There is a need for classifying and conserving local apple cultivars from two main regions in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BH P < 0.001). Analysis of the genetic structure indicates that overall, approximately half of the local apple cultivars from Sarajevo andeasternBosnia (52% and 45%,respectively)grouped in the RPP1 consisting mainly out of international reference cultivars, whereas the other half grouped in the RPP2 with traditional B&H reference cultivars. Both neighbor joining (NJ) cluster analysis based on Bruvo genetic distance and factorial correspondence analysis (FCA) confirmed the results of the genetic structure analysis. The molecular data show that both apple accessions from Sarajevo and from eastern Bosnia represent an interesting source of diversity, which needs to be conserved.

In order to identify possible mislabeling of the apple accession maintained ex situ in Srebrenik and to gain insight into the genetic structure of the conserved germplasm, 14 accessions from the collection were genotyped using 10 SSR (Simple Sequence Repeats) markers. Obtained SSR profiles were then added to an existing database constructed for previously characterized 24 traditional and 13 international, reference apple cultivars maintained at the same collection. Bayesian analysis implemented in the STRUCTURE program grouped 42 out of 51 analyzed apple accessions (38 traditional and 13 international) into three RPPs (reconstructed panmictic populations) with probability of membership qI higher than 75%. Almost all international, reference cultivars grouped in RPP3, whereas traditional B&H cultivars from the Srebrenik collection grouped in all three RPPs. Large and significant differentiations between all three individual RPPs were detected through the analyses of molecular variance and confirmed with FCA (factorial correspondence analyses). NJ cluster analysis, based on the Bruvo genetic distance, revealed that out of 38 traditional B&H apple cultivars, analyzed in the study, ‘Ljepocvjetka’, ‘Bobovec’ and ‘Bobovec J’ grouped closest to the international reference cultivars. Available date indicates that unlike a large number of B&H apple cultivars which were introduced during the reign of the Ottoman Empire, ‘Ljepocvjetka’ and ‘Bobovec’ were probably introduced at a later date. Cluster analyses also enabled the detection of one synonym and three homonyms within the collection. In four cases, previously conducted identification based on phenotypic analyses was confirmed by genetic analyses. Results of the structure analyses indicate a heterogeneous genetic structure of the analyzed accessions. This characteristic of the B&H apple germplasm could be useful for future breeding programs.

There is a need for classifying and conserving local apple cultivars from two main regions in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BH P < 0.001). Analysis of the genetic structure indicates that overall, approximately half of the local apple cultivars from Sarajevo and eastern Bosnia (52% and 45%, respectively) grouped in the RPP1 consisting mainly out of international reference cultivars, whereas the other half grouped in the RPP2 with traditional B&H reference cultivars. Both neighbor joining (NJ) cluster analysis based on Bruvo genetic distance and factorial correspondence analysis (FCA) confirmed the results of the genetic structure analysis. The molecular data show that both apple accessions from Sarajevo and from eastern Bosnia represent an interesting source of diversity, which needs to be conserved.

Plums represented a very significant economic factor in Bosnia in the twentieth century. Dominant in plum assortment is 'Pozegaca', but the appearance of the Plum pox caused a stagnation of plum production. The aim of this paper is to describe the basic pomological characteristics of fruit at six autochthonous plum genotypes: two types of 'Pozegaca' from locality Glavaticevo-Konjic, one type of 'Pozegaca' from locality Sovici-Jablanica, two types of 'Havaca' (from localities Doboj Istok and Gradacac) and one type of 'Sisaca' from locality Doboj Istok. Fruit weight of the genotypes ranged from 15.8 g in genotype 'Sisaca', up to 19.3 g in genotype 'Havaca'. Among the types of 'Pozegaca' there were no differences in terms of fruit weight. The biggest stone weight had 'Havaca' (1.21 g), and the lowest one had genotype 'Sisaca' (0.84 g). Due to this characteristic, there were differences among the types of 'Pozegaca'. Genotype ‘Pozegaca’, from locality Glavaticevo had the highest yield of fruit (95.3%), whereas the biggest genotype ‘Havaca’ had the lowest yield (93.67%). Among the types of ‘Pozegaca’, there were differences between localities in terms of the fruit yield.

Genetic variability of the autochthonous apple germplasm in Bosnia and Herzegovina (B&H) has previously been examined using ten SSR markers. The molecular analyses revealed a clear differentiation between traditional B&H cultivars and some of the most widely cultivated, modern cultivars in the region. In order to examine the morphological variability of autochthonous apple germplasm in B&H, a principal component analysis was used on data gathered during a three years field trial (2006-2008), which included 24 traditional B&H cultivars and 15 modern international cultivars, maintained at the ex situ apple collection ‘Srebrenik’ in Northeast Bosnia. Eighteen morphological characteristics were chosen for this study among a larger set of descriptors for apple defined by International Union for the Protection of New Varieties of Plants (UPOV) and International Board for Plant Genetic Resources (IBPGR). The objectives of the study were to identify the main sources of variability of morphological characteristics for all analyzed apple cultivars, to classify the cultivars according to main sources of variability and to assess the level of diversity of the analyzed traits for the autochthonous and international apple cultivars. The main sources of variability in the analyzed set of apple cultivars were mostly linked to fruit characteristics, such as fruit weight and fruit shape. An attempt to make a classification of cultivars and groups of cultivars through these characteristics generally failed due to overlapping of many traits between the autochthonous and international group. A separation between the two groups was observed when the classification was based on morphological traits such as tree habit (TH), tree vigour (TV) and scion/rootstock compatibility (SRC). This is very likely due to different selection pressure (preference and/or environment) between the groups. The assessment of the level of diversity revealed a higher diversity for all morphological traits among the B&H autochthonous apple cultivars. A pair-wise t-test revealed that the differences in values for Shannon index of diversity between the two groups were all significant (P<0.001). This can serve as an indication that B&H autochthonous apple cultivars represent an interesting potential for future apple breeding programs.