The aim of this article is to provide an overview of the current situation of coffee genetic resources that are dwindling at an alarming rate in Ethiopia, the centre of diversity of Coffea arabica. Firstly, we describe the coffee growing systems (forest coffee, semi-forest coffee, garden coffee and plantation coffee) and recent research on the genetic diversity of the coffee planting material associated with those systems. Whilst the maximum genetic diversity revealed by DNA-based markers is found in the forest coffees of the south-western highlands, the natural habitat of C. arabica, the taxonomy of coffee landraces is particularly rich in garden coffee systems located in ancient growing zones such as Harerge in eastern Ethiopia. After reviewing the factors involved in the genetic erosion of the Ethiopian genepool, we give an update on the status of coffee genetic resources conserved ex situ in the field genebank of the Jimma Agricultural Research Centre, with 4,780 accessions spread over 10 research stations located in the main production areas, and in the main genebank of the Institute of Biodiversity Conservation located in Choche (Limu) with 5,196 accessions conserved. Lastly, we mention the in situ conservation operations currently being implemented in Ethiopia. Improving our knowledge of the genetic structure of Ethiopian forest and garden coffee tree populations as well as genetic resources conserved ex situ will help to plan the future conservation strategy for that country. To this end, modern tools as DNA-based markers should be used to increase our understanding of coffee genetic diversity and it is proposed, with the support of the international scientific community and donor organizations, to undertake a concerted effort to rescue highly threatened Arabica coffee genetic resources in Ethiopia.
Coffee (Coffea spp.) is one of the world's most valuable agricultural export commodities produced by small‐scale farmers. Its germplasm, which holds useful traits for crop improvement, has traditionally been conserved in field genebanks, which presents many challenges for conservation. New techniques of in vitro and cryopreservation have been developed to improve the long‐term conservation of coffee. But a question remains as to whether these new techniques are more cost effective than field collections and more efficient at reducing genetic erosion. This study compared the costs of maintaining one of the world's largest coffee field collections with those of establishing a coffee cryo‐collection at the Centro Agronómico Tropical de Investigación y Enseñanza (CATIE) in Costa Rica. The results indicate that cryopreservation costs less (in perpetuity per accession) than conservation in field genebanks. A comparative analysis of the costs of both methods showed that the more accessions there are in cryopreservation storage, the lower the per‐accession cost. In addition to cost, the study examined the advantages of cryopreservation over field collection and showed that for species that are difficult to conserve using seeds, and that can only be conserved as live plants, cryopreservation may be the method of choice for long‐term conservation of genetic diversity.
A field experiment was conducted at Awada Agricultural Research Sub-Center, Ethiopia, to study the magnitude of phenotypic diversity among Hararge coffee (Coffea arabica L.) germplasm accessions based on quantitative traits. A total of 104 entries consisting of 100 accessions from Hararge and 4 standard cultivars were evaluated using nested design. Analyses of variance showed significant differences among the accessions for all the traits considered, indicating the presence of high genetic variability among the Hararge coffee germplasm accessions. Cluster analysis grouped the entries into 6 groups of different sizes, ranging from 5 entries in cluster VI to 44 in cluster III. The maximum inter-cluster distance was obtained between clusters II and VI while the minimum was observed between clusters I and III. Clusters I and V, I and VI, II and IV, II and V, II and VI, III and VI, IV and V and V and VI were significantly divergent. The first four principal components constituted 78.5 percent of the total variation prevalent within the germplasm accessions, while 38.5 percent was represented by the first principal component. The length of the longest primary branch, stem diameter, average length of primary branches, total number of internodes per plant and total number of primary branches per plant were the five important characteristics that contributed most to the total variation in the first principal component, implying that there is high potential to improve these traits through selection. The study revealed the presence of high genetic diversity among Hararge Coffee germplasm accessions and the possibility of developing improved varieties through selection and hybridization.
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