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Status of the South American tuberous legume Pachyrhizus tuberosus (Lam.) Spreng.: Field observations, taxonomic analysis, linguistic studies and agronomic data on the diversity of the South American Pachyrhizus tuberosus (Lam.) Spreng. complex with special reference to the identification of two new cultivar groups from Ecuador and Peru

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Abstract

The tuberous legume Pachyrhizus tuberosus is found in cultivation sporadically throughout the tropical lowlands of South America. As a result of field studies conducted in Bolivia, Ecuador, Peru and Venezuela, three distinct cultivar groups have been identified. Rare references presenting further evidence in support of this grouping, and yielding information on the cultivation history, are reviewed. The differences in morphology, agricultural practices, tuberous root quality and uses have been studied, as has the linguistic evidence of the origin and domestication processes. The herbarium and live material have been subjected to multivariate analyses in order to establish which easily observable phenotypic characters can be used in the identification of the three cultivar groups. This paper reports on the analysis of 23 morphological characteristics from 31 P. tuberosus cultivar records. The considerable potential of this cultivar/landrace complex and the possibilities of establishing in situ conservation initiatives are discussed.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Botanical Section, Department of Botany, Dendrology and Forest Genetics, Royal Veterinary and Agricultural University, Frederiksberg, Denmark

    MARTEN SØRENSEN & SØREN DØYGAARD

  2. Departamento Nacional de Recursos Fitogene´ticos, Estacio´n Experimental ‘Santa Catalina’, Instituto Nacional Auto´nomo de Investigaciones Agropecuarias (INIAP), Quito, Ecuador

    JAIME E. ESTRELLA

  3. Forestry Section, Department of Economics and Natural Resources, Royal Veterinary and Agricultural University, Frederiksberg, Denmark

    LARS PETER KVIST

  4. Research Division MAF, Vaini Research Station, Tongatapu, Tonga, South Pacific

    POUL ERIK NIELSEN

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  1. MARTEN SØRENSEN
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SØRENSEN, M., DØYGAARD, S., ESTRELLA, J.E. et al. Status of the South American tuberous legume Pachyrhizus tuberosus (Lam.) Spreng.: Field observations, taxonomic analysis, linguistic studies and agronomic data on the diversity of the South American Pachyrhizus tuberosus (Lam.) Spreng. complex with special reference to the identification of two new cultivar groups from Ecuador and Peru. Biodiversity and Conservation 6, 1581–1625 (1997). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1018326805849

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