Recovery of the tropical fruit biodiversity of the State of Morelos, Mexico

The state of Morelos, Mexico is rich in botanical biodiversity. Because of its geographical location a broad range of different climates allows the cultivation of numerous tropical and temperate tree fruit species. Avocados, soursops, custard apples, sapotes, hog plums, guavas and others, are indigenous species while others such as citrus, apples, peaches, coconut and mango were introduced by the Augustinian, Dominique and Franciscan orders after the arrival of the Spanish. To date, 300 fruit species have been identified while it is believed that 200 are still unidentified. However in recent years numerous of these plant species have been removed to cultivate more commercial species such as flowers. Extinction of many of these species would cause important ecological, nutritional, and cultural losses including an irreversible disappearance of germplasm. The objective of this research was to integrate a database system considering aspects of taxonomy, geography, ethnobotany and ecology with the aim to give proposals for conservation, recovering and handling of those endangered species. Various alternatives were given such as updated breeding, production and handling programs, new marketing channels and producers organization and education.