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Morphological and ecogeographic study of the diversity of cassava (Manihot esculenta crantz) in Ecuador

Abstract:

Cassava (Manihot esculenta Crantz) is a crop of nutritional and economic importance world-wide, cultivated in more than 100 tropical and subtropical countries including Ecuador, where it is traditionally cultivated in the three continental regions: Amazonia, the Coast and in the valleys of the Sierra. The purpose of this study is to characterize 195 accessions from INIAP’s Ecuadorian cassava collection through (1) morphological characterization with qualitative and quantitative descriptors; and (2) ecogeographic characterization to know the climatic, geophysical, and edaphic conditions in which cassava grows and which environments are frequent or marginal for its cultivation. For the morphological characterization, 27 morphological descriptors were used (18 qualitative and nine quantitative), and for the ecogeographic characterization, 55 variables (41 climatic, two geophysical and 12 edaphic). Four morphological groups and three ecogeographic groups were identified. Morphological variability was evidenced mainly in descriptors related to the leaves, stems, and inflo-rescences. In addition, it was possible to identify accessions that appear capable of growing under extreme conditions of drought and poor soils. These accessions could be used for improvement.