Crop wild relatives and cultivated vegetables, Uzbekistan, 2026
Collectors: Rik Lievers1, Zafar Ziyaev2, Khamidullo Khasanov2, Xasan Nazarmetov2
¹ Centre for Genetic Resources, the Netherlands (CGN), Wageningen University & Research
² Research Institute of Plant Genetic Resources (O‘simliklar Genetik Resurslari Ilmiy-Tadqiqot Instituti, RIPGR), Tashkent, Uzbekistan
Introduction
In July 2026 and in August–September 2026, two collecting expeditions for crop wild relatives (CWR) and cultivated vegetable material were conducted in Uzbekistan, spanning 8 and 21 days respectively. The expeditions were funded by the Centre for Genetic Resources, the Netherlands (CGN) and carried out together with the Research Institute of Plant Genetic Resources (RIPGR). For both missions, CGN and RIPGR engaged local experts — agronomists and botanists with a detailed knowledge of the regional flora — who joined the team in the field, contributed botanical expertise and sampled additional populations of wild Allium in areas that the main route did not reach. Uzbekistan has been a regular destination for CGN: since 1997, seven collecting missions have been carried out in the country, alone or together with neighbouring countries, each targeting its own set of crops. The two missions reported here were again multi-crop, and targeted the crops and crop groups that were less well sampled during those earlier missions, among them the wild relatives of onion. Approval for the collaborative activities, including the exchange of the collected materials with the SMTA of the ITPGRFA, was obtained from the relevant Uzbek authorities.
Collecting activities
Both missions combined the collecting of crop wild relatives with cultivated vegetable material, and were timed so that the seed of the target species was ripe, particularly that of the wild onions of Allium section Cepa: the species of the foothills and mid-altitude ranges in July, and the later-ripening populations of the high mountains in August. Alongside the wild material, vegetable seed was collected in bazaars, roadside shops and home gardens, where local varieties of melon, carrot, radish, pumpkin and herbs are sold. Collecting sites ranged from 274 m in the irrigated lowlands to about 2,540 m on rocky slopes in the mountains (Figure 1).
July 2026 (2–9 July) started in the Sirdaryo region near Galaba and continued into the Jizzakh region, where several days were spent in the Farish district on the southern slopes of the Nuratau range (Asmansay, Forish, O'xum and Qoraobdol). From there the route led south through the Samarqand region (Jambay and Samarkand districts) into the Qashqadaryo region, with collecting around Shahrisabz (Miraki, Suvtushar, Bashkop and Langar), in the Yakkabog, Kamashi and Kitob districts, and a return through the Jizzakh region. Habitats sampled included field margins and roadsides, cereal fields, open juniper and pistachio woodland, rocky hillsides, a graveyard and home gardens. Vegetable seed was bought at the Orom bazaar in Jizzakh, at the Shahrisabz bazaar and at roadside melon stalls. During the same period, local experts collected further populations of Allium praemixtum in the Aktau and Nuratau mountains, A. oschaninii in the Hissar range and the Malguzar mountains, and A. atroviolaceum near Tashkent.
August–September 2026 (15 August – 5 September) was carried out by the Uzbek members of the team. Populations of Allium pskemense, a narrow endemic of the western Tian Shan, were sampled on rocky and cliffy slopes in the Ugam and Pskem ranges of the Bo'stonliq district (Badak, Aygaing, Oromzodasoy, Karangitugan and the Urungach lakes), between about 1,300 m and 2,540 m. Further collecting took place in the Parkent district (A. barszczewskii), in the Pop district of the Namangan region and the Angren area (Chodak, Qamchiqsoy and Toshsoy), and in the Khojabod district of the Andijan region, where A. oschaninii was found on rocky hillsides. During the same period, local experts sampled nine further populations of A. pskemense on rocky and cliffy slopes in the Ugam and Pskem ranges. Cultivated material was collected at the bazaars of Namangan, Andijan, Khojabod, Yangiobod and Chirchik, which are known for their melon and carrot varieties.
Passport data were recorded for every accession, together with GPS coordinates, altitude, population size and the number of plants sampled. Pictures were also taken of the plants in their natural environment.
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Figure 1. Collecting sites in Uzbekistan. Circles = wild material; triangles = places where cultivated material was collected (number of accessions). Red = July 2026; blue = August–September 2026. The map covers the eastern part of the country, where all collecting took place.
Material sampled
The two missions collected 167 accessions (71 wild and 96 cultivated) of at least 35 taxa from 24 genera (Table 1). Wild Allium is by far the largest group, with 44 accessions: A. pskemense (14), A. oschaninii (9), A. praemixtum (5), A. barszczewskii (2), A. atroviolaceum (2) and eleven accessions of Allium that still need identification. A. pskemense, A. oschaninii and A. praemixtum all belong to Allium section Cepa, the section that also contains onion and shallot (A. cepa) and Japanese bunching onion (A. fistulosum). Their potential for future use in breeding is still unknown, and may well differ between species and between populations; all three are poorly represented in genebank collections. A. pskemense is restricted to the Pskem, Ugam and neighbouring ranges and is considered rare. The five accessions of A. praemixtum are particularly valuable: according to EURISCO, the species is not held by any European genebank, so these are the first accessions of A. praemixtum to enter a European collection.
Other wild material includes prickly lettuce (Lactuca serriola, 10), chicory (Cichorium intybus, 9), wild turnip (Brassica rapa, 4) and rocket (Eruca sativa). One population of Allium cepa in an abandoned field was recorded as rewilded.
The cultivated material comprises 96 accessions of 23 species of vegetables and herbs from Uzbek bazaars, shops and home gardens. Melon is the best represented crop (Cucumis melo, 13 accessions of named local varieties such as Torpeda, Bosvoldi and Obi navvot), followed by carrot (Daucus carota, 9, yellow as well as red), onion (Allium cepa, 13), radish (Raphanus sativus, 7), pumpkins and gourds (Cucurbita, Lagenaria, Luffa, Benincasa, 11) and herbs such as dill, coriander, basil and parsley.
Table 1. Accessions collected in Uzbekistan in 2026
Botanical name | Jul 2026 | Aug–Sep 2026 | Total | Type of material |
Amaranthaceae | ||||
Beta vulgaris | 4 | 2 | 6 | cultivated |
Spinacia oleracea | 1 | 1 | 2 | cultivated |
Spinacia turkestanica | 1 | – | 1 | wild |
Amaryllidaceae | ||||
Allium atroviolaceum | 2 | – | 2 | wild |
Allium barszczewskii | – | 2 | 2 | wild |
Allium cepa | 9 | 4 | 13 | cultivated |
Allium cepa | 1 | – | 1 | rewilded |
Allium oschaninii | 7 | 2 | 9 | wild |
Allium praemixtum | 5 | – | 5 | wild |
Allium pskemense | – | 14 | 14 | wild |
Allium sativum | – | 1 | 1 | cultivated |
Allium sp. | 9 | 2 | 11 | wild |
Apiaceae | ||||
Anethum graveolens | 5 | 2 | 7 | cultivated |
Apium graveolens | 2 | 1 | 3 | cultivated |
Coriandrum sativum | 3 | 2 | 5 | cultivated |
Daucus carota | 3 | 6 | 9 | cultivated |
Petroselinum crispum | 1 | 2 | 3 | cultivated |
Asteraceae | ||||
Cichorium intybus | 8 | 1 | 9 | wild |
Lactuca sativa | 3 | 1 | 4 | cultivated |
Lactuca serriola | 5 | 5 | 10 | wild |
Brassicaceae | ||||
Brassica rapa | 1 | 2 | 3 | cultivated |
Brassica rapa | 4 | – | 4 | wild |
Brassicaceae sp. | 1 | – | 1 | wild |
Eruca sativa | 1 | – | 1 | wild |
Raphanus sativus | 4 | 3 | 7 | cultivated |
Cucurbitaceae | ||||
Benincasa hispida | 1 | – | 1 | cultivated |
Citrullus lanatus | 1 | 1 | 2 | cultivated |
Cucumis melo | 6 | 7 | 13 | cultivated |
Cucurbita maxima | – | 4 | 4 | cultivated |
Cucurbita moschata | – | 2 | 2 | cultivated |
Cucurbita sp. | 1 | 1 | 2 | cultivated |
Lagenaria siceraria | – | 1 | 1 | cultivated |
Luffa aegyptiaca | – | 1 | 1 | cultivated |
Lamiaceae | ||||
Ocimum basilicum | 1 | 2 | 3 | cultivated |
Poaceae | ||||
Festuca valesiaca | – | 1 | 1 | wild |
Solanaceae | ||||
Capsicum annuum | 3 | – | 3 | cultivated |
Solanum melongena | 1 | – | 1 | cultivated |
Total | 94 | 73 | 167 |
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Accessions recorded only as Allium sp. or Brassicaceae sp. still need taxonomic identification.
Conclusion
The expeditions to Uzbekistan successfully collected 167 accessions of crop wild relatives and cultivated vegetable material, covering the Nuratau and Hissar ranges, the mountains around Shahrisabz, the western Tian Shan and the Fergana valley. Wild Allium is the largest group in the collection: together, the two missions secured 44 populations, among them 14 of the rare endemic A. pskemense, 9 of A. oschaninii — both close relatives of the cultivated onion — and the first European genebank accessions of A. praemixtum. The bazaars added a broad sample of Uzbek melon, carrot and radish varieties.
After collecting, the seeds of each accession were split between the two genebanks, and CGN and RIPGR are both responsible for the maintenance of the material. Accessions with insufficient seed will be multiplied by CGN, or by RIPGR where the climate is more favourable for the crop concerned, and the seed will be exchanged between the two genebanks after multiplication. If multiplication is successful, the accessions will be made available to potential users.
Acknowledgements
We thank the local experts who supported the two missions with their knowledge of the regional flora and with collecting in the field. We are particularly grateful to Doston Turdiyev (Institute of Botany, Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Uzbekistan), whose expertise on the wild Allium species of Uzbekistan guided the search for suitable populations and who collected 21 accessions of Allium praemixtum, A. oschaninii, A. atroviolaceum and A. pskemense in mountain areas that the missions themselves could not reach.