SAVE Foundation (Safeguard for Agricultural Varieties in Europe)

Plantinventory

Monitoring Institute for Rare Breeds and Seeds in Europe

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Historical inventory of Swiss cultivated plants

The Monitoring Institute has developped a new working instrument for persons and institutions active in the area of in-situ conservation of cultivated plants: the 'Historical inventory of Swiss cultivated plants' (OldSeeds database). The inventory which exists in form of a database offers historically authentic information about vegetable, potato and spice herb varieties which were cultivated, traded or examined in Switzerland between 1800 and 1960. Altogether, 5'528 varieties with 43'407 types of variety information (variety catalogues, literature, newspaper articles) were recorded. The database is available on CD-ROM. Information about 5'500 varieties are thus easily and uncomplicated available, e.g. time period and type of the historically authentic information, original texts ranging from individual characteristics to papers consisting of many pages. The user is able to retrieve a 'variety description', compiled from different sources easily and without problems.

First tests have shown that the database is a practical working instrument to gather information on the cultivation or for the historical examination of a variety. Within the frame of the project, it was stated again that seed trading was and still is linked with different countries. It would probably make sense to investigate in other countries as well and to complete this OldSeeds database with international information. But the database already offers an extensive working aid for the neighbouring countries, particularly the German-speaking and French-speaking region. The CD-ROM includes a German and a French version of the database (for Macintosh as well as for Windows). The project was financed by the Swiss Federal Ministry for Agriculture, within the frame of the National Plan of Action for the conservation and sustainable use of the plant genetic resources for nutrition and agriculture.

The CD-ROM may be ordered (by adding Euro 15.-) from the Monitoring Institute, Schneebergstr. 17, CH-9000 St.Gallen/Switzerland

office(at)save-foundation.net

SAVE Head Office
Joseph-Belli-Weg 5
D-78467 Konstanz
Germany

09-06, 2003


	Plantinventory
	Monitoring Institute for Rare Breeds and Seeds in Europe
back to Publicationlist back to Projects	Historical inventory of Swiss cultivated plants The Monitoring Institute has developped a new working instrument for persons and institutions active in the area of in-situ conservation of cultivated plants: the 'Historical inventory of Swiss cultivated plants' (OldSeeds database). The inventory which exists in form of a database offers historically authentic information about vegetable, potato and spice herb varieties which were cultivated, traded or examined in Switzerland between 1800 and 1960. Altogether, 5'528 varieties with 43'407 types of variety information (variety catalogues, literature, newspaper articles) were recorded. The database is available on CD-ROM. Information about 5'500 varieties are thus easily and uncomplicated available, e.g. time period and type of the historically authentic information, original texts ranging from individual characteristics to papers consisting of many pages. The user is able to retrieve a 'variety description', compiled from different sources easily and without problems. First tests have shown that the database is a practical working instrument to gather information on the cultivation or for the historical examination of a variety. Within the frame of the project, it was stated again that seed trading was and still is linked with different countries. It would probably make sense to investigate in other countries as well and to complete this OldSeeds database with international information. But the database already offers an extensive working aid for the neighbouring countries, particularly the German-speaking and French-speaking region. The CD-ROM includes a German and a French version of the database (for Macintosh as well as for Windows). The project was financed by the Swiss Federal Ministry for Agriculture, within the frame of the National Plan of Action for the conservation and sustainable use of the plant genetic resources for nutrition and agriculture.	The CD-ROM may be ordered (by adding Euro 15.-) from the Monitoring Institute, Schneebergstr. 17, CH-9000 St.Gallen/Switzerland

office(at)save-foundation.net SAVE Head Office Joseph-Belli-Weg 5 D-78467 Konstanz Germany			09-06, 2003