Abstract

ORTIZ-TIMOTEO, Juana; SANCHEZ-SANCHEZ, Odilón M.  and  RAMOS-PRADO, José María. Productive activities and management of the milpa in three communities of the municipality of Jesús Carranza, Veracruz, México. Polibotánica [online]. 2014, n.38, pp.173-191. ISSN 1405-2768.

In this study we analyze the productive activities and the current state of knowledge possessed by farmers on the management of the milpa in three communities of the Municipality of Jesus Carranza, Veracruz. The information was obtained through a questionnaire and a semistructured interview of agricultural aspects, in a sample of 30 key informants. The results show that all the people of these communities practice two kinds of milpa: Tapachol milpa is a policulture, sown from November to December in the lowlands near the streams and rivers; and Temporal milpa is grown between May and June in the highlands were pastures are also cultivated. The main crop, maize, is represented by five native varieties, 'criollas' and three hybrids; in the Tapachol milpa, they are cultivated with a variety of crops like beans, squash, coriander, manioc, banana, among other; the Temporal milpa is mainly a maiz monocrop where herbicides are commonly used for weeds control. The crops are used mainly for self consumption, sometimes maize and beans are sold in the local market. Also, these crop systems serve as agrodiversity conservation units.

Keywords : tapachol; seasonal; farmers; self consumption; conservation.

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