FOREWORD

Since the XXth International Horticultural Congress in 1978 in Sydney we have published on request of our members for each Congress several volumes of selected oral or poster presentations in Acta Horticulturae.

1978	Sydney	numbers 105–108
1982	Hamburg	numbers 130–140
1986	Davis	numbers 200–211
1990	Florence	numbers 294, 295, 296, 300,
		and 303, more numbers will follow

We will follow for the XXIIIrd IHC of 1990 in Florence the same procedure and we have made firm commitments with the Chairmen of Sections, Commissions and Working Groups to publish these volumes at the end of 1991/beginning 1992.

It is clear that these publications can only be realized with the important assistance of these Chairmen, some moderators and editors, the ISHS Secretariat and the authors using the ISHS-publishing system.


PREFACE

The highlight of the year 1990 in the world of horticulturalists was the XXIII. International Horticultural Congress held in Florence, Italy.

This great event provided not only an excellent opportunity for the display of various facets of horticulture, but also enabled horticulturalists to exhibit the latest in research achievements. Meetings of the various commissions also marked milestones in the history of the Society. Such was the case at the meeting of the Section 'Medicinal and Aromatic Plants' where, accompanied by the vivid interest of participants, leaders of both the Section and Working Groups were elected. Accordingly, the following structure has emerged:

Section Medicinal and Aromatic Plants:

Chairman: P. Tétényi, Budakalász, Hungary

Vice-Chairman: Ch. Franz, Vienna, Austria

Working Groups:

Culture of Medicinal and Aromatic Plants:

Chairman: D. Palevitch, Bet Dagan, Israel

Vice-Chairperson: K.P. Svoboda, Auchincruive, UK

Secretary: A. Máthé, Budapest, Hungary

Preservation and Exploitation of the Genetic Resources of Medicinal and Aromatic Plants:

Chairman: R. Cassini, Paris, France

Vice-Chairperson: Dr. A. Chavagnat, Angers, France

Secretary: J. Bernáth, Budakalász, Hungary

Quality of Medicinal and Aromatic Plants:

Chairman: Ch. Franz, Vienna, Austria

Vice-Chairperson: H. Schilcher, Berlin, Germany

Secretary: J.E. Simon, West Lafayette, USA

Members of the Section indicated wishes to establish collaboration with the Commission Tropical and Subtropical Horticulture. As a contact person J. Touche, Avignon (France) was elected.

As a special feature the section organized a post-congress tour of three days, via Italy, Yugoslavia and Austria, which took participants to the International Symposium on Medicinal and Aromatic Plants organized by the Research Institute for Medicinal Plants, Budakalász (Hungary) on the occasion of the Institute's 75th Anniversary. The successful festive meeting was attended by more than 70 colleagues from 23 three foreign countries of 5 continents. Parallel with the scientific programme was held the preparatory meeting of the World Congress of Medicinal and Aromatic Plants, in 1992., Maastricht, Netherlands (WOCMAP) with 25 participants and the business meeting of EUCARPIA Working Group 'Medicinal and Spice Plants', with 32 participants.

The present volume comprises the text of selected oral- and poster-presentations of both scientific meetings illustrating the efficacy of specialist engaged in medicinal and aromatic plant research.

The Editors


OPENING ADDRESS

Mr. Chairman, Dr. Nikolits from the Hungarian Pharmaceutical Society, Professor Tetenyi, chairman of the Section of Medicinal and Aromatic plants of the International Society for Horticultural Sciences, Members of that Society, Ladies and Gentlemen, Friends.

It’s a happy day for Professor Tétényi, for the people of this Institute and for you, participants at this meeting to be able to assist at the official ceremony of the 75th anniversary of the Hungarian Research Institute for Medicinal Plants at Budakalasz. I do not think that you can find easily in other countries an institute of that age for this subject.

As I have my normal job in the Ministry of Agriculture for International Research Co-operation it is a pleasure for me to be able to be here after the 23rd International Horticultural Congress held last week in Italy. I’m happy that so many participants of that Congress have made a post-congress-tour for visiting the Hungarian Research Institute for Medicinal Plants.

We are present here at a special symposium. In 1977, the first symposium of our Society on Spice and Medicinal Plants was organized by Prof. Fritz from Weihenstephan. After that symposium a Working Group was started on Medicinal and Aromatic Plants and the chairman elected was Professor Tétényi. In 1982 the Council of our Society decided to have a special section on Medicinal and Aromatic Plants. We had some discussion about the name but finally the Council has accepted this name. Professor Tétényi became the chairman and still is in this important function.

Beside this section we have also a Section on Vegetables, on Fruits, on Ornamentals and finally recently, last week, a Section on Root and Tuber Crops. For scientific subjects we have in our society 9 commissions: on Urban Horticulture, Plant Substrates, Horticultural Engineering, Protected Cultivation, Plant Protection, Education and Training, Economics and Management, Nomenclature and Registration and finally Tropical and Subtropical Horticulture. With 62 Working Groups, 3011 individual members, 250 organization and 54 member countries in all continents of the world we actively participate in research.

We are stimulating this wide field, organizing 25–30 Symposia per year on different subjects. We are publishing the proceedings of all these meetings in "Acta Horticulturae".

The Section of Medicinal and Aromatic Plants has already organized seven symposia and this is number eight. In two years from now the Section will organize with many other international organizations the First World Congress on Medicinal Plants for Human Welfare. An important aspect of that meeting is the contact between different scientific organizations of both professional as well as governmental origine. But also the users of the work you are doing are invited to be present. And these users are: the fresh consumers, the people doing post-harvest handling, the packing, the transforming and also the industry for pharmaceutical or aromatic products.

Although in many fields of agricultural research restrictions are made on the budgets in many European countries horticultural research remains in a strong position as with increasing economic development the demand for food, flowers and ornamentals, new vegetables and especially medicinal and aromatic plants is increasing.

Our Society has also a role in publishing. Quarterly we publish the magazine "Chronica Horticulturae" and sometimes we have special publications. At the congress we have announced the start of a new directory: "Horticultural Research International No. V", with information about 70 countries, 1800 institutes and more than 15000 scientists working all over the world. We have recently finished a standard publication with 2 volumes on fruit, genetic resources, with 19 temperate fruits species. We have also just finished, 20 years after the first edition of that publication, the new "Dictionary on Horticultural Plants" and in relation with the new development in agriculture, also on agricultural plants.

At the occasion of the 75th anniversary I would like to offer this Dictionary to the Institute, so to the director, Professor Tetenyi. You can find 6000 words in it, in 9 languages. Professor Tetenyi has done a remarkable job in the Section Medicinal and Aromatic Plants of the Horticultural Society and he has done a good job in having the "Newsletter" spread all over the World. He has realised many other stimulating activities for medicinal and aromatic plants all over the world and he has made and maintained many conntacts with many international organizations. Therefore we have decided to offer him a personal distinction and I will give him now the "Silver Pin" of our society.

Ladies and Gentlemen. If you have been at the Congress, you have certainly visited our desk in the building B. In case you could not be there, the Secretariat will arrange here on Wednesday and Thursday morning a desk near the conference room. I hope you will become one of our members.

I wish you during this symposium interesting lectures, good discussions and nice excursions. Have a Good Symposium and a fine time in this splendid town of Budapest!

Köszönöm! Thank you very much!