The possible influence of post-harvest objectives on Cucurbita maxima subspecies maxima and subspecies andreana evolutio
- PDF / 1,397,266 Bytes
- 27 Pages / 595.276 x 790.866 pts Page_size
- 53 Downloads / 218 Views
ORIGINAL PAPER
The possible influence of post-harvest objectives on Cucurbita maxima subspecies maxima and subspecies andreana evolution under cultivation at the Argentinean Northwest: an archaeological example Verónica S. Lema
Received: 29 September 2010 / Accepted: 7 February 2011 / Published online: 22 February 2011 # Springer-Verlag 2011
Abstract This paper investigates the possible links between postharvest activities and methods of plant husbandry or management of Cucurbita maxima ssp. maxima and C. maxima ssp. andreana in the prehispanic Argentinean Northwest area. Microscopic methods were used to assess the micromorphological characteristics of modern specimens of South American Cucurbita and Lagenaria species to obtain diagnostic anatomical traits. These traits were then used as criteria for identifying archaeological Cucurbitaceae rind remains from domestic to funerary contexts of the Pampa Grande archaeological site (1720±50 BP, cal. 259– 433 AD). Following the taxonomic identification of the archaeological plant remains, they were futher assessed for signs of human selection or possible cultivation, including: rind thickness, qualitative characters (lobbing, wartiness and colour) and postharvest traits (artificial shape, charring, staining and decoration of sherds). The results indicate the presence of Lagenaria siceraria together with spontaneous, intermediate and domestic C. maxima morphotypes. Different subspecies maxima morphtypes were recognized: those intended as food, having thin pericarps to facilitate consumption and those intended also as food, but as containers too, as in Lagenaria, in which the rinds are thickened and lignified. The latter morphotype may possibly represent a strategy of postharvest intensification, but not through new processing techniques, but through the development of landraces with a longer fruit shelf life, resulting from changing husbandry criteria to selective pressures over cultivated stands. V. S. Lema (*) Departamento Científico de Arqueología-Laboratorio de Etnobotánica y Botánica Aplicada (FCNYM-UNLP), CONICET, Museo de Ciencias Naturales de La Plata, Paseo del Bosque (s/n) CP 1900 La Plata, Buenos Aires, Argentina e-mail: [email protected]
Keywords Postharvest . Husbandry . Cucurbita . Landrace
Introduction The aim of this paper is to examine the relationship between postharvest activities and plant management or husbandry practices, in the prehispanic Argentinean Northwest area (ANA), for two species: Cucurbita maxima Duchesne ex Lam. ssp. maxima and C. maxima Duchesne ex Lam. ssp. andreana (Naud.) A.I. Filov. Based on the archaeobotanical analyses of Cucurbitacea rind remains from the Pampa Grande archaeological site, this study is focused on the influence of post-harvest on the evolution of both subspecies under cultivation. It will be argued that post-harvest factors were among the selective pressures on the evolution of domesticated plant forms, morphotypes and/or landraces. In addition, Lagenaria siceraria (Molina) Standl. (bottle gourd) will be discus
Data Loading...
