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Traditional management of a small-scale crop of Physalis angulata in Western Mexico

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Abstract

Centers of origin of agriculture and domestication have significantly contributed to the evolution of landraces, based on a long history of use and management of both wild and crop species. Our study examines Physalis angulata, an emerging horticultural crop in western Mexico. This wild and weedy species was adopted as an alternative crop to P. philadelphica for producing husk tomato. We investigated: (1) the antiquity of use of this species as a crop and the origin of the cultivated germplasm, (2) the criteria for selection and cultivation techniques and (3) its horticultural value. We conducted field trips to the husk tomato-producing areas of Cuquío and Ixtlahuacán, Jalisco to identify the producers who grow it. We used participant observation, open interviews and semi-structured surveys with producers in order to document ethnobotanical knowledge, plant management and agronomical issues. We found that P. angulata is cultivated in 80 % of the visited plots; the producers report that it has been actively cultivated for 25 years. With the available information, the origin of the cultivated germplasm has not been accurately determined; however, some locations in Michoacán and Cuquío in Jalisco could be putative areas of origin. The crop was introduced by the commercial demand for “milpero” a kind of husk tomato of small fruit and high commercial value. It is established in 0.5 ha monoculture plots. Its small-scale cultivation favors greater yields. The cultivation of P. angulata could be promoted in other tropical and temperate areas of the Americas as a new crop of Solanaceae; their self-compatibility, synanthropy, high yield and compact canopy could be of commercial interest to husk tomato producers.

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Acknowledgments

The authors thanks to The SAGARPA-SINAREFI and Guadalajara University for financial support of research. The Posgrado en Biosistemática, Ecología y Manejo de recursos Naturales (BEMARENA) y posgrado en Biosistemática y Manejo de recursos Naturales (BIMARENA) and Consejo Nacional de Ciencia y Tecnología CONACYT for supporting posgraduate studies of MPZT and LEVM. Thanks to the editor and two anonymous reviewers for suggestions and comments that improved this article. We special thanks to husk tomato producer of Cuquío and Ixtlahuacan municipalities, Jalisco for their invaluable participation, sharing their knowledge and hospitality.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Departamento de Botánica y Zoología, Centro Universitario de Ciencias Biológicas y Agropecuarias, Universidad de Guadalajara, Zapopan, Jalisco, Mexico

    Ofelia Vargas-Ponce, María del Pilar Zamora Tavares & Luis Enrique Valdivia Mares

  2. Departamento de Producción Agrícola, Centro Universitario de Ciencias Biológicas y Agropecuarias, Universidad de Guadalajara, Zapopan, Jalisco, Mexico

    José Sánchez Martínez

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  1. Ofelia Vargas-Ponce
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  2. José Sánchez Martínez
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  3. María del Pilar Zamora Tavares
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  4. Luis Enrique Valdivia Mares
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Correspondence to Ofelia Vargas-Ponce.

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Vargas-Ponce, O., Sánchez Martínez, J., Zamora Tavares, M.P. et al. Traditional management of a small-scale crop of Physalis angulata in Western Mexico. Genet Resour Crop Evol 63, 1383–1395 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10722-015-0326-3

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