Heirloom Top Fruit diversity lost in memory

Pests and diseases pose a serious threat to our contemporary top fruit varieties. We may be able to overcome such constraints in a sustainable way by using natural resistance possibly available in historic fruit diversity. By collecting, identification and setting up germplasm collections, containing as many varieties as possible of the wide spectrum of historic fruit varieties ideally one should be in a position to contain such constraints by breeding and selection.  By doing so, large numbers of useful genetic traits are brought together in so-called called gene banks. 

Germplasm collections can also play a major role in the development of new crop varieties which are better adapted to current climate changes. Natural resistance to pests and diseases, as well as such abiotic constraints  may in this way play a major role in the sustainability of food crops. 

Thanks to private initiatives, a significant part of historic varietal diversity has been traced and is, for the time being, kept safe.
Thankfully a number of amateur orchard men recognized the importance of maintaining heritage top fruit varieties.
Thus, also, a significant volume of invaluable know how that has been accumulated in such collections may be safeguarded for the future. Relevant information on a significant number of heritage varieties that have been described inadequately, if at all, might thus be safeguarded for future generations.

Hennie Rossel*

* Member of Nederlands Fruit Netwerk (NFN), Northern Pomological Society (NPV), study group ‘Achterhoek’, province of Gelderland (The Netherlands), and various individuals within The Netherlands and abroad with whom we share information and exchange materials.