VIEYRA-ODILON, LETICIA1 and HEIKE VIBRANS2.* 1Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad Autonoma del Estado de Mexico, Instituto Literario 100, 50000 Toluca, Estado de Mexico, Mexico; 2Laboratorio de Etnobotanica, Especialidad de Botanica, Colegio de Postgraduados en Ciencias Agricolas, km 35.5 carretera Mexico-Texcoco, 56230 Montecillo, Estado de Mexico, Mexico. - Contribution of maize field weeds to a rural economy in the Valley of Toluca, Mexico.
Observations show that maize field weeds are an important resource in
rural areas of Mexico, especially in the high valleys of the
south-central part of the country. They are used as quelites
(spinach-like vegetables), fodder, ornamentals and a nectar source for
bees. We attempted to quantify and evaluate these uses in economic
terms for an area that is neither very traditional, nor very
modernized. San Bartolo del Llano is a village in the northwest of the
Valley of Toluca, with a relatively productive, irrigation-supported,
maize-based agriculture, with fertilizer, herbicide and some
mechanization inputs, but traditional maize varieties. Also,
smallscale, double-purpose cattle breeding is widespread. We
interviewed 24 families weekly during a whole growing season on their
use of weeds for food and fodder (the other uses were minor) and
calibrated quantitiy measures. In one family, all weeds used were
measured. Also, we obtained data on prices and costs. The results show
that fodder is the dominant use in economic terms, and that it
elevates the economic value of the useful biomass of the maize field
by an average of 50%, with a potential that is even higher. The fodder
is harvested between July and October, when the critical period of
competition between maize and weeds is over.
Key words: maize, Mexico, quantitative ethnobotany, Valley of Toluca, weeds