ISHS Acta Horticulturae 531: II ISHS Conference on Fruit Production in the Tropics and Subtropics
PREFACE |
| Authors: | M. Janssens, M. Blanke, J. Pohlan |
| Abstract:
The world's largest number of, mostly under-exploited, fruit species are contained in the tropics and subtropics. For scientists involved in (sub-) tropical fruit research in Germany, discussion of their investigation had been limited to all too rare occasions. In organising this 2nd ISHS Conference on Fruit Production in the Tropics and Subtropics, it was decided to give a most actual picture of what was going on in the field of tropical fruit research. For this reason abstracts were accepted until one month ahead of the conference. Moreover, the conference was meant to exchange information and to correct the presentations from discussions with peers. Finally, all efforts were made to publish the proceedings timely. These proceedings are dedicated to Prof. Peter Lüdders for his achievements with (sub-) tropical fruits. As the director of the “Fachgebiet Obstbau (Tropen und Subtropen) der Humboldt Universität zu Berlin”, he instigated the 'l. Tropischer Obstbautag' in view of meeting the growing demand for exchange of experimental results in the domain of tropical fruits. We thank our colleague for all the good work he achieved in the field of tropical fruits and wish him and his wife to savour a well-deserved pension life. By some extraordinary coincidence, Peter Lüdders retired exactly 200 years after Humboldt departed at the age of 29 years for a long exploratory journey and endeavour in South America in 1799. Hence, this 2nd Conference on Tropical Fruits, not only honoured a widely esteemed colleague but also paid tribute to the great explorer Alexander Humboldt, who described numerous newly discovered plants. This same discovery spirit could be felt during our June venue as numerous contributions were devoted to rather new fruit species or to fruit crops still under domestication. The Federal Ministry BML honoured us with the presence of Dr. Hubricht who gave the welcome address and officially opened the congress on Thursday morning. Dr. Brügger, chairman of the Association of German Fruit Importers introduced the participants to the trade of (sub) tropical fruits and fruit quality standards. The congress sponsors, without whose financial contribution this meeting and social events would not have been possible in this prestigious way, deserve special gratitude: BAYER Co. not only sponsored this truly international congress, but also provided tours of the BAYER Monheim laboratories guided by Dr. Reinicke and Dr. Koch as well as of the TROPICARIUM by Mr. Linkenbach with explanations of the tropical plants, followed by a very appropriate reception in the TROPICARIUM on the first evening of the congress. BLACKWELL Scientific Publishers displayed their wide range of books and journals encompassing all aspects of plant cultivation. PPSystems exhibited their plant physiology instrumentation suited to measure photosynthesis and transpiration of plants and environmental parameters especially in (sub) tropical conditions. Substantial financial support from Firma D' Agnone Papier (Living Paper) and not the least from GEFFRUB (Gesellschaft von Freunden und Förderern der Rheinischen Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität Bonn) should be acknowledged. The great efforts of the numerous organising staff behind the scene are appreciated, in particularly Dr. Holger Himdorf who organised a memorable BBQ evening. We wish you a pleasant reading and the irresistible drift to unveil more of the phenomenal tropical bio-diversity. | |
