Ajabssp 2011 462 468
Ajabssp 2011 462 468
Ajabssp 2011 462 468
ISSN 1557-4989
2011 Science Publications
INTRODUCTION
Agave angustifolia Haw. stands out from the
diversity of the Agave genus in northeastern Mexico
owing to its potential as both a crop and for
industrialization in the production of the spirit known
locally as Bacanora. Its use represents both
economically and socially promising activities for the
development of marginal communities in the Sierra
Madre Mountain Range in Sonora, Mexico (Solano and
Nunez-Noriega, 2003). This species is found along the
Mexican Pacific Coast down to Central America and is
also one of the main species used to make mezcal in
Oaxaca, Mexico (Garcia-Mendoza, 2002).
The economic aspect of Bacanora is backed by its
Denomination of Origin (DO) and a Norma Oficial
Mexicana (NOM, Official Mexican Standard).
Corresponding Author: Martin Esqueda, Centre for Food Research and Development, A.C. Km 0.6 road to La Victoria,
83304 Hermosillo, Sonora, Mexico Fax: +52 (662) 280-0422
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RESULTS
Morphological variability among wild populations:
There were 503, 202 and 199 agave plants h1 in S3, S2
and S1 and the percentage of adult plants was 15.6,
14.4 and 22.5% respectively. Population density and the
proportion of adult A. angustifolia plants were
significantly greater in S3. The diameter and height of
the plants ranged from 1.4-2.1 and from 1.1-1.6
respectively. Leaf length was 90-120 cm and leaf width
was 5-7 cm (Table 1). The color parameters varied from
44-61 for L, 119-27 for Hue and 27-43 for chroma,
with means of 52.6, 123.2 and 34.7 respectively; dark
to yellowish green colors were recorded.
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Fig. 2: Scatterplot of centroid values for three wild populations of Agave angustifolia ( S1 = El Bajio, S2 = Los
Mochomos and S3 = El Chorro) on two canonical discriminant variables. Mahalanobis distances in square
parenthesis and their probability values in parenthesis measure the extent of morphological diversity between
the populations. Dashed lines group the plants (numbered) of each population
material, leaves narrow at mid-leaf and wide at their
base, large, scarce teeth that are spaced out and a
large distance from the first tooth to the spine.
Cluster V has four plants (6, 11, 21 and 29) with
leaves that were narrow from the center to their base;
numerous teeth that were very narrow and close
together, with small spines and very close to the first
tooth. L* was low and chroma and Hue were high
(Table 2).
Plants 4, 5, 31, 32, 33 and 34 make up Cluster VI
and were characterized by leaves narrow at the center,
numerous teeth that were very narrow, very close to
each other and with very small spines and close to the
first tooth. L* was high and chroma and Hue were low.
Fig. 3: Dendrogram generated by the cluster analysis showing the eight groups of morphological variants based on a
dissimilarity less than or equal to 1. Site 1 (S1: 1-10), Site 2 (S2: 11-20) and Site 3 (S3: 21-34)
Cluster VII has plants 9, 10, 13 and 23, which in
general had a high dry/fresh weight ratio, long, narrow
leaves, scarce medium-sized teeth that were spread out
and had average sized spines. L*, chroma and Hue fell
within the overall mean. Cluster VIII includes plants 2,
17, 24, 25 and 27, which were characterized by a high
diameter/height
ratio,
short,
broad
leaves,
corresponding to the low values for the ratios of
length/width for the leaf base and mid-leaf, numerous
teeth, relatively close together and average in size and a
short distance from the first tooth to the spine. L*,
chroma and Hue fell within the overall mean (Table 2).
For the weight of the harvested stems, the clusters with
the highest mean biomass were those that grouped
plants (3, 12) and (19, 20), had a fresh weight of 13.6
and 8.8 kg, respectively.
DISCUSSION
Although several factors-the subtropical scrub
vegetation mainly associated with sarcocrassicaul
scrub, the sandy-loam texture of the soil and the soil
nutrients-were similar in the three wild populations of
A. angustifolia, the higher density and greater
development of the agaves in S3 can be attributed to the
microclimate of that site which receives natural
protection from the gentle surrounding hills resulting in
greater plant cover which, in turn, also offers some
protection. The agaves were associated with trees and
shrubs, particularly Acacia cochliacantha Humb. and
Bonpl. ex Willd., Fouquieria macdougalii Nash,
Opuntia spp., Prosopis spp. and Sapium biloculare (S.
Watson) Pax.
The morphometric parameters were similar to
those recorded by Gentry (2004), who mentioned that
the wild plants of A. angustifolia in Sonora, Mexico
have acaulescent, rosette growth, measure 1.0-1.5 m in
height by 1.5-2.0 m in diameter. Leaves are linear from
50-120 cm long, by 4-8 cm wide, ending in a strong
apical spine and with margins armed with small hard
teeth. Compared to the characteristics observed for wild
populations of A. angustifolia in the Yucatan, Mexico
by Colunga-Garciamarin and May-Pat (1997), the
CONCLUSION
Leaf dimensions and structure and the arrangement
of teeth and apical spines (i.e., morphological variables
not related to the age of the species), allowed for the
differentiation of groups of plants. Weight and the
total content of reducing sugars in the agave stem,
added to the analysis of morphological variability,
allowed us to identify at least two clusters of plants
which could be selected as promising biotypes and a
source of propagation material. This is the first study
on the morphology and sugar content of A.
angustifolia from the Sierra Madre Mountains in
Sonora,
Mexico.
Taxonomic,
genetic
and
biotechnology studies would be very useful for
selecting specimens with desirable characteristics for
the sustainable use of this biotic resource.
ACKNOWLEDGMENT
Study is part of the doctoral thesis: Variability
cytogenetics, molecular, morphological and total
reducing sugar content in wild populations of Agave
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