VERA-CALETTI, PATRICIA* and HEIKE VIBRANS. Especialidad de Botanica, Colegio de Postgraduados en Ciencias Agricolas, km 36.5 carretera Mexico-Texcoco, 56230 Montecillo, Estado de Mexico, Mexico. - Variation in the White Sapote (Casimiroa edulis LaLlave, Rutaceae) in Mexico.
The White Sapote (Casimiroa edulis LaLlave) is a fruit tree and
medicinal plant of Mesoamerican origin. In Mexico, it is widely
cultivated in home gardens. Commercial plantations are reported from
California, Florida, Israel, Australia and New Zealand. The
traditional cultivation leads to strongly fragmented populations and
to considerable variation in fruit and other characteristics. Within
the project “Systematics and ethnobotany of the genus Casimiroa
(Rutaceae)” we are studying this variation and will present
preliminary results of fieldwork in the center and north of Mexico.
Particular emphasis will be on characteristics relevant for breeding,
such as flavor and consistency of the mesocarp, fruit size and shape,
exocarp thickness and stone size. Also, the shapes of the stones show
regionalized patterns, which may be useful for the interpretation of
archeological remains.
Key words: Casimiroa edulis, fruit tree, Mexico, Rutaceae, variation