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Centro Nazionale per lo Studio e la Conservazione della Biodiversità Forestale, Peri (Italy)
12-14 June 2008
By F. Gorian, Vice Chair ISTA Forest Tree and Shrub Seed Committee, S. Pasquini, ISTA Moisture Committee and Z. Procházková, Chair ISTA Forest Tree and Shrub Seed Committee
The fifth ISTA Forest Tree Seed Testing Meeting was held in Peri (Verona), Italy, from 12–14 June 2008. Previous venues were Guildford (England) in 1973, Macon (Georgia, USA) in 1978, Prague (Czech Republic) in 2003 and Verona (Italy) in 2006. Twenty-two participants from 14 countries had the opportunity to improve their knowledge of sampling, tetrazolium and moisture. The event was hosted by the Corpo Forestale dello Stato, at the National Centre for Forestry Biodiversity, where there is also the only ISTA-accredited laboratory for tree seed testing in Italy (ITML0600). The participants were greeted by very cold and rainy weather. The workshop was opened by the Chair of the Forest Tree and Shrub Seed Committee, Zdenka Procházková, who presented the Committee activities since 2001. It was also the opportunity to announce a comparative tetrazolium test on Abies alba, with the participation of more than 20 laboratories.
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| The first day of the workshop was dedicated to the tetrazolium test and led by Steffi Kraemer, the Tetrazolium Committee Chair. After a theoretical part, the participants started a preparation of Abies alba, Acer pseudoplatanus, Carpinus betulus and Crataegus monogyna seeds for determination of viability. This first day was closed with two interesting presentations on the flora of New Zealand, by Craig McGill, and oak testing in Austria, by Ilse Strohschneider. There was also with a presentation on Jatropha curcas, in order to join efforts around this species and its testing, as recently requested of the FTS Committee by the ISTA Secretariat. |
| The second day was dedicated to both sampling and tetrazolium testing. The sampling session was led by the Chair of the ISTA Sampling and Bulking Committee, Leena Pietila. First she presented theoretical aspects of sampling, followed by the practical part, dedicated to the same species tested the day before with tetrazolium. The official sampler of ITML0600, Paolo Beltrame, demonstrated sample reduction by both the Boerner and soil dividers. A relaxing presentation by Michael Aberle on California and its native tree and shrub species delighted the participants and closed the working part of the second day. The day was concluded by a delicious official dinner held on the shore of Lake Garda, even though the weather was implacable, cold and rainy. |
| The third and final day of the workshop was dedicated to the moisture aspects of testing. The chair of this session was Zdenka Procházková, and it was opened by Sergio Pasquini, the quality manager of ITML0600, who presented both theoretical and practical aspects of moisture content testing, followed by an interesting presentation by Fabienne Colas, Canada, and Patrick Baldet, France, on water activity as an alternative to moisture testing. Craig McGill, the incoming Moisture Committee Chair, focused his speech on quality assurance of moisture testing. The evaluation of some of the species tested with tetrazolium closed the working part of the meeting. After receiving their certificates of attendance, the participants made an evaluation of the whole workshop. It was really an honour for the Peri Centre to have simultaneously four Committees Chairs at the same workshop, allowing the participants to discuss several aspects of forest seeds in the ISTA Rules. |
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New issue of
SEED TESTING INTERNATIONAL (ISTA News Bulletin) No. 143 April 2012
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REGISTRATION DEADLINE: MAY 15
ISTA Annual Meeting 2012
June 11-14, 2012
Venlo, The Netherlands
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Reports available from the ISTA Annual Meeting 2011
held June 13-16, 2011
Zurich, Switzerland
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ISTA / ISF Experiment on Herbage Seed Lot Size
Technical Protocol and participating companies
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Outcome on the
World food security: urgent measures on seed needed
Second World Seed Conference 2009
held September 8-10,
in Rome, Italy
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ISTA Seed Mixture Experiment
to collect information that may be used to determine the reliability of seed mixture test results and establish tolerances.
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Universal List of Species
ISTA list of 130 plant species that accredited laboratories may wish to include in their seed collections
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Position Paper on
ISTA's view regarding the units for the reporting of quantitative results on presence of seeds with specified traits in conventional seed lots
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Accreditation Documents for the Testing of Specified Traits
Related Documents for download
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ISTA's Memorandum of Understanding with FAO
Read the full Press Release
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