Objective:

To document the cultural importance and management of plants with emphasis on food species of Ch'ol communities of Chiapas, Mexico.

Methodology:

Oriented from ethnoagroecological approach, participatory methodological tools and mixed analysis of the information were applied.

Results:

The analysis of the cultural importance of edible plants (CII) registered ranges between 0.0005 to 15,500, the high values indicate groups of plants that are consumed more frequently, which shows their roots in the food culture of these peoples. The management criteria in the HG show two practices carried out by the families: ex situ and in situ management. In the first, cultivated plants are mainly registered (40.1%), the second emphasizes four levels of agricultural work, collection (8.4%), tolerance (12.1%), promotion (10.9%) and protection (28.6%); In this sense, the management intensity (MI) recognized species with intervals of 0.2129 + 0.6239.

Limitations:

the Covid-19 period limited the last coexistence visits to the FPU that were originally contemplated.

Conclusions:

the vegetable component that is managed in the home garden family constitutes a basic element that defines a sustainable food system. In this sense, together with the valuation of practices of these social groups, family farming may be aiming to build foundations that explain motives involved in the domestication of food plants in Mesoamerica.

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