Murat Alan

West Blacksea fir (Abies nordmanniana (Stev.) Spach subsp. equi-trojani) is an endemic species of Turkey. Six populations, four of which are a seed stand and three gene conservation forests (Akyazi-Dokurcun, Aladag-Sarialan, Kizilcahamam-Guvem, Safranbolu-Safranbolu), a Nature Reserve Area (Istanbul-Beykoz) and a natural forest (Pinarbasi-Kurtgirmez) were selected to study. Cones were harvested from 118 trees in six populations. Some seed characters obtained from cones were measured and evaluated. The average seed width, length, and thickness were 6.63 mm, 12.06 mm, and 3.46 mm, respectively. The average 1000 seed weight was 82.80 g. Statistical analyses indicated significant differences at the population level in all characteristics except seed length. Regarding genetic similarity, populations were divided into two main groups: East and West. The isolated Istanbul-Beykoz population was similar to the West group showing artificial migration or cut-off from the West group. Due to including seed stand and gene conservation forest, the findings are expected to contribute to forest management, besides Christmas trees and landscape use.

... Burcu C¸ engel • Yasemin Tayanç • Gaye Kandemir • Ercan Velioglu • Murat Alan • Zeki Kaya ... Therefore, there is an urgent need to assess the impact of forest management activities, such as setting up seed stands and orchards, and establishment of plantations from these ...

TÜBİTAK TOVAG106O39201.09.2008Uzun vadede Kızılçamda odun hammaddesi üretimini artırmak amacıyla, Ceyhan Orman Fidanlığında altı adet klonal tohum bahçesinden toplanan tohumlarla kurulan 168 üvey kardeş aileli Kızılçam (Pinus brutia) döl denemesi kullanılarak, bu türdeki odun özgül ağılığı, lif boyu ve büyüme karakterlerinin genetik kontrolü çalışılmıştır. Gerekli odun örnekleri denemenin yedinci yaştaki aralama esnasında kesilen ağaçlardan elde edilmiştir. Bu çalışmadaki ulaşılmak istenen ana amaçlar; (1) odun özgül ağırlığı ve büyüme karakterleri açısından test edilen aileler arasındaki farklılıklar ile bu farklılığa ait bileşenlerin araştırılması, (2) özgül ağırlığın kalıtımsal özelliği ile büyüme karakteri ve lif uzunluğu ile arasındaki genetik korelasyoların belirlenmesi, (3) fenotipik, ayıklanmış ve genotipik tohum bahçelerinin kurulmasıyla elde edilecek genetik kazancın hesaplanması için özgül ağırlık ve gövde hami açısın...

Endüstriyel ağaçlandırmaların odun üretimini artırmak amacıyla devreye sokulması, 2013-2023 yılları için hazırlanmış olan Endüstriyel Ağaçlandırma Çalışmaları Eylem Planındaki bütün hedefleri bozmuştur. 30 yıllık yönetim süresine göre belirlenmiş kesim düzeninin bütünüyle dışına çıkılmıştır. Diğer taraftan özel ağaçlandırma çalışmaları orman varlığını artırma amacından özel kişi ve kurumlara devlet ormanlarında arazi tahsisi uygulamasına dönüşmüştür.

In economic and biological terms (rapid growth, the ability to produce seeds at an early age, etc.) Pinus brutia Ten. is one the most important forest tree species in Turkey. Considerable progress has been made in Pinus brutia Ten. breeding program and both phenotypical and according to the results of progeny trials, totaling 615-hectare seed orchardshas been established. Pinus brutia Ten. seed orchardshas reached 43% of the total orchard area and covered the largest area. To acquire information on the management of seed orchards, top pruning has been carried out on three Pinus brutia Ten. seed orchards of different ages (old, middle-aged and young). Two top pruning regimes were applied in these three seed orchards, once in 2008 to the old orchard, while a single topping regime was applied in 2008 and 2012 to the middle-aged and young orchards.Each year, the height, diameter at breast height, and bi-directional crown diameter were measured, and all conelets and cones on ramets were ...

Th e Mediterranean Basin is one of the major plant diversity centers in the northern hemisphere. Th e Eastern Mediterranean Basin is also a hotspot region of gene diversity for conifer species. In this study, Turkey’s conifer seed orchards were investigated for their eff ective number of clones. Th e mean census number of clones (N) was estimated 33.12. Th e mean eff ective number of clones (Nc) was calculated as 27.59. Th e mean relative eff ective number of clones (Nr = Nc/N) was 0.827. Th e estimated proportional gene diversity was found 0.973, with a range from 0.922 to 0.983. Th us, considerable attention should be given to use nearly equal ramet numbers during seed orchard establishment and management operations. Th reats such as climatic change, fi re, disease and insects should be considered during seed orchards establishment. High number of populations from wide range of spe-cies should be sampled and seed orchards should be established locally depending on ecological requi...

Tree breeding studies have been started at 1964 in Turkey. Two sample seed orchards were established at the training area of Faculty of Forestry of Istanbul University in 1964 by using 10 clones. Because of low clone number, production was not aimed in those seed orchards. Later, it was aimed to establish seed orchards by the purpose of seed production. For this reason, seed transfer regions were determined for the economically important tree species. Plantation areas and seed requirements were assessed for each species. Selection of seed stands and plus trees from seed stands were followed by clonal seed orchard establishment with grafted seedlings. First clonal seed orchard was established at 1976 by P. brutia. Breeding studies had been continued in this manner until 1993. Seeds orchards established in that time generally contained 30 clones and were not tested genetically. The National Tree Breeding and Seed Production Program (NTBSP) for Turkey were implemented at 1994. Pinus br...

Although planted forests constitute 7% of the world’s forest area, they
contribute  50%  of  the  total  wood  raw  material  production.  In  this
context, very successful planted forests have been carried out in the
southern states of the USA since the 1950s. For these studies, a cooperative system where private institutions, state forestry enterprises,
and the university came together was established. Planted forest areas
have been increased approximately 15 times, and the annual average
increment has been increased five times since the 1950s. Besides, because of this success achieved in the annual average increase, rotation
age decreased from 50 to 18 years. Turkey also has more than half a
century, planted forests are carried out. Also, it is seen that a good
tree improvement experience for that Turkish red pine has the largest distribution area in Turkey. Planted forests efforts in Turkey, that
has been widely adopted by the state and the private sector and has
become an integral part of forestry management is considered not to
show  a sustainable structure.  In  this  context,  the studies  examined
plantation in the southern states of the US and made an assessment
for Turkey, proposals have been made.
Key words:Wood raw material, tree breeding, silviculture, seed orchard

Spheroid scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L. var. compacta (Tosun) Ü. Akkemik) clonal seed orchard was established in April 2004 including 823 ramets of 26 clones at 5m x 5m spacing in Eflani of Karabuk, Turkey. Five ramets per clone were chosen randomly and all of the male strobili over the entire crown on all grafts were counted in 2016 and 2017. Average numbers of male strobili per clone were ranged from 130.0 to 83710.7 for two consecutive years. Pearson correlation for two consecutive years on male strobili production was 0.91 showing stability 2016 and 2017. The top 25% of clones produced 48% of total male strobili in two years. Male fertility variation, effective status number and relative status number were 1.56, 16.61 and 0.64, respectively. Estimation of broad sense heritability and clonal coefficient of genetic variation for male production was 0.49 and 12% respectively. The parameters were discussed for management of Spheroid scots pine clonal seed orchard aiming ex situ gen...

Karabuk-Eflani’de 2004 yilinda kurulmus, Bolu-Cakmaklar orijinli Ebe saricami (Pinus sylvestris L.var. compacta (Tosun) U.Akkemik) klonal tohum bahcesinde 2016 ve 2017 yillarinda 26 klondan rastgele secilen ucer rametten 3-24 adet kozalak toplanmistir. Toplanan kozalaklar ve kozalaklardan elde edilen tohumlar ile ilgili on ozellik olculmus ve degerlendirilmistir. Iki yilin ortalamasi olarak, kozalaktan tohum veriminin % 2, 1000 tane agirliginin 6 g, kozalaktaki tohum sayisinin 12.11 adet ve cimlenme yuzdesinin % 45.75 oldugu ortaya konulmustur. Yapilan varyans analizinde klonlar ve yillar arasi yuksek varyasyonlar oldugu, klon yil etkilesiminde ise varyasyon olmadigi belirlenmistir. On ozellik icin ilk kez tahmin edilen genis anlamli kalitim derecelerinin 0.25-0.61, genetik korelasyonlarin 0.23-1.05 ve fenotipik korelasyonlarin 0.00-0.99 arasinda degistigi gorulmustur. Calisma ile ortaya konulan bulgularin, Karabuk-Eflani ve Bolu-Mengen’de bulunan ebe saricam tohum bahcelerinin ex s...

The diversity of forests, at the level of species and at the level of genetic diversity within species, is an important resource for Europe. Over the past several decades European countries have made considerable efforts to conserve the genetic diversity of tree species. According to the EUFGIS portal, there are more than 3200 genetic conservation units which harbour more than 4000 populations of about 100 tree species. An earlier analysis of the EUFGIS information revealed significant gaps in the conservation efforts in terms of the species covered and the geographical distribution of the units within the species’ ranges. Subsequently, the EUFORGEN Steering Committee established a working group to develop the pan-European genetic conservation strategy for forest trees. The process followed by the working group and its results are presented in this report

Six populations of wild cherry (Prunus avium) in Turkey were sampled and seeds were collected based on family. Three experimental
areas  (Demirköy,  İzmit,  and  Safranbolu)  were  established  with  the
grown seedlings from seeds of each family. Genetic parameters were
estimated using data for height, root collar diameter, and bud burst of
seedlings of 95 families belonging to six populations sampled at the
end of the first year.
For all traits, a significant variation was found between families both
between  population  and  within-population.  While  population-environment  (experimental  area)  interaction  was  insignificant,  familyenvironment  (experimental  area)  interaction  was  statistically  significant. When viewed at the population level, it was understood that
populations showed similar height, root collar diameter, and bud burst
in three experimental areas. Individual heritabilities were estimated
between 0.32 and 1.09 for every single experimental area and 0.27
and 0.59 for combined analyses of three experimental areas. Genetic
parameters that were estimated for the first time in Turkey have been
expected to serve the breeding and gene conservation of wild cherry.
Key Words: Wild cherry, heritability, genotype environment interaction, adaptation

Two series of Turkish red pine (Pinus brutia Ten.) progeny tests have been established for the Marmara Region Tree Breeding Zone. First series tests have been established with 158 plus trees; and second series tests have been established with the clones of 160 plus trees grown in seed orchards. In test sites, seedlings’ height and diameter (at breast height- dbh) values were measured, and using the Best Linear Unbiased Prediction (BLUP) method, breeding values of families and genetic parameters were estimated. For first series tests, the 12th years’ individual heritability values
were estimated 0.24 for height and 0.16 for diameter. Family mean heritabilities were 0.52 for height and 0.55 for diameter. For second series tests, individual heritability values were computed as 0.29 for height and 0.12 for diameter.
Family mean heritabilities were calculated as 0.54 and 0.45, respectively. Genetic correlation between height and diameter were estimated as 0.48 and 0.50 for the first and second series, respectively. Genetic correlation estimations between 4th and 12th years’ height were computed as 0.81 and 0.70 in first and second series, respectively. Type-B genetic correlations between first and second series tests were estimated as 0.54 and 1.00, and it is concluded that genotype environment interaction is not  significant.In first series tests, estimated genetic gain was very low with plus tree
selections. In second series tests, genetic gain was estimated as 4 %for height and 5 %for diameter in phenotypical seed orchards. When the best 30 clones were selected, genetic gain would rise up to 13 %and 11 %for height and diameter, respectively. When four seed orchards (No 32, 35, 40, 188) which have the highest genetic gain for height and diameter characters are used for forestation, it is clear that the new generation will grow taller and larger in diameter.
Key Words: Heritability, breeding value, genetic gain, genotype environment interaction, seed orchard

Sweetgum tree seeds were collected from 19 - 27 trees of 9 sweetgum population (Bozdağ, Çetibeli, Değirmenyanı, Günlükbaşı, Günnücek, Kıyra , Köyceğiz, Yatağan, Yılanlı) that have the highest genetic diversity determined by applying molecular markers found in the sweetgum distribution area. With these seeds, a 25 – block - progeny trial was established with 223 families in Muğla Regional Forestry Directorate , Muğla Forestry Directorate , Gökova Forestry Chieftancy in 2009. In this trial single tree plot arrangement and randomized block design were conducted. In the trial, height at establishment, first - year bottom diameter, and height, and the number of branches and second year bottom diameter, and height, and the number of branches were measured. In the assessments height at establishment was placed in the model as covariate. In all characters, differences between populations were found statistically significant. When looking into different groups Bozdag population which has the...

Page 20. 8 Estimation of Genetic Parameters of Pinus brutia in the Aegean Region of Turkey Murat Alan 1, Mehmet Ali Yıldız 2 1 Forest Tree Seeds and Tree Breeding Research Directorate PO Box 11 06560 Gazi, Ankara-Turkey Email: alanmur@ yahoo. ...

• Key message In this study, genetic variation in polycyclic growth was investigated in a young Pinus brutia Ten. study in Turkey. The number of flushes was partially under additive genetic control and was moderately correlated with the tree height at age 4.
• Context Pinus brutia is the most economically important tree species in Turkey. Previous limited studies suggested that its cyclic shoot elongation pattern can be useful for selecting seed sources for breeding and conservation of genetic resources.
• Aims Understand the degree of genetic control of terminal shoot growth, number of flushes, and total tree height at early ages and assess the genetic relationships between the traits to guide decisions for breeding and gene conservation.
• Methods Open-pollinated progenies of 188 trees from eight different seed sources were tested in three locations in the Aegean region of Turkey. Variance components, heritability and additive genetic correlations were estimated for tree height, terminal shoot length, and number of flushes.
• Results Traits were moderately under genetic control at the family. Terminal shoot length explained 76% of the variation in tree height. A strong genetic correlation (0.96) was found between tree height and terminal shoot length, while the number of flushes had a moderate genetic correlation with height (0.59). Northern seed sources tended to display less height growth, partially due to fewer flushes and lower shoot length.
• Conclusion Shoot elongation in the species is partially under additive genetic control and could be useful to select for early height in breeding programs.

Öz Ağaçlandırmalar dünya ormanlık alanının %7'sini oluşturmasına karşın, toplam odun hammaddesi üretiminin %50'sini karşılamaktadır. Bu kapsamda, ABD'nin güney eyaletlerinde 1950'lerden bu yana çok başarılı ağaçlandırma çalışmaları yürütülmektedir. Bu çalışmalar için özel kuruluşlar, devlet orman işletmeleri ve üniversitenin bir araya geldiği bir kooperatif sistemi oluşturulmuştur. 1950'lerden bu yana ağaçlandırma alanları yaklaşık 15 kat, yıllık ortalama artım ise beş kat artırılmıştır. Ayrıca yıllık ortalama artımda sağlanan bu başarının bir sonucu olarak da idare süreleri 50 yıldan 18 yıla inmiştir. Türkiye'de de yarım yüzyılı aşkın bir süredir ağaçlandırma çalışmaları yürütülmektedir. Ayrıca ağaç ıslahında da Türkiye'de en büyük yayılış alanına sahip kızılçam için iyi bir alt yapı olduğu görül-mektedir. Türkiye'deki ağaçlandırma çalışmalarının, devlet ve özel sektör tarafından geniş ölçüde benimsenmiş, ormancılık yönetiminin ayrılmaz bir parçası haline getirilmiş, sürdürülebilir bir yapı göstere-mediği düşünülmektedir. Bu kapsamda ABD'nin güney eyaletlerinde yapılan ağaçlandırma çalışmaları incelenmiş ve Türkiye için bir de-ğerlendirme yapılarak, öneriler getirilmiştir. Anahtar kelimeler: Odun hammaddesi, ağaç ıslahı, silvikültür, to-hum bahçesi Abstract Although planted forests constitute 7% of the world's forest area, they contribute 50% of the total wood raw material production. In this context, very successful planted forests have been carried out in the southern states of the USA since the 1950s. For these studies, a cooperative system where private institutions, state forestry enterprises, and the university came together was established. Planted forest areas have been increased approximately 15 times, and the annual average increment has been increased five times since the 1950s. Besides, because of this success achieved in the annual average increase, rotation age decreased from 50 to 18 years. Turkey also has more than half a century, planted forests are carried out. Also, it is seen that a good tree improvement experience for that Turkish red pine has the largest distribution area in Turkey. Planted forests efforts in Turkey, that has been widely adopted by the state and the private sector and has become an integral part of forestry management is considered not to show a sustainable structure. In this context, the studies examined plantation in the southern states of the US and made an assessment for Turkey, proposals have been made.

It is known that people collect silver linden flower for especially herbal tea and generate an income from trees growing in the state forest in Yenice of Karabuk province. But, like this utilization is both expensive and necessary a lot of labor. On the other hand, people can damage the trees during the flower collection. A linden flower orchard can be established, so, linden flower can be produced in lower cost, labor, and more quantity than existing production. The inventory of area including the trees which can produce linden flower is done, the plus tree-based flower production is selected, the seedlings are grown from seeds of each selected plus tree. A linden orchard is established with one-year-old seedlings. To select plus trees, a simple selection index is used. A number of flower in a formation (ranged 4-10) and percent of the production of the tree are included in the index. Using the index, 20-30 plus trees are selected. Then, seeds are collected from each plus tree. The linden flower orchard is established using 600 seedlings. If such a linden flower orchard is established, linden flower production can be plenty, quality, steady and without the damaging tree of in natural forest.

To test how efficiently plantations and seed orchards captured genetic diversity from natural Anatolian black pine (Pinus nigra Arnold subspecies pallasiana Holmboe) seed stands, seed sources were chosen from 3 different categories (seed stands (SS), seed orchards (SO) and plantations (P)) comprising 4 different breeding zones of the species in Turkey. Twenty-five trees (mother trees) were selected from each SS, SO and P seed sources and were screened with 11 Random Amplified Polymorphic DNA (RAPD) markers. Estimated genetic diversity parameters were found to be generally high in all Anatolian black pine seed sources and the majority of genetic diversity is contained within seed sources (94%). No significant difference in genetic diversity parameters (numbers of effective alleles, % of polymorphic loci and heterozygosity) among seed source categories was found, except for a slight increase in observed heterozygosities in seed orchards. For all seed source categories, observed heterozygosity values were higher (H o = 0.49 for SS, 0.55 for SO and 0.49 for P) than expected ones (H e = 0.40 for SS, 0.39 for SO and 0.38 for P) indicating the excess of heterozygotes. In general, genetic diversity in seed stands has been transferred successfully into seed orchards and plantations. However, the use of seeds from seed orchards can increase the amount of genetic diversity in plantations further. The study also demonstrated that number of plus-tree clones (25-38) used in the establishment of seed orchards was adequate to capture the high level of diversity from natural stands.

The chapter includes planted forest history and its future in Tukey after the founding of the Republic of Turkey in 1923. It has been argued that planted forests have become unimportant in recent years. Still, due to the low productivity of Turkey's forests and the increasing need for raw wood materials, planted forests should be an integral part of forest management, as it is all over the world.

The book is titled "In 100th Anniversary of Republic Turkey Forestry and Its Future". Book sections are policy, administration and organizational structure, forest enterprise, education and forestry research, ownership, climate change, forest fires, women in forestry, soil and ecology, forest botany, forest management (planning), natural regeneration and maintenance, plantation, forest yield and biometrics, forest products industry, basin management, flood control, forest roads and transportation, forest village relations, urban rent focus forest and forest entomology. Each section's writer (writers) evaluates the historical perspective and gives recommendations for the next hundred years in the book.

The restoration principles of post-fire fires were presented, post-fire regeneration in Turkish red pine forests, post-fire reconstruction of sclerophyllous forests and maquis, and post-fire regeneration in black pine forests are explained. In light of these explanations, general results are given.

The evolutionary process and speciation concepts in forest trees have been emphasized. The relationship between geological formations, geography, climate, and plant communities was detailed using fossil findings, then forest fires and evolution processes were explained. Finally, attention was drawn to the evolution of Mediterranean Ecosystems and the relationship between forest fires. Some suggestions were made by emphasizing the limitation of genetic research on forest fires.

The history of plant domestication dates back to 10-15 thousand years ago,  and it is understood that it has significantly contributed to the development of  civilization. In this context, while it is claimed that the domestication of grains  has improved the administrative structure and social systems, it is stated that perennial plants such as fruit trees and grapes play a much more critical role in  establishing cities. Domestication has been begun using plants in their natural environment and continued until their initial state was modified and improved  according to the requirements. Although the history of domestication is quite
old, it is also seen that the number of domesticated plants is relatively low when the number of existing plants is considered. The domestication history of forest  trees relative to agricultural plants is relatively recent. The reasons are that forest trees  are  less  critical  for  human  needs  than  agricultural  plants  and  are  longlived and sized plants. Silver linden (Tilia tomentosaMoench), a forest tree, has the widest distribution in Turkey and is the most commonly used in flower production. Domestication activities were started in 2017 on the silver linden
in the Yenice District of Karabük Province, where silver linden is common. It has been planned to establish a linden flower orchard within this framework. It  is  designed  so  that  the  linden  flower  orchard,  which  can  be  established  in the  near  future,  will  be  managed  just  like  fruit  orchards.  In  this  context,  it can  be  applied  to  irrigating,  fertilizing,  and  pruning  to  obtain  abundant  and more quality (standard) flower  production. When linden flowers are produced in a standard and sustainable way, the damage caused by the existing flower  collection system to the linden trees in the forest can be eliminated. At the same
time, new facilities (packaging, obtaining compounds, and processing) can be established, providing more added value to the local people. On the other hand, it can be possible to increase the production of linden honey in the region thanks to being commonality of silver linden.

Keywords:Tree breeding, Agroforestry, Linden flower orchard, Plus tree

Pinus nigra is one of the most economically important species in Turkey. In addition, it can grow close to step ecosystems and establish high forests in good conditions, distributed throughout almost the whole of Turkey. Studies on provenance tests and the tree breeding of Pinus nigra in Turkey were reviewed and presented a perspective for the future.

Ülke genelinde yaşanan orman alanı artışı ormanlardaki ağaç serveti ve cari artıma da yansımaktadır. Bu artışların odun üretimine yansıması olağandır. Ancak, özellikle son yıllarda odun üretim miktarlarında yaşanan artışlar alan, servet ve artımda yaşanan artışların çok üzerine çıkmış durumdadır.

Turkey is located within the latitudes of 36-42° and longitudes
of 26-45°. In terms of plant diversity, it is described as "Asia
Mineure". In this context, the number of plant species in Turkey
reaches to the number of plant species distributed in the entire
European continent. The number of plant taxa (at the level of
species, subspecies and variety) in the flora of Turkey, to which
new plants are added every year, is around 12000.
Due to differences in climate, topography, and geography, It is
stated in scientific publications that the number of forest tree and
shrub species naturally found in Turkey has reached 631. It is
also observed that the diversity of species within the genus is
quite high. One of them is the Cherry genus (Cerasus Duhamel)
including 9 different species that grow naturally: C. microcarpa,
C. angustifolia, C. incana, C. brachypetala var. bornmuelleri,
C. prostrata, C. mahaleb, C. avium and C. vulgaris. Taxas of
these species are: C. angustifolia (Spach) Browicz var. syntenisi
(Schneider) Browicz, C. incana (Pallas) Spach var. velutina
Browicz, C. mahalep (L.) Miller. alpina, C. microcarpa (C.A.Meyer) Boiss. subsp. tortusa (Boiss. et Hauss.) Browicz,
C. prostrata (Lab.) Ser. var. glabrifolia (Moris) Browicz. As can
be seen, totally, nine species and 14 taxa of wild cherry naturally
grow in Turkey.
Wild cherry (Prunus avium or Cerasus avium) contains an
important potential for Turkish forestry in terms of both fruit
growing and timber. Wild cherry both improves the ecosystem
as a mixture tree and enriches the biodiversity in forests due to
its fruits. On the other hand, its fruit can be used as food for
human. However, there is no breeding and gene conservation
program for wild cherry in Turkey. In this study, seedlings of
height, root collar diameter, thickest branch diameter and branch
angle closest to the root in an experimental area established in
Safranbolu were measured and evaluated in seedlings reaching
at the age of 3 from 6 populations including 83 families. The
experimental design was the randomized complete block with
single tree plot. Long term climate data of populations used to
reveal correlations between seedling characteristics and climate
data (precipitation, temperature, relative humidity). The
correlations were also estimated between altitude, latitude and
longitude of populations and seedling characteristics.
The average sapling length was 84.05 cm, the diameter of the
root collar was 12.30 mm, the diameter of the thickest branch
was 5.12 mm and the branch angle closest to the root was 45.51
degrees in the experimental area.
High differences (variation) were found between and within
populations in terms of seedling height and root collar diameter.
In the thickest branch diameter, it was observed that the
differences within the population were high. There was no
difference between and within populations in branch angle.
Alaplı population made the best growth in seedling height and
root collar diameter, and the Bölüklü population made the lowest
growth. While the altitude of Alaplı population is 350 m, the
altitude of Bölüklü is 1090 m. Except for branch angle, the
growth of seedlings showed a negative, statistically significant,
and low correlation (-0.27 and -0.48) with altitude and did not
show a relationship with latitude and longitude. Again, while a
positive, statistically significant, and low or moderate
correlation was observed between seedling growth and
precipitation (0.40-0.50) and relative humidity (0.31 and 0.42),
there was no significant relationship between temperature and
maximum temperature and seedling growth. However, minimum temperature of Azdavay is -22.5 degrees. This
temperature was found to be remarkable in terms of the
distribution of wild cherries.
By using all traits, the similarity of populations has been
estimated in a cluster. Firstly, two main groups were formed as
Alaplı and all other populations. All other populations formed
two subgroups, Bölüklü and other populations (Azdavay,
Gölcük, Gümeli and Dranos). Gümeli and Dranos were the
closest populations to each other. There was no regional
grouping, and the populations of the Marmara Region and the
Western Black Sea Region were mixed. In addition to this
regional mixing, population elevations are thought to be more
decisive in clustering of populations in terms of similarity. As a
matter of fact, the population of Alaplı (385 m), which has the
lowest elevation, differed from the other population, and
Bölüklü (1090 m), the population with the highest elevation,
also differed from other populations.
The study aimed to reveal genetic and geographic variations
within and between populations for wild cherry for traits related
to the growth and wood quality of wild cherry. Considering the
findings are at an early age, with this study, which was carried out for the first time in this context in Turkey, positive results
have emerged for tree breeding within the framework of
sustainable management of natural resources. In addition, it has
been suggested that 6 populations should be gene conservation
forests in order to maintain biodiversity in the newly established
forests and to secure tree breeding activities.

Key words: Biodiversity, geographic variation, tree breeding,
gene conservation, plantation

The diversity of forests, at the level of species and at the level of genetic diversity within species, is an important resource for Europe. Over the past several decades European countries have made considerable efforts to conserve the genetic diversity of tree species. According to the EUFGIS portal1, there are more than 3200 genetic conservation units which harbour more than 4000 populations of about 100 tree species. An earlier analysis of the EUFGIS information revealed significant gaps in the conservation efforts in terms of the species covered and the geographical distribution of the units within the species’ ranges.
Subsequently, the EUFORGEN Steering Committee established a working group to develop the pan-European genetic conservation strategy for forest trees. The process followed by the working group and its results are presented in this report. For each pilot tree species, the strategy calls for a core network of dynamic conservation units. These units are not interconnected by gene flow, but together capture the current genetic
diversity across the European continent. In addition, the working group recommends: that countries upload all outstanding data to the EUFGIS database; that progress be monitored; that resources be allocated to the EUFGIS database; that a strategy to mitigate the negative effects of climate change on forest genetic resources be developed; and that EUFORGEN continues operating through working groups.

The topic is the relationship between forest fire and the seed transfer zone of Pinus brutia (Turkish red pine). After a forest fire, there are three options: a) no treatment (natural), b) leaving thin branches with cones if necessary seed supplement and c) seedling plantation. when b and c is implemented, rules of seed transfer are needed. It was explained that base of seed transfer rules including natural selection. when not tracing seed transfer rules, production loss was shown from some researches using its examples. As a summary, ıt was underlined ımpotartance of seed transfer rules and process of evolution for Turkish red pine the reforestation after a forest fire.