Today the random generator stopped at the number 24, behind which … is hidden…

Ph.D. Branimir Urlić

Branimir Urlić is a senior research associate at the Institute of Adriatic Crops and Karst Reclamation. His main field of research is plant nutrition, but he is also interested in agroecology and vegetable cultivation. He acquired his knowledge and experience in agroecology and vegetable growing through trainings in Germany and the USA. Through his work, he has been involved in several national and international projects that focus on analyzing the gene pool of wild species in agricultural production and intensive vegetable production.

Despite his commitment to his scientific career, he also finds satisfaction in agriculture as a hobby. Actively is involved in numerous civil society activities.

Despite all these engagements, Branimir finds the greatest satisfaction in traveling and enjoying nature with his family.

On the project INOMED-2I (09-207/1-23) funded by the European Union’s NextGenerationEU fund and the Croatian Science Foundation project IP-2018-01-9622 “Pathogenic potential of Grapevine leafroll-associated virus 3 and its interaction with grapevine hosts”, a scientific paper on the impact of grapevine viral infections on the indigenous variety ‘Tribidrag’ has been published in the journal Horticulturae (IF = 3.1, Q1 Horticulture).

The paper describes a series of changes in physiological and morphological parameters of the ‘Tribidrag’ variety, as well as modulations in gene expression due to the influence of different viral inocula previously identified as most prevalent in indigenous varieties of the Mediterranean part of Croatia. The paper is available in open access at the following link: horticulturae-10-00495-1

Since there is a risk that knowledge about the use of edible wild plants will be permanently lost, we have carried out a study to record the local tradition of the Dalmatian Zagora. This is the first detailed survey of edible wild plant species in this area. Funded through the European Regional Development Fund by theOperational program Competitiveness and Cohesion 2014–2020 within the project CEKOM 3LJ—Centre of Competence 3LJ KK.01.2.2.03.0017 and resulted in a scientific paper published in the journal Plants (IF = 4.5, Q1 Plant science), which was supported by the European Union fund “NextGenerationEU” through the project INOMED-2I; 09-207/1-23. In the study, 180 inhabitants were examined and 136 species of edible wild plants and 22 types of edible mushrooms used in the area were recorded.

Figure. Workshop on wild edible plants in Dalmatian hinterland, organized by local women association (Foto: T. Ninčević Runjić)

This research is the first step in the implementation of the final goals of the CEKOM3LJ project – increasing the use and commercialization of wild medicinal and aromatic plant populations in the food and pharmaceutical industry in Split-Dalmatia County.

The work is available as open access at the following link: https://www.mdpi.com/2223-7747/13/8/1079

The first meeting of the project team took place.

On January 23, 2024, the first meeting of the project team was held in the Institute’s library. At the meeting, the objectives of the project were presented and a plan for the implementation of the project activities was developed.