BackgroundThe Peruvian Andean region is a main center of plant domestication of the world. There, several tuber species were domesticated and the area lodges one of the most important reservoirs of their varieties and wild relatives. It is also the setting of traditional cultures using and conserving them. However, crop genetic erosion has been reported in the region since several decades ago; therefore, understanding factors influencing both loss and maintenance of crop variation is relevant to design conservation policies. Previous researches have examined factors influencing agrobiodiversity conservation in the region but additional case studies are recognized to be still necessary for a deeper understanding of causes of genetic erosion and for policy design to prevent and remedy it. Our study focused on analyzing (1) variation in richness of traditional varieties of tubers cultivated among households, (2) changes in varieties richness occurred in four consecutive agricultural cycles, and (3) ecological, social, and cultural factors influencing loss and conservation of varieties.MethodsRichness of farmer varieties of tuber species cultivated by 28 peasant households was monitored in communities of Cajamarca and Huánuco, Peru during four consecutive agricultural cycles (from 2001 to 2005). In-depth interviews were conducted with 12 of the households with higher reputation as conservationists, in order to document farmers' perception of tubers qualities in ecological, social, economic, technological and culinary aspects and how these influence their decisions of conservation priorities. Traditional varieties were identified according to their local names, which were then confronted among farmers and with scientific catalogues in order to identify synonyms. Based on the information documented, indexes of ecological and socio-cultural factors affecting agricultural practices were designed, and their linear correlations and multivariate relations with varieties richness managed per household were analyzed in order to explore factors with higher influence on conservation of crop variation.ResultsA total of 1483 and 507 farmer varieties of tuber species were found in the whole sample and period studied in Huánuco and Cajamarca, respectively. Significantly more varieties managed per household per year were recorded in Huánuco (146.39 ± 12.02) than in Cajamarca (44.55 ± 9.26), and marked differences in number of varieties per year were documented among households within each region (78.25 to 246.50 in Huánuco, 7.50 to 144.00 in Cajamarca). Correlation and multivariate analyses identified that the extent of agricultural area managed by households, cultural identity, practicing of traditional agricultural techniques, and level of self-sufficiency, are meaningful factors influencing higher varieties richness maintained by households. Yield and culinary attributes were considered by people as main features for selecting and deciding which varieties are priorities for conservation.ConclusionsMaintenance and promotion of ind...
La ciencia para la sustentabilidad plantea incluir en investigaciones y acciones los conocimientos y técnicas desarrollados por diversos sectores de la sociedad. Esta propuesta reconoce que la complejidad de los problemas ambientales rebasa los enfoques y ritmos de la investigación científica predominante y brinda la posibilidad de acortar tiempos para la acción, aprovechando integralmente la experiencia humana. Presentamos un panorama de nuestro trabajo en: 1) investigación participativa, 2) procesos educativos para la participación y 3) procesos institucionales de comunicación y participación. Se abordan estudios socioecológicos participativos que involucran innovación tecnológica e intercambios de experiencias técnicas y organizativas para atender problemas ambientales en el
The Andean region is one of the areas with the earliest signs of food production systems and highest agrobiodiversity of the world, which resulted from millennia of domestication in a context of high ecosystem heterogeneity and human cultures valuing diversity for risk management. FAO has reported nearly 4000 varieties of cultivated potatoes still grown in the Andes, 3000 of them currently occurring in Peru. Such diversity has enormous sources of variation in wild (atoq papa) and weedy (araq papa and k’ipa papa) potatoes that coexist with crops, but their variation, interactions and mechanisms influencing diversification processes still require studies. In order to have a panorama of the variation and mechanisms influencing it in a regional setting, we studied biocultural factors favoring potatoes diversity in communities of Cusco and Apurimac, Peru. Our study documented the regional variation of wild, weedy, and cultivated potatoes recognized by local Quechua people and conducted semi-structured interviews to document their use, cultural value, and strategies of gene flow management implemented. We also studied their phenology, floral biology, flower visitors, and conducted experimental crosses between the wild S. candolleanum and 30 varieties of cultivated potatoes. We identified the wild potatoes S. acaule, S. brevicaule and S. candolleanum and 53 varieties of araq papa used and managed by local people. The latter provide nearly one third of the annual consumption of tubers by people interviewed and are, therefore, highly valued, maintained and managed in crop fields (chacras). People recognized that crosses between wild, weedy, and cultivated potatoes occur, and identified flower visitors and frugivores consuming their berries. Overlap of blooming periods and flower visitors of wild, weedy, and cultivated potatoes was recorded. Almost all flower visitors are shared among the different potato species and varieties, the bumble bees being particularly relevant in pollination of all taxa studied. We recorded seed production in nearly 35% of the experimental crosses. K’ipa papas are sets of mixtures of plants resulting from remaining tubers of cultivated potatoes, but also those from seeds that may result from hybridization of wild, weedy, and cultivated potatoes. Since local people commonly use k’ipa papa varieties and some of them are kept for planting in chacras, sexual reproduction in k’ipa papas is possibly one main mechanism of variation and source of new varieties of crops. Maintaining wild and weedy potatoes, and the natural and cultural mechanisms of gene flow is crucial for in situ conservation and generation of potato variation.
Antecedentes: Es importante entender las prácticas agrícolas y los criterios de selección que moldean la diversidad de variedades locales en plantas domesticadas. La región andina comparte con la región mesoamericana y Norteamérica los centros de origen de las cinco especies domesticadas de Cucurbita. Sin embargo, los estudios sobre diversidad biológica de estas especies son escasos en Perú en comparación con México. Preguntas: ¿Cuáles son las variedades locales de Cucurbita que reconocen, promueven y conservan los agricultores en el Distrito de Tomayquichua? ¿Qué mecanismos promueven la diversidad de estas variedades? Especies estudiadas: Cucurbita ficifolia Bouché, Cucurbita moschata Duchesne, Cucurbita maxima Duchesne. Sitio y año de estudio: Tomayquichua, Huánuco, Perú (junio de 2018 y 2019). Métodos: Se realizaron entrevistas semiestructuradas a 29 familias de agricultores y comerciantes para evaluar la diversidad de variedades locales y las prácticas de manejo de las especies del género Cucurbita. Resultados: C. ficifolia es la cucurbitácea más diversa en Tomayquichua (13 variedades) seguido de C. moschata (10 variedades), las cuales se siembran en chacras y traspatios. Se reportan siete variedades de C. maxima, con el uso predominante de una variedad comercial en cultivos intensivos. Conclusión: Las prácticas agrícolas tradicionales parecen mantener la diversidad local de C. ficifolia y C. moschata. Las variedades locales de C. maxima en Tomayquichua parecen ser desplazadas progresivamente por una variedad mejorada destinada a aumentar la producción mediante prácticas agrícolas intensivas. La alta diversidad biológica de C. ficifolia en Perú sugiere un origen andino, pero se requieren estudios genéticos adicionales para aclararlo.
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