Genotyping of Grapevine Varieties from Garfagnana (Northern Tuscany): Evidence of a Historical Center of Diversity

Abstract

The aim of this investigation was to recover, characterize, and increase the value of local grapevine varieties from Garfagnana, a mountainous area situated in the north of Tuscany (located in central Italy). A total of 130 accessions (vines) were identified in old Garfagnana vineyards, characterized by Organisation Internationale de la Vigne et du Vin morphological-phenological and productive parameters, and genotyped with 14 microsatellite loci. The microsatellite analysis identified 50 genotypes. Some of these genotypes matched Tuscan genotypes, others corresponded to varieties cultivated in other Italian and European regions, and 18 appeared to be genotypes currently identified only in Garfagnana and presumably autochthonous to this area. Cluster and similarity analyses based on both microsatellite and morphology data indicated a clear grouping of the majority of the autochthonous genotypes from Garfagnana. A parentage analysis revealed that the Garfagnana autochthonous genotypes are highly first degree–related among each other, suggesting that Garfagnana is a distinct historical center of diversity of cultivated varieties. The data from all varieties have been entered into the Italian Vitis Database (www.vitisdb.it).