New data on the diversity of crop wild relatives of Sakhalin based on the results of a collecting mission in 2023

Crop wild relative (CWR) species of the Sakhalin flora, as well as local cultivated species and varieties, represent a crucial source of plant genetic resources (PGR) on Russia's largest island. The purpose of the work was to inventory PGR of Sakhalin Island. Species of wild relatives of fruit and berry, forage, vegetable, medicinal, and other crops of the Sakhalin region are of undeniable interest for their introduction into cultivation and for direct use in breeding. Due to the remoteness of most areas of Sakhalin, it is necessary to conduct a more detailed survey of the most demanded species from a breeding perspective in order to refine the distribution of these species, as well as to collect the most valuable genotypes. As a results of the exploration, 186 herbarium specimens (over 220 herbarium sheets) were collected. For each collection site, a photo documentation was made with geographical coordinates indicated. The studied species are characterized by geographic diversity, ranging from Eurasian to Japanese-Chinese species. For the first time in the flora of Sakhalin, a species of dikuscha currant ( Ribes dikuscha Fisch. ex Turcz.) has been discovered. Both wild and cultivated species of strawberries ( Fragaria iinumae Makino, F. yezoensis Hara, F. × ananassa Duchesne, F. moschata (Duchesne) Weston) and Sakhalin raspberries ( Rubus sachalinensis H. Lev.) were found, which exhibit wide intraspecific diversity and were sampled not only as herbarium specimens, but also for live plant studies. Five wild honeysuckle species were collected along with two species of kiwi ( Actinidia arguta (Siebold crimson glorywine ( Vitis coignetiae Pulliat ex Planch.), etc. The collected PGR also included those used by humans as forage, vegetable, industrial, medicinal and flavoring species.