Center for Study and Preservation of Sievers Apple Tree to be set up in Almaty

"Sievers apple tree(Lat. Málus sievérsii) is a wild fruit species of apple trees growing on the foothills of Central Asia and Kazakhstan. It was first described in 1793 by German botanist Johann Sievers, after whom the plant was named. Genetic studies confirmed that the Sievers apple tree is the ancestor of most cultivated varieties of apple trees. That is why Kazakhstan is recognized as the birthplace of apples," the press service of the city's Botanical Garden reported.

A unique genetic pool of the Sievers apple tree is preserved in the territory of the Main Botanical Garden of the Institute of Botany and Phytointroduction, which includes more than 170 forms, selected in natural populations of mountain fruit forests.

"Despite the enormous value and uniqueness of apple forests, in recent decades there has been a catastrophic decrease in the habitats of this unique forest-forming species. Sievers apple is listed in the Red Book of Kazakhstan (2014) and is protected by the International Union for Conservation of Nature," the representatives of the Botanical Garden say.

Several laboratories at the Institute of Botany and Phytointroduction are engaged in the study and preservation of the Sievers apple, including the Dzhangaliyev specialized laboratory for the protection of the gene pool and introduction of fruit plants.

"This task is set today to the new Center for the Study and Preservation of the Sievers Apple, which will expand research and reach a new level of conservation and restoration of apple forests. Comprehensive studies of apple forests in Kazakhstan will allow developing scientific and practical recommendations for the effective conservation, restoration and rational use of apple forests," a press release reads.