long roots were found at different depths of soils, some within the joints of the rocks, and this strengthens its role in protecting soil conservation. The geo-distribution of Mahaleb suggests different genotypes or higher taxa such as subspecies or even the differences of environmental resilience inside some species themselves.It is also necessary to predict new potential areas for growth Mahaleb in the eastern Mediterranean to increase production either by introducing its cultivation in unconventional areas or by enhancing its productivity in the areas currently cultivated, which appears to be an important issue soon.

First Report of Phytophthora syringae on Cedrus libani in Turkey

Cedrus libani, commonly known as Lebanon cedar, is one of the most important coniferous tree species in Turkey. Its main distribution is in the Taurus Mountains in the Mediterranean Region. The total area of pure Taurus cedar forest covers 109,440 ha in Turkey, all located in the southwestern regions of the country. Due to its drought resistance, Taurus cedar has been commonly used for afforestations in these semi-arid areas (1). In September 2011, during surveys for Phytophthora spp. in forest nurseries in Adapazari and İzmir in eastern Turkey, initial symptoms such as death of fine roots, yellowing, and wilting of Taurus cedar seedlings were observed. Soil samples were collected from 10 symptomatic C. libani seedlings and isolation tests for Phytophthora species were carried out using leaflets from young Quercus suber, Azalea sp., and Rhodendron sp. saplings as baits floated over flooded soil. Necrotic baits were blotted dry, cut into small pieces, and placed on selective PARPNH carrot agar. Out growing colonies were subcultured on carrot agar and kept at 12°C for morphological and molecular identifications (2). In total, six Pythiaceous isolates were obtained from the C. libani soil samples. The isolates were investigated using a light microscope and grouped according to their morphological characteristics (3). DNA was extracted from two representative isolates using Qiagen DNeasy Plant Mini Kit following the manufacturer's instructions. PCR amplifications and sequencing of the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region of rDNA and the β-tubulin gene were performed using ITS1 and ITS4 and Tub1 and Tub2 primer sets (4). Sequencing of the PCR products in both directions was conducted by IonTek Inc. (Istanbul, Turkey) in an ABI PRISM automated sequencer. The obtained sequences were compared with those in the GenBank and Phytophthora database using BLAST search. On the basis of morphological features and molecular analyses, the two isolates were identified as Phytophthora syringae. Morphological characteristics on carrot agar were identical with the description of P. syringae (2). At 20°C, colonies reached 7 cm in diameter after 1 week. Sporangia were semipapillate to non-papillate, ovoid, with average length of 59 μm (SD ± 2.8) (range 58 to 70 μm). Oogonia were 38 μm (SD ± 5.4) in diameter (range 30 to 47 μm) with paragynous antheridia. The morphological identification was confirmed by sequence comparison at GenBank with 99% homology for both ITS and β-tubulin. The ITS sequences of the two isolates were deposited in GenBank with the accession nos. KF430614 and KF944377. Under-bark inoculation tests with mycelia plugs were conducted with both isolates of P. syringae at 18°C in a growth chamber on a total of six 1-year-old shoots cut from two C. libani trees. Lesions with an average length of 19 mm (SD ± 6) developed after 10 days. P. syringae was consistently re-isolated from the margins of necrotic tissues. Control shoots remained symptomless. To our knowledge, this is the first report of damage caused by P. syringae on C. libani seedlings in forest nursery in Turkey. References: (1) T. Çalışkan. Pages 109-130 in: Proceedings of Workshop “Hızlı gelişen türlerle ilgili rapor,” Ankara, Turkey, 1998. (2) T. Jung et al. Eur. J. For. Pathol. 26:253, 1996. (3) T. Jung et al. Mycol. Res. 107:772, 2003. (4) L. P. N. M. Kroon et al. Fung. Genet. Biol. 41:766, 2004.