First conservation area for wild relatives of crops in the Harz!

First conservation area for wild relatives of crops in the Harz!

Quedlinburg, Deutschland - The preservation of rare wild plants is increasingly moving into the spotlight, especially in Germany. On July 18, 2025, a significant project was launched in the "Trog" natural monument at Quedlinburg: the first genetic conservation area for wild relatives of crops. This initiative is part of a national strategy of the Federal Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Home, which aims to secure plant genetic resources in its natural habitat. So reports mdr

In total, up to sixty such genetic conservation areas in Germany are to be set up. In the conservation area "Trog", which is coordinated by the Julius Kühn Institute, 18 species of wild plants have already been identified, which are important in agriculture and nutrition. Examples of this are the wild carrots, the common asparagus and the furrow fold. These plants are not only part of our nature, they can also be crucial for the breeding of new, resistant varieties.

wild relatives and their meaning

Wild carrot and furrow vicinity are wonderful examples of the often overlooked but indispensable wild relatives of our crops. While the cultivated carrot is full of carotene, the wild variant is thinner and has lower carotene content. The furrow vault, on the other hand,, which is rather spurned by farm animals, plays an important role in dry, nutrient-poor soils, since it acts as a floor strength and thus serves to protect erosion.

The preservation of these wild plants is not only important for biodiversity, but also for the development of climate -like or disease -resistant varieties. While around 30,000 plant species are currently edible and only around 150 are of importance for human nutrition, many agricultural measures only focus on a few types of culture, which could endanger diversity in the long term, such as IDW explained.

a sustainable initiative

A regional Schäfer, Dietmar Festerling, actively supports the conservation area. The grazing with sheep not only prevents the bushes, open floor points are also created that promote and maintain biodiversity. In the coming years, seeds will continuously be collected, which will be stored in Genbanken to preserve the genetic resources of these important plants.

In addition, the National specialist program for plant genetic resources to secure and increase their use. The program sees itself as a long -term measure to preserve genetic resources in situ and ex situ to get the numerous advantages of plant diversity for our nutrition.

The maintenance project in the Harz clearly shows how important the protection of less well -known, wild plants is for our agriculture. With such initiatives, a valuable contribution to securing our food bases and the preservation of biological diversity can be made.