Genotypic variation effect on quality determination of caper products collected in North-Central Morocco / Efecto de la variación genotípica sobre la determinación de la calidad de los productos de alcaparras recolectados en el centro-norte de Marruecos

The caper plant (Capparis spinosa L., Capparaceae) from Morocco is described differently, and shows a very variable morphology. In this work, two provenances of caper plant, spontaneous and cultivated, from the North-Central Morocco, are characterized on the basis of morphological and productive criteria. Quantitative and qualitative parameters reveal significant differences between the two origins. The cultivated provenance corresponds to C. spinosa subsp. spinosa, whereas the spontaneous origin is mainly composed of this subspecies and secondarily C. orientalis. Small capers are abundant in the two origins, but their aesthetic quality is more observed in the cultivated one. Caper berries of spontaneous provenance display a longer peduncle and gynophore and those of cultivated provenance are more numerous and thicker. The spontaneous caper genotypes produce capers and caper berries over a longer period and generate less income for the local population.

La alcaparra (Capparis spinosa L., Capparaceae) de Marruecos se describe de manera diferente y presenta una morfología muy variable. En este trabajo se caracterizan dos procedencias de alcaparras, espontáneas y cultivadas, del centro-norte de Marruecos, en base a criterios morfológicos y productivos. Los parámetros cuantitativos y cualitativos revelan diferencias significativas entre los dos orígenes. La procedencia cultivada corresponde a C. spinosa subsp. spinosa, mientras que el origen espontáneo está compuesto principalmente por esta subespecie y secundariamente C. orientalis. Las alcaparras pequeñas son abundantes en los dos orígenes, pero su calidad estética se observa más en el cultivado. Las alcaparras de procedencia espontánea presentan un pedúnculo y un ginóforo más largos y las de procedencia cultivada son más numerosas y más gruesas. Los genotipos de alcaparras espontáneas producen alcaparras y bayas de alcaparras durante un período más largo y generan menos ingresos para la población local.

Paleoclima de La Guajira, Colombia; según los anillos de crecimiento de Capparis odoratissima (Capparidaceae)

Paleoclimate of La Guajira, Colombia; by the growth rings of Capparis odoratissima (Capparidaceae). There is great concern about the effect of climate change in arid and subarid areas of the tropics. Climate change combined with other anthropogenic activities such as deforestation, fires and overgrazing can accelerate their degradation and, consequently, the increases in losses of biological and economic productivity. Climate models, both local and global, predict that rainfall in the arid Peninsula of La Guajira in the Colombian Caribbean would be reduced and temperature would be increased as a result of climate change. However, as there are only suitable climate records since 1972, it is not possible to verify if, indeed, this is happening. To try to verify the hypothesis of reducing rainfall and rising temperatures we developed a growth ring chronology of Capparis odoratissima in the Middle Peninsula of La Guajira with 17 trees and 45 series which attain 48 years back. We use standard dendrochronological methods that showed statistically significant linear relationship with local climatic variables such as air temperature, sea surface temperature (SST), annual precipitation and wind speed; we also reach to successful relationship of the chronology with global climatic variables as the indices SOI and MEI of the ENSO phenomenon. The transfer functions estimated with the time series (1955 and 2003) do not showed statistically significant trends, indicating that during this period of time the annual precipitation or temperatures have not changed. The annual nature of C. odoratissima growth rings, the possibility of cross-dated among the samples of this species, and the high correlation with local and global climatic variables indicate a high potential of this species for dendrochronological studies in this part of the American continent. Rev. Biol. Trop. 59 (3): 1389-1405. Epub 2011 September 01.

gran preocupación por el efecto del cambio climático en las regiones áridas y semi-áridas tropicales. Los modelos climáticos tanto locales como globales predicen que la precipitación pluvial de la árida Península de La Guajira en el Caribe colombiano se reduciría, y las temperaturas tanto del aire como superficial del mar aumentarían como consecuencia del cambio climático. Para tratar de verificar estas hipótesis construimos una cronología del ancho de los anillos de crecimiento de Capparis odoratissima en la Media Península de La Guajira. La cronología mostró relaciones lineales estadísticamente significativas con las variables climáticas locales: temperatura del aire, temperatura superficial del mar (TSM), precipitación anual, velocidad del viento y variables climáticas del fenómeno ENSO (índices SOI y MEI). Las series de tiempo que calculamos mediante la función de transferencia entre 1955 y 2003, no mostraron tendencias estadísticamente significativas que demostraran que en ese período de tiempo la precipitación anual o las temperaturas han cambiado. La naturaleza anual de los anillos de crecimiento de C. odoratissima, la posibilidad de realizar datación cruzada entre muestras de esta especie y la alta correlación con las variables climáticas locales y globales, señalan un alto potencial de esta especie para realizar estudios dendrocronológicos en esta parte del continente americano.

Effects of cold stratification on germination rate and percentage of caper (Capparis ovata Desf.) seeds.

Caper is an important plant because of its high adaptability to marginal agriculture fields that are not suitable for agricultural crops. Different parts of caper such as roots, fruits, flowers and buds can be used to increase the inhabitant's income. The goal of this research is to determine germination rate and percentage of caper according to different duration of cold stratification (10, 20, 30, 40, 50 and 60 days) treatments. Cold stratification procedures under greenhouse condition were applied for eliminating seed dormancy to find the most suitable germination conditions because the presence of seed dormancy causes difficulties in seedling production. The seed germination started and stopped 21 and 57 days after sowing, respectively. While the highest germination percentage (46.6%) was obtained in seeds that were cold stratified for 60 days, the lowest germination percentage (3.6 7%) was determined in control seeds.