This study aims to do a morphological and biochemical characterization of selected wild hop populations from the Banja Luka region, as plant material with potential value for introduction into plant selection. Female inflorescences (cones) from seven populations (DKH3, DKH5, DKH6, DKH8, DKH9, DKH10, and DKH11) were sampled in 2018 and 2019. Hop cones were collected in October 2018 and 2019 for morphological characterization, when 50 cones per population were analyzed, and also the cones were collected in mid-September in 2019 for biochemical characterization. Morphological parameters were carried out for: cone length (cm), number of nodes per cone spindle, cone density, and number of seeds per cone, all important agronomic characters in hop production. Also, 27 components of essential oil and 6 components of hop resins were analyzed. Statistical analysis of morphological characteristics was performed by factorial analysis of variance (year × population), and the significance of individual differences was determined by LSD test. The grouping of examined hop populations according to the manifested morphological characteristics was performed by cluster analysis. Statistical analysis for biochemical characteristics was performed by analysis of variance, and the significance of the differences was tested by Tukey’s statistical test. In order to determine similarities between different population multivariant statistical method Principal component analysis (PCA) was applied. According to morphological and biochemical analysis, DKH6 hop population is singled out as the most valuable for hop breeding.

According to the oral tradition, four to five degrees of kinship back, at the locality of the village of Batočići, the hamlet of Bare, the municipality of Čajnice – Republic of Srpska in BiH, there was an appearance of a tree with atypical sympodial graft in the spiral or alternating position of annual growth with a different tendency of negative heliotropism. This tree reached a height of up to 20 m and dried at the age of about 170 years. According to the oral tradition, after a longer period, between two and three degrees of kinship backward, the appearance of new single beech trees with the same characteristics in the formation of habit was observed. These new trees appeared successively in a relatively narrow space around the first tree, which for this reason was called the "Mother of Fairy Beech". Morphological characteristics of tree habit in this beech population conform with the variety of "tortuous beech" Fagus sylvatica var. – tortuosa, as well partly conforming to the variety of "weeping beech" Fagus sylvatica var. pendula. In this research, the question of inheritance of irregular sympodial branching with a tendency of negative heliotropism in the population of "Fairy Beech from Čajniče" has been raised, regardless of the characterization of the varieties. Thus, in the population of Fairy Beech from Čajniče, which makes about 40 trees in relatively close surroundings, four trees aged over 30 years have been identified in order to determine whether their tree form is reproduced by vegetative cloning and generatively, by seed. The research was conducted in the period from 2014 to 2016 at the Institute for Genetic Resources of the University of Banja Luka. The results show that the form of habit of all four parent trees are conveyed by branching as well as by seed, which proves that there was a mutation of the first tree, i.e. the mother of Fairy Beech from Čajniče, which is transmitted to the offspring.

Fruit germplasm plays an important role in the glob a agrobiodiversity and is a source for both a direct use of fruit genetic resou rces as well for fruit breeding programme. The ex-situ field collection is still the main way to successf ully conserve fruit germplasm. Thirty pear accessions fr om Bosnia and Herzegovina were characterized during three years in the ex situ collection maintained by the Institute of Genetic Resources of the University of B anja Luka. The following characteristics were determined: flowering time, harv est maturity time and global tree architecture. The obtained results showed that 53.3% of pear accessions flowered during all three years, 40% of them during two years and 6.7% of them during only one year. The most present tree archite tur form was upright. According to the harvest maturity time, extremely ea rly ccessions were the most represented, than early, medium and very early pear accessions. Conserved pear germplasm in this ex situ collection represents a valuable material for dire ct use and future breeding programmes.

Studying the hazel flowering was carried out in agro-ecological conditions of the Banja Luka in the period from December to March during 2010/2011 and 2011/2012. The study was conducted on 13 hazel cultivars in two orchards. In the first orchard, the following four cultivars were observed: ‘Tankoljuskasti’, ‘Multiflora’, ‘Merveille de Bollwiller’and ‘Tonda Gentile Romana’, whilst the second orchard included the following: ‘Hall’s Giant’, ‘Gustav’s Zellernuss’, ‘Istrian Round’, ‘Avellana’, ‘Romai’, ‘Apolda’, ‘Ludolph’s Zellernuss’, ‘Imperiale de Trebizonde’and ‘Jean’s’. Phenological observations of the development of flowering phenophase with the aforementioned cultivars were monitored every three days in both years. In 2010/2011 the blooming of male and female inflorescence of the observed hazel cultivars lasted from late December to mid-March in total. The presence and pollen germination was proven to be a limiting factor for a successful pollination and fruit set in 2011. Namely, the pollen of cultivars: ‘Hall’s Giant’, ‘Istrian Round’, ‘Ludolph’s Zellernuss’, ‘Avellana’, ‘Imperiale de Trebizonde’ and ‘Romai’ did not germinate, and with ‘Gustav’s Zellernuss’, pollen germination was very low (7,22%). In ‘Apolda’, ‘Jean’s’, ‘Merveille de Bollwiller’, ‘Tonda Gentile Romana’, ‘Multiflora’ and ‘Tankoljuskasti’ pollen germination ranged between 28,57-81,69%. In 2011/2012 the flowering of male and female inflorescence of the observed hazel cultivars started 30 to 45 days later than the previous year i.e., female inflorescence of all the observed cultivars bloomed in early and mid-March, except in ‘Tankoljuskasti’, in which female inflorescence bloomed in late January and early February. Male inflorescence of ‘Tankoljuskasti’, ‘Hall’s Giant’ and ‘Gustav’s Zellernuss’ bloomed in the second half of January and early February, and in all other cultivars in mid-March. Pollen germination in 2012 proved to be a limiting factor for ‘Apolda’ and ‘Romai’, as their pollen did not germinate, as well as for ‘Hall’s Giant’ and ‘Jean’s’ where pollen germination was below 5%. For other cultivars, pollen germination was very good and ranged from 37,24 (‘Merveille de Bollwiller’) to 73,97% (‘Multiflora’). Based on the analysis of dynamics of blooming and pollen germination of 13 hazel cultivars in two years, the monitoring of pollen germination and strategy of artificial pollination must be adopted as a basic approach to control hazel fertility in the conditions of the Banja Luka region.

The aim of this research is to examine the morphological and pomological characteristics of the wild pear population in the northwestern part of Bosnia and Herzegovina with the purpose of allocating genotypes for breeding programs of varieties and rootstocks. During 2012 and 2013, the study of the wild pear characteristics was carried out on the localities of: Banja Luka, Manjaca, Potkozarje and Kozara. This research included morphological characterization of vegetative organs and pomological characterization of the fruits of all the selected genotypes. The shape of leaves in all the examined genotypes was elongated. The study of wild pear populations in the Banja Luka region has shown that wild pears are characterized by mostly smaller fruits, rounded form, while a few genotypes had fruits of elongated and flattened shape. Fruit weight varied from 7.44 g to 21.47 g and 73% of genotypes had fruit weight of over 10 g.