MACEDONIAN AUTOCHTHONOUS VARIETIES: EMBROIDERED PEPPERS (Capsicum annuum L.)

Апстракт

In the Republic of Macedonia, pepper is one of the main ingredients in almost every dish, either fresh, dried, processed or as a condiment. The different agroclimatic conditions and soil types, as well as spontaneous crossing and selection led to creation of phenotypically different locally adapted landraces. Embroidered pepper is a unique type of Macedonian pepper with very specific fruit appearance, taste and use. It is clearly distinguished from other pepper types by the specific off-white striations on the fruit skin. Local landraces of embroidered pepper are characterized by an extraordinary diversity of fruit size, shape and distinct aromatic and taste features. This type of pepper has not been studied, elaborated and described in detail yet. The collection of embroidered pepper at the Faculty of Agricultural Sciences and Food in Skopje is consisted of many different samples that have to be completely characterized, evaluated and documented. Based on the phenotypic and genetic characterization, different landraces and their specific traits may be determined and included in the National List of Varieties under the designation autochthonous variety.