USEFUL PLANTS FROM FOUR COMMUNITIES OF CHIAPAS: PERSPECTIVES ON SUSTAINABLE LAND USE

Abstract

This research is part of a multidisciplinary program called Development of Agricultural Production, conducted at the Centro de Investigaciones Ecológicas del Sureste. lts objective was to make an ethnobotanical exploration of traditional agricultural systems in four communities of the central portian of Chiapas state: Bautista Chico and Muctahuitz in the San Cristóbal Subregion (Highlands); Roblada Grande and Ignacio Allende in the Tuxtla Gutiérrez Subregion (Central Valley). Information was obtained through personal interviews, botanical collects, direct observations, bibliographical research, and herbarium procedure. lt was found that many plants species (731) play an important role for peasant families as a productive resource, particularly those associated with the main needs of the population. Traditional agricultural systems and their plant resources undergo a severe and continuous detrimental process, which also affect the soil fertility. Native and introduced plant species are suggested for an intensive soil use in a sustainable production management scheme.