Morphological and agronomic description of selectedCuphea germplasm

Abstract

Forty Cupheaspecies, recently collected in mid- and southern Mexico, are described in terms of their main morphological and agronomic characteristics. In some species, dormancy, slow germination, sticky hairs, and perennial character, as well as poor flowering and low seed yield limit their agronomic potential. However, some species of the section Heterodon show good crop potential. Among these, C. wrightii, C. glossostoma,and C. laminuligeraseem to be the best lauric acid-synthesizing species. Of the capric acid species, C. paucipetala, C. lanceolata,and C. procumbenshave the best growing potential in humid climates, whereas C. leptopodaand C. inflataare well adapted to arid growing conditions. All Cupheaspecies show seed shattering caused by flower zygomorphy. This zygomorphy not only causes different petal shape and a bilateral symmetry of the calyx tube, but also dispersal of the seeds. It represents the main taxonomic trait for characterizing the genus. Flowering and seed setting continue over a period of several weeks due to indeterminate growth. Multiple harvests with vacuum picking systems that do not damage the plants maximize recovered yields.