European Botanic Gardens in a Changing World: Insights into EUROGARD VI 113 Protection and utilization of genetic resources of wild relatives of fruit crops in Azerbaijan Mirza Musayev 1 , Zeynal Akparov 2 1 Laboratory of Subtropical Plants and Grapevine, Genetic Resources Institute Azerbaijan National Academy of Sciences, 155, Azadliq Ave., AZ1106 Baku, Azerbaijan, mirza.musayev@yahoo.com 2 Department of gene bank, Genetic Resources Institute Azerbaijan National Academy of Sciences, 155, Azadliq Ave., AZ1106 Baku, Azerbaijan, akparov@yahoo.com Keywords: biological-agricultural traits, varieties, conservation, major fruits Abstract The wild relatives of major fruits and nuts like grapevine, apple, pear, quince, medlar, pomegranate, fig, cherry, apricot, almond, hazelnut, walnut, chestnut, pistachio and others are presented along with many genera of the flora of Azerbaijan. The activity of the Genetic Resources Institute (GRI) of the Azerbaijan National Academy of Science (ANAS) is collections, reproduction, studies, documentation and conservation of the gene pool of local resources of landraces of fruit plants, including their crop wild relatives (CWRs). The CWRs in Azerbaijan are conserved in protected areas and botanical gardens, as well as ex situ and on-farm conservation in field collections of the National Genebank. Collecting of plant genetic resources (PGR) of fruit-berry crops and grape has been enhanced in the last years. At present 2490 accessions of fruit plants are maintained in field collections of GRI. Nearly 300 grape landraces and about 50 samples of wild grapes have been collected by scientists of GRI through individual trips and local expeditions, and new gene pool gardens were established. GRI also maintains valuable collections of almond, pomegranate, pistachio, sea-buckthorn and other crops. As CWRs are many forms that formed in long phylogenetic development of fruit plants that harbor valuable genes. Their determination and utilization in breeding as donor material is important. Background The Azerbaijan Republic is located on the South-East of the Caucasus Mountains and on the North-West of the Iranian Plateau, at the crossroads of Eastern Europe and Southwest Asia. Chiefly Azerbaijan is a mountainous country. Its surface is extremely diverse. Along with lofty mountain ridges (for example: Bazarduzu  4466 m; Shahdagh  4251 m; Tufandagh  4197 m and others) rising beyond snow-line, there are also vast plains and lowlands some areas of which are located 27 m below the ocean-level here. Extreme diversity of the soil and climatic conditions of Azerbaijan support a very rich diversity of plant genetic resources. Flora of Azerbaijan contains more than 5000 species of vascular plants, including 800 ether-oil yielding, 600