DNA Barcoding to Confirm the Morphological Identification of the Coral Trees (Erythrina spp., Fabaceae) in the Ancient Gardens of Naples (Campania, Italy)

The coral trees (genus Erythrina) have been fostering great interest among the botanists and gardeners of Naples, since their arrival in Europe in the second half of the 18th century. Numerous species were present in the royal and private botanical gardens of the region, but their number has decreased today. The purpose of this work was to verify which species occur nowadays in the public areas of Naples and associate them with the historical information about their introduction. The identification was carried out also by molecular methods, by means of sequencing nuclear and chloroplast DNA markers. The comparison of the sequences obtained for the specimens present in Naples with those present in the literature, together with a morphological examination, allowed us to identify with accuracy the species anciently introduced or nowadays cultivated in Naples.