ISHS Acta Horticulturae 579: II Balkan Symposium on Vegetables and Potatoes
PREFACE |
| Authors: | G. Paroussi, D. Voyiatzis, E. Paroussis, the ISHS board of Directors |
| Abstract:
FOREWORD It is no mean achievement for the editors of any scientific publication to complete their task and present the result of their toil to the public. It is, therefore, a great pleasure that we are in a position to hand this volume of the Proceedings of the 2nd Balkan Symposium on Vegetables and Potatoes to the scientific community. This has been a very successful Symposium in many respects. It achieved a high attendance by nearly 150 scientists, mainly from the Balkan countries, but also from Egypt, France, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, Japan and USA. In this international scientific meeting about 142 papers were presented covering all aspects of modern horticultural research on vegetables and potatoes. More important, the Symposium gave a unique opportunity to scientists of Balkan countries to meet, to present their work to their peers and to open channels of collaboration. This volume contains research papers from all aspects of horticultural science as they were presented in the various sessions of the Symposium. In these, the progress in horticultural research in the Balkans is adequately presented and the need for further basic research to address problems of modern horticulture is clearly defined. The papers have been grouped in the following group categories: Genetics, Biotechnology, Seed technology and Propagation, Physiology, Culture and Management, Nutrition and Irrigation, Post-harvest technology and Quality, Integrated production, Plant protection and Economics and Marketing. In arranging the papers under the various headings we felt that no distinction should be made between oral and poster presentations, since we believe that each paper should be judged on its scientific merit rather than on how it was presented. All papers have been reviewed by at least two experts in the respective field, prior publication, but final responsibility for the content of each paper lies with the author/s. We firmly believe that the most important achievement of this Symposium was to bring in contact scientists of neighboring countries, living so close together but till recently so unaware of each other’s work. This Symposium has proved that ample scientific potential exists in the Balkans. Given adequate support by the governments and the European Union, research on vegetables and potatoes can contribute a lot not only to the advancement of science but also to the improvement of the life of all people living in this part of Europe. Apart from the scientific lectures and discussions, participants appreciated highly the opportunity to discuss technical horticultural problems and developments during the FAO workshop organized in parallel with the sessions, on the research carried on the horticultural crops (protected and in the open field) in the Balkan countries. Regretfully, this Symposium was marked by the unexpected loss of Professor Philippe Boxus, who passed away in the eve of the Symposium while preparing to participate as an invited speaker. This volume of the Proceedings is dedicated to his Memory. March 2002
Georgia Paroussi The Editors
PREFACE The ISHS Board of Directors | |
