PARTECIPANTS Center for Studies and Research on Palms of Sanremo (CSRP). The Centre has ongoing activities to promote the cultivation of palms, their traditional uses, palm pests and disease prevention, control, and protection of palms considered as an historical, cultural and landscape good (contact: Claudio Littardi sanremopalme@gmail.com). Department of Agri-food Production and Environmental Sciences (DISPAA), Genetics section, University of Florence. The research topics include investigations of genetic resources and biodiversity through the analysis of plant genomes with molecular markers (contact: milvia.racchi@unifi.it). Department of Agricultural, Food and Forestry Systems (GESAAF), University of Florence. The Bio systems Engineering section studies and designs tools, machines, equipment and structures for cultivation, storage and processing of agricultural products, including fruits of different kinds of palms (contact: francesco.garbati@unifi.it). Museum of Natural History, University of Florence. This institution includes a botanical garden with a collection of about 300 palm specimens representing 58 genera and 100 species. The Museum performs systematic research and acclimatization studies on different 33 palm species (contact: paolo.luzzi@unifi.it). Istituto Agronomico per l'Oltremare (IAO). The Institute represents the consultancy and technical assistance arm of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and works in close sounding with the Italian Development Cooperation (DGCS) providing scientific and technological to initiatives of integrated rural development, environmental and natural resource management, measures to combat desertification and promotion of food security in an effort to alleviate world poverty and hunger (contact: Massimo Battaglia, battaglia@iao.florence.it).
Palmiria
Only two palm species occur naturally in Europe, the indigenous Mediterranean fan palm (Chamaerops humilis), widespread in the Mediterranean scrub vegetation of southern Europe and North Africa and the Cretan date palm (Phoenix theophrasti), native to the eastern Mediterranean, occurring in southern Greece, Crete and the north coast of Turkey. The true date palm (P. dactylifera) was introduced to Iberia sometime after the Moorish conquest began in the eighth century. Seedling date palm groves were established in coastal locations in what is now southeastern Spain, most prominently in Elche that is Europe’s lone area of commercial date palm cultivation, with fruit still derived primarily from seedling palms Today by the historic Palmeral de Elche represents a World Heritage Site. Moreover, Elche, along with Bordighera in the Liguria coast of Italy, is a commercial source of white date palm leaves obtained by wrapping and protecting them from sunlight to block chlorophyll They have an ancient ceremonial role in Easter week celebrations in Europe. From Portugal in the east to Turkey in the west, ornamental palm species are common in the landscape especially the Canary Islands palm (P. canariensis) and the date palm. Since the nineteenth century, Italian scientists have been studying exotic palms and cultivating them in botanic gardens and parks and Italian agronomists have conducted research on date palm in North Africa, especially in Libya, where they have described many local varieties and determined best cultivation practices. Recently members of the Palmiria Group coordinated by I.A.O. participated in an important project in Libya focused on sustainable local date palm cultivation aimed at guaranteeing the production of high quality dates by supporting the adoption of best production practices, and the protection of agrobiodiversity through low environmental impact agricultural practices.
is the name of the Italian palm group established on April 2014 to promote research, management, training and dissemination on palms. Activities of Palmiria are intended to include also seeking funding sources for research and to foster collaboration with date growing countries in North Africa and the Middle East to promote date fruit marketing within the European Union
The aims are to promote • Best practices for quality of fruits • Morphologic and genetic characterization of palm date varieties and other palms of Mediterranean region • Engineering aspects of cultivation and post-harvest: tools, equipment and structures for field operations, processing, storage and packaging • Measures for prevention and control of palm pests and diseases • Identification of species of systematic and ornamental value and set up of varietal collections