Methodology

We addressed the objectives by surveying native phytogenetic resources with medicinal value, developing methodologies for in vitro propagation and subsequent establishment in the greenhouse, identifying plant constituents with medicinal action, and diffusing the knowledge to potential beneficiaries and the public.

The preliminary achievements by the project team that laid the groundwork for the project’s realisation include:

First achievement

We surveyed Cephalonia and Ithaca to identify members of the Orchidaceae and Labiatae families. We recorded most species that have been previously reported from these two islands.

Second achievement

We described for the first time a new orchid from Cephalonia, Anacamptis palustris subsp. robusta.

third achievement

We surveyed soils and identified the soil properties of the most promising orchid biotopes in Cephalonia.

Fourth achievement

We propagated in vitro several native orchids of Cephalonia and Ithaca, as well as the Cephalonian subspecies of Scutellaria. We published improvements to the internationally accepted methodology of in vitro propagation of Mediterranean orchids. On the other hand, we pinpointed several methodological issues that cropped up in the process. We deemed that these issues must be resolved to make the propagation methodology viable on a large scale.

The main methodological steps in the project were:

Step 1

to record phytogenetic resources of medicinal value and assemble a collection of propagation material,

Step 2

to characterise collected plant specimens based on morphology,

Step 3

to evaluate secondary metabolites of medicinal interest,

Step 4

to preserve selected plant material via in vitro propagation and establishment in the greenhouse, and

Step 5

to educate the potential beneficiaries (nurseries, farmers, pharmaceutical and cosmetics industries) and the general public about the value of native flora and the potential for its utilisation

The Laboratory of Soil Science of the Ionian University undertook the tasks of the field survey, characterisation of specimens, in vitro propagation of the species of interest and the realisation of nutrition experiments in the field, in the lab, and in the greenhouse. The Laboratory of Quality Control of Wine and Spirits of the Ionian University undertook the chemical analyses to determine secondary metabolites of medicinal value. The Department of Digital Media and Communication of the Ionian University undertook the tasks of diffusion and communication.

Initially, we established a sampling programme to survey phytogenetic resources of medicinal value. During the surveys, we marked promising specimens as potential donors of propagation material (seeds and cuttings) in order to establish our collection of plant propagation material. We identified the collected specimens based on morphological characteristics. For the task of in vitro propagation, we selected three taxa with medicinal properties known since antiquity: Two orchids, the lax-flowered orchid (Anacamptis laxiflora) and the broad-leaved helleborine (Epipactis helleborine), and a member of the mint family, the Cephalonian skullcap (Scutellaria rupestris subsp. cephalonica). Once we drafted the suitable protocols, we proceeded to propagate the selected taxa in vitro.

During the first years, the plantlets were potted outdoors. Once construction of the greenhouse was completed in 2023, we transferred the potted plants to the greenhouse. Meanwhile, we conducted experiments, both in the field and in the greenhouse. The experiments studied factors that affect growth and development of seedlings, with emphasis on nutrition. The plant material that resulted from the task of in vitro propagation was evaluated with chromatographic techniques as far as its anti-oxidant properties and its content of secondary metabolites with medicinal interest.

Co-Financed by Greece and the European Union