Ampelographic and Genetic Characterization of Grapevine Varieties (Vitis vinifera L.) of the ‘Mavroudia’ Group Cultivated in Greece

Abstract

Twenty-one grapevine varieties grown all over Greece and belonging to ‘Mavroudia’ group were ampelographically described and genotyped by AFLP molecular analysis in order to discriminate the varieties, synonyms, homonyms and variations of the group. In most cases, the molecular findings confirmed the results of the ampelographic description. In general, and despite the high degree of genetic similarity between certain pairs of the studied cultivars, the group of ‘Mavroudia’ was characterized as being heterogeneous. From the studied cultivars, ‘Kountoura mavri’, ‘Mavro Spetson’ and ‘Pappoudes’ showed very high degree of genetic similarity, sustaining the hypothesis that the last two are clones of the first. Grapevine cultivar ‘Pappoudes’ was for the first time ampelographically described and identified as being closely related to ‘Kountoura mavri’. High degree of genetic similarity was observed between cultivars ‘Gaidouricha’ and ‘Agiomavritiko’, suggesting that they probably originated from the same parent variety through the accumulation of mutations. This may also be true for cultivars ‘Mavrokorakas’ and ‘Kartsiotis’. Also, the results from the statistical analysis showed that ‘Mavro Arachovis’, ‘Mavroudi Voulgarias’ and ‘Voulgaroudes’, despite the relatively high genetic similarity between them, are different. The same applies for the rest of the cultivars studied, while ‘Mavro Kalavriton’, the most widespread variety of the ‘Mavroudia’ group, showed the lowest degree of genetic similarity within the all the cultivars studied. The ampelographic description in combination with the molecular method AFLP are effective for the study of the between and within genetic diversity of grapevine cultivars as well as for their identification and discrimination.