Abstract

TOXTLE-FLORES, Patricia; GIL-MUNOZ, Abel; LOPEZ, Pedro Antonio  and  SILVA-GOMEZ, Sonia Emilia. Maize landrace diversity persists in rural areas in transition to urban areas. Revista bio ciencias [online]. 2023, vol.10, e1452.  Epub Feb 23, 2024. ISSN 2007-3380.  https://doi.org/10.15741/revbio.10.e1452.

Among the factors that are known to threaten the diversity of maize landraces is increasing urbanization, as it causes the reduction of agricultural areas and contributes to the loss of varieties. Although the urbanization process is occurring in several rural areas, there are currently few studies aimed at determining the level of morphological diversity present in the maize landraces still cultivated in these areas and at determining the association degree with the races reported therein. This was the objective of this research. Therefore, during the year 2021, in the Coronango municipality, Puebla, 54 maize landraces were collected which, along with three racial controls, six experimental varieties, and a commercial control, were evaluated under rainfed conditions in three auxiliary boards of the municipality, using a simple 8×8 lattice design. Thirty-seven variables (phenological, morphological, and derived indices) were quantified and subjected to a combined analysis of variance, cluster and principal components analyses. There were highly significant differences among materials for the 37 evaluated variables. Multivariate analysis revealed the existence of three groups of landraces, differentiated from each other basically by grain color, earliness, and characteristics of leaf, tassel, ear, and kernel. These groups showed little relationship with the Cónico and Elotes cónicos races, with the exemption of one of the white grain groups, that was associated with the Chalqueño race. It is concluded that, despite the pressures faced by this area in transition between rural and urban conditions, an important level of morphological diversity persists among the maize landraces cultivated therein.

Keywords : Peri-urban agriculture; genetic diversity; maize landraces; urbanization.