Collection and conservation of ulluco (Ullucus tuberosus Caldas) in Colombia.

摘要

With the aim of establishing a national ex situ gene bank to conserve the genetic diversity of the species Ullucus tuberosus in Colombia, three collection missions were undertaken during 1998-2000 in the Boyaca, Cauca, Cundinamarca and Narino provinces. The landraces collected were frequently a mixture of clones that local farmers refer to as varieties. Forty morphotypes (groups based on morphological similarity) were identified when the mixtures were classified according to tuber colour and form. To establish the first ulluco gene bank in Colombia every morphotype was assigned an accession number. Among the material collected, particularly interesting forms, described by several authors as semi-cultivars (an intermediate state of domestication), were found. The gene bank was established in the field and in vitro, and a database was developed (BD-BAGUC) for the management of the information collected..