توصيف بعض أصناف الزيتون Olea europaea (sativa)‎ L. في محافظة طرطوس

Abstract EN

This study is part of an on-going comprehensive study in olive cultivation area of the Mediterranean region, particularly after the increased interests in biodiversity and identifying the genetic resources in different countries of the whole world.

These resources could be used in food, pharmaceutical and genetic breeding programs to increase production and control diseases and insects.

This study describes some olive cultivars grown in Tartous district in both Safita area (Beit Al-Sheikh Yonus) and Sheikh Bader area (Wardieh).

The former area is warm-humid and located at 250-300m above sea level.

The later area is cold-humid and located at 600-700m above sea level.

This study shows that Khashabi cultivar is basically characterized by the large fruit size and the good taste which make it appropriate for green pickling.

Da'ybly (Darmaiali) cultivar that is planted in Sheikh..Badar area is characterized by small seed size and high oil content and is preferred for black pickling.

This cultivar performs better in this area compared to Safita area.

Khadrawi is also characterized by the high oil content and large fruit size and is widely used as a dual-purpose cultivar for green pickling and for the good-taste oil.

The examined trees of the wild type proved the true wild type character of low fruit oil content and small seed.

Comparing characters of Da'ybly grown in warm coastal regions to the same cultivar grown in cold mountain regions showed that both are different in quantitative traits and similar in qualitative traits such as shape of fruit, seed and leaf, it appears that one genotype produced two phenotypes.

This study is essential for future biochemical and genetic finger print studies to prove this hypothesis.

Such studies in the Syrian coastal area should continue because this is the area where the first wild olive tree appeared thousands of years ago (Damania, 1995).