Old Persian Cypress Accessions, a Rich and Unique Gene Pool for Cypress (Cupressus sempervirens L.) in the World

Genetic diversity plays an important role in the conservation of rare and endangered species. Thus, a rich database about a given landrace and particularly its genetic information is important for taking the necessary steps towards its conservation and improvement. The genus Cupressus includes as many as 25 species, largely distributed in the Mediterranean basin, Asia and North America. Natural stands are found in Persia (modern Iran), Syria, Cyprus, Turkey and Greece. Cupressus sempervirens was favored in all Mediterranean countries by human action at the time of ancient civilizations.In Ancient Persia cypress with the name Sarv was greatly appreciated and praised and it is believed that Monoocher Pishdadi or Zoroaster were the first persons who planted the cypress in arid and semi-arid regions of the ancient Persia. Some old accessions of cypress are found in Iran particularly in Yazd, Kerman and Fars provinces. Abarkuh cypress (Ca. 4000 years) in Yazd province is considered the oldest cypress worldwide. Some of these Old Iranian cypress accessions are not properly protected and could be considered as endangered. Our field observation and photography indicate that some of these old trees greatly suffer from abiotic and biotic stresses such as successive droughts and some diseases particularly fungal ones during the recent decades. Consequently, emergency protection and proper maintenance practices are required. Thus, the aim of this review paper is to focus on this matter and to offer some approaches for better conservation of these invaluable genetic resources across the country.