GIS-Facilitated Seed Germination and Multifaceted Evaluation of the Endangered <i>Abies marocana</i> Trab. (Pinaceae) Enabling Conservation and Sustainable Exploitation
Stefanos Hatzilazarou,
Mohamed El Haissoufi,
Elias Pipinis,
Stefanos Kostas,
Mohamed Libiad,
Abdelmajid Khabbach,
Fatima Lamchouri,
Soumaya Bourgou,
Wided Megdiche-Ksouri,
Zeineb Ghrabi-Gammar,
Vasiliki Aslanidou,
Vasileios Greveniotis,
Michalia A. Sakellariou,
Ioannis Anestis,
Georgios Tsoktouridis,
Nikos Krigas
Affiliations
Stefanos Hatzilazarou
Laboratory of Floriculture, School of Agriculture, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, 54124 Thessaloniki, Greece
Mohamed El Haissoufi
Laboratory of Natural Substances, Pharmacology, Environment, Modelling, Health and Quality of Life (SNAMOPEQ), Polydisciplinary Faculty of Taza, Sidi Mohamed Ben Abdellah University, B.P. 1223, Taza Gare, Taza 35000, Morocco
Elias Pipinis
Laboratory of Silviculture, School of Forestry and Natural Environment, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, 54124 Thessaloniki, Greece
Stefanos Kostas
Laboratory of Floriculture, School of Agriculture, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, 54124 Thessaloniki, Greece
Mohamed Libiad
Laboratory of Natural Substances, Pharmacology, Environment, Modelling, Health and Quality of Life (SNAMOPEQ), Polydisciplinary Faculty of Taza, Sidi Mohamed Ben Abdellah University, B.P. 1223, Taza Gare, Taza 35000, Morocco
Abdelmajid Khabbach
Laboratory of Natural Substances, Pharmacology, Environment, Modelling, Health and Quality of Life (SNAMOPEQ), Polydisciplinary Faculty of Taza, Sidi Mohamed Ben Abdellah University, B.P. 1223, Taza Gare, Taza 35000, Morocco
Fatima Lamchouri
Laboratory of Natural Substances, Pharmacology, Environment, Modelling, Health and Quality of Life (SNAMOPEQ), Polydisciplinary Faculty of Taza, Sidi Mohamed Ben Abdellah University, B.P. 1223, Taza Gare, Taza 35000, Morocco
Soumaya Bourgou
Centre de Biotechnologie de Borj-Cédria, Laboratoire des Plantes Aromatiques et Médicinales, B.P. 901, Tunis 2050, Tunisia
Wided Megdiche-Ksouri
Centre de Biotechnologie de Borj-Cédria, Laboratoire des Plantes Aromatiques et Médicinales, B.P. 901, Tunis 2050, Tunisia
Zeineb Ghrabi-Gammar
Institut National Agronomique de Tunisie, Université de Carthage, 43 Avenue Charles Nicolle, Cité Mahrajène, Tunis 1082, Tunisia
Vasiliki Aslanidou
Laboratory of Floriculture, School of Agriculture, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, 54124 Thessaloniki, Greece
Vasileios Greveniotis
Institute of Industrial and Forage Crops, Hellenic Agricultural Organization Demeter, 41335 Larisa, Greece
Michalia A. Sakellariou
Institute of Plant Breeding and Genetic Resources, Hellenic Agricultural Organization Demeter, 57001 Thermi, Greece
Ioannis Anestis
Institute of Plant Breeding and Genetic Resources, Hellenic Agricultural Organization Demeter, 57001 Thermi, Greece
Georgios Tsoktouridis
Institute of Plant Breeding and Genetic Resources, Hellenic Agricultural Organization Demeter, 57001 Thermi, Greece
Nikos Krigas
Institute of Plant Breeding and Genetic Resources, Hellenic Agricultural Organization Demeter, 57001 Thermi, Greece
In the frame of the sustainable use of neglected and underutilized phytogenetic resources, and along with numerous studies in Abies spp. due to the innate conservation value of fir forests, this research focused on the Moroccan endemic fir, Abies marocana. The aim was triple-fold: to assess its potential and dynamics in economic sectors for sustainable exploitation; to determine the ecological conditions in which the species naturally thrives; and to find the appropriate requirements for its successful seed germination. We sourced multifaceted evaluations for three economic sectors performed in three levels, using 48 attributes and eight criteria from previous studies of our own, and the relevant species-specific assessments are overviewed herein in detail. The species’ ecological profile was constructed using Geographical Information Systems (GIS) and open access data (Worldclim). Seed germination trials were performed to examine the effect of cold stratification (non-stratified, one- and two-months stratified seeds), the influence of four temperatures (10 °C, 15 °C, 20 °C, and 25 °C), and interactions thereof in relation to germination percentage (GP) and mean germination time (MGT). The experiments showed that the interaction of cold stratification and germination temperature has a strong effect on the GP and MGT of A. marocana seeds. A detailed GIS-derived ecological profile of the focal species was created in terms of precipitation and temperature natural regimes, enabling the interpretation of the seed germination results. The multifaceted evaluations reveal an interesting potential of the Moroccan fir in different economic sectors, which is mainly compromised due to extant research gaps, unfavorable conditions, and low stakeholder attraction. The findings of this study fill in extant research gaps, contribute to in situ and ex situ conservation strategies, and can facilitate the sustainable exploitation of this emblematic local endemic plant of northern Morocco.
