Content uploaded by Javier Rendón
Author content
All content in this area was uploaded by Javier Rendón on Sep 11, 2019
Content may be subject to copyright.
Content uploaded by Ignacio Torres-García
Author content
All content in this area was uploaded by Ignacio Torres-García on Sep 02, 2019
Content may be subject to copyright.
Content uploaded by Alejandro Casas
Author content
All content in this area was uploaded by Alejandro Casas on Aug 31, 2019
Content may be subject to copyright.
263
Botanical Sciences 97 (3): 263-290. 2019
DOI: 10.17129/botsci.2202
Review/Revisión
This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License CCBY-NC (4.0) international.
https://creativecommons.org/licences/by-nc/4.0/
Received: February 1, 2019, accepted: May 29, 2019
On line first: 25/08/2019
Abstract
Background: The genus Agave L. is recognized for its wide distribution in Mexican ecosystems. Species have been described as multipurpose
as part of agroforestry systems (AFS). There has not been a systematized, detailed analysis about its richness in AFS nor their ecological,
economic and cultural relevance.
Questions: What is the Agave richness in Mexican AFS? What is their ecological, agronomical, economic and cultural relevance? What are
the risks and perspectives for strengthening their role in AFS?
Species studied: 31 Agave species in Mexican AFS.
Study site and dates: AFS throughout Mexican territory. January to august 2018.
Methods: Systematization of published information, scientific reports, repositories, and our fieldwork, was performed. The data base “The
genus Agave in AFS of Mexico” was created, containing information about Agave richness in AFS, ecological, economic and cultural relevance,
as well as the current and future perspectives of the AFS they are included in.
Results: We recorded 31 species with 22 uses that were part of AFS practices (hedgerows, boundaries and live fences), in homegardens,
terraces and agroforests in temperate, semiarid and sub-humid regions, managed by 12 cultural groups. The main benefits of agaves are soil
retention, infiltration of water and satisfaction of socio-economic and cultural needs. The decrease of multipurpose species and functions was
observed in relation with the commercialization of mezcal.
Conclusions: There has been ample recognition of AFS as settings for conservation and use of Agave, as well as the importance of the knowl-
edge and management practices associated to agave species in AFS.
Keywords: Agrobiodiversity, conservation, exploitation, multipurpose species, mezcal, agaves.
Resumen
Antecedentes: El género Agave L. es reconocido por su amplia distribución en ecosistemas mexicanos y arraigo nacional. Descritos como
especies multipropósito en sistemas agroforestales (SAF). No obstante, su importancia biocultural, hace falta aún un análisis sistematizado y
detallado sobre la riqueza y relevancia del grupo en SAF mexicanos.
Preguntas: ¿Cuál es la riqueza del género Agave en SAF mexicanos?, ¿Cuál es la relevancia ecológica, agrícola, económica y cultural de
estos taxa? ¿Cuáles son los riesgos y perspectivas del manejo de este grupo en SAF?
Especies en estudio: 31 especies del género en SAF mexicanos.
Sitio de estudio y fechas: Se revisaron sistemas agroforestales del territorio de México. Enero a agosto de 2018.
Métodos: Se integró información publicada, repositorios y registros de trabajo de campo, construyendo la base de datos “El género Agave en
SAF de México” que sintetiza la riqueza de especies y relevancia en los SAF, así como las perspectivas para su manejo.
Resultados: Se registraron 31 especies con 22 usos, en prácticas agroforestales (franjas, linderos y cercas vivas) en huertos, terrazas, milpas y
agrobosques en ambientes templados, semiáridos y subhúmedos, manejados por 12 grupos culturales. Los beneficios principales son reducción
de la erosión e infiltración de agua y la satisfacción de necesidades socioeconómicas y culturales. Es notoria la disminución de las especies y
la función multipropósito de éstas en SAF asociados con la comercialización de mezcal.
Conclusiones: Los SAF son relevantes escenarios de conservación y aprovechamiento del género, así como del conocimiento y prácticas
locales asociadas a los beneficios.
Palabras clave: Agrobiodiversidad, aprovechamiento, conservación, especies multipropósito, magueyes, mezcales.
Agave
Agave
1 23 2
1,*
1
2
3
Torres-García et al. / Botanical Sciences 97 (3): 263-290. 2019
264
increase in publications about the importance of agroforestry
systems in the conservation of wild and cultivated species
and their diversity. These publications also delve into envi-
ronmental benefits, TEK, and sociocultural practices related
to the management of AFS (Casas et al. 1996, 1997a, 1997b,
Altieri 1999, Jose 2009, Blancas et al. 2010, Moreno-Calles
et al. 2013, Moreno-Calles et al. 2016a, 2016b, Moreno-
Calles et al. 2019, Vallejo-Ramos et al. 2018, Vallejo et
al. 2019). Several research findings have registered the role
that this type of agroecosystems have for subsistence, the
economy and cultural identity of the peoples that practice and
conserve them (Alcorn 1984, Nair 1985, Casas et al. 1994,
Nair et al. 2008, Moreno-Calles et al. 2010, Jose et al. 2012,
Somarriba et al. 2012, Moreno-Calles et al. 2013. Within
the high diversity of wild and domesticated plant elements
that are conserved, managed and utilized in these systems,
magueyes, mezcales or agaves, as they may be called, are a
group of resources with strong presence and a long relation-
ship with the cultures of Mexico (Colunga-GarcíaMarín et
al. 2007, Colunga-GarcíaMarín et al. 2017).
Agaves have in the Mexican territory the scenario with the
highest species´ richness in the world, and also a wide distri-
bution (García-Mendoza 2004). The majority of species ful-
fill multiple purposes, such as the satisfaction of primary and
secondary needs, products directly consumed by households
or exchanged by other products and constitute one of the
main elements in the economy of families and communities
of maguey managers (Delgado-Lemus et al. 2014b, Torres-
García et al. 2015a, Torres-García et al. 2015b). Neverthe-
less, there is a need for an in-depth analysis of the informa-
tion available, as well as of the experience amassed regarding
the relationship between agroforestry systems and the genus
Agave in Mexico. Such information is of high national prior-
ity, for it would help establish the basis to maintain, develop,
and manage systems capable of giving the support needed
for maintaining the balance between productive and human
wellbeing purposes, biodiversity conservation, and environ-
mental benefits. This study was performed in order to answer
the following questions: What is the richness of Agave spp.
in Mexican AFS?, What is the ecological, agronomical, and
cultural relevance of taxa belonging to this genus in the AFS
that host them?, What are the management perspectives for
this group within AFS? The general objective of our research
was to analyze the richness and relevance of the genus Agave
in agroforestry systems in Mexico.
Materials and methods
Information available on agaves in AFS was systematized
through the construction of the database “El género Agave
en Sistemas Agroforestales de México” (The genus Agave in
Agroforestry Systems of Mexico) which includes informa-
tion about the species and the relevant characteristics of the
systems that host them, considering: 1) a description of the
systems that host agaves, product of our own research; 2) an
archive of the literature that is part of the database “Sistemas
Agroforestales de México” (http://red-sam.org/index.php/
lista-de-publicaciones-sobre-sistemas-agroforestales/) and a
Since prehistoric times, diverse forms of agroforestry man-
agement of the landscapes have been practiced in Mexico,
these include cultivation of nearly 200 native species of crops
and the incipient management of a broad spectrum of wild
species of plants, which complement diets and fulfill the
needs of the societies that maintain them (Casas et al. 1996,
1997a, Moreno-Calles et al. 2013, 2016a, 2016b). In modern
times, and particularly after the second half of the 20th cen-
tury, the global dominant tendency has been to simplify these
systems into intensive, technical monocultures, unchaining
multiple negative socio-environmental impacts in the pro-
cess. Among these impacts are the loss of Traditional Eco-
logical Knowledge (TEK) and agrobiodiversity, and a high
dependence on toxic agrochemicals (Altieri 2009, Altieri &
Toledo 2011, Barkin & Suárez 1982, Emanuelli et al. 2009,
Holt-Gimenez & Patel 2009, Godfray et al. 2010, Torres &
Rojas 2015). An expression of this process in Mexico are
the intensified agave plantations of the haciendas pulqueras
during the 19th and part of the 20th centuries, as well as
plantations associated to the growing agave spirits industry
of tequila and mezcal, particularly since the end of the 20th
century and up to the present (Ramírez-Rodríguez 2004, Va-
lenzuela-Zapata & Macías-Macías 2014).
The genus Agave L. has been a very important group
of resources for Mesoamerican and Aridoamerican cultures
since prehistoric times (MacNeish 1967). Many ancient uses
have prevailed in rural and peri-urban communities, among
the most important food, construction, cordage, garments,
fermented beverages, medicine, soil control and ceremonial
uses can be mentioned. These resources have been crucial
for the life and development of societies within the Mexican
territory (Colunga-GarcíaMarín et al. 2007, 2017, Gentry
1982). Popularity of Agave spirits has increased in the last
30 years, both within national territory as well as abroad
(Consejo Regulador del Mezcal 2015, Consejo Regulador del
Tequila 2019, Delgado-Lemus et al. 2014a, Delgado-Lemus
et al. 2014b, Torres-García et al. 2013, Torres-García et al.
2015a and b). The high demand of the tequila industry for
raw materials has been characterized, among many socio-
environmental injustices, by the devastation of hundreds of
thousands of original forests, mainly in five Mexican states,
for establishing intensive monocultures of A. tequilana
(Bowen & Zapata 2009, Herrera-Pérez et al. 2017, Trejo-
Salazar et al. 2016, Valenzuela-Zapata & Macías-Macías
2014). Since 1995, the expansion of these intensive mono-
cultures has resulted in social conflicts and environmental
problems, among them the loss of biodiversity and ecosystem
benefits, the increasing pollution of soils and water, due to
the large quantities of agrochemicals used in these planta-
tions (Gil-Vega et al. 2001, Trejo et al. 2018). Pressure from
this industry maintains these territories, where a single spe-
cies predominates, dependent on the use of external inputs, to
create what we have conceptualized as “blue deserts” sensu
Altieri (2009).
Recently, new approaches have emerged from agroecol-
ogy, which see Agroforestry Systems (AFS) as alternatives
to the problems related to the production and conservation
of biodiversity. In the last three decades there has been an
Agave in agroforestry systems of Mexico
265
typology of these systems developed by Moreno-Calles et al.
(2013, 2016b); and 3), an update of the searches of special-
ized studies on the subject in the Web of Science, Science Di-
rect, Google Scholar databases, and ProQuest Dissertations
& Theses, as well as TesiUNAM repositories. The keywords
included in the search were: agave/maguey + agroforestería,
agave/maguey + agroforestal, agave/maguey + sistemas agrí-
colas tradicionales, agroecosistemas + agave/maguey (agave/
maguey + agroforestry, agave/maguey + agroforestal, agave/
maguey + traditional agricultural systems, agroecosystems+
agave/maguey). These searches were also carried out with
the terms in English. This update focused on a search from
2012 to the present. The review of 146 records included in
75 studies integrated information regarding the role that each
species plays in the hosting system, considering the follow-
ing fields: a) scientific name (taking as a reference www.
theplantlist.org), b) common name, c) type of agroforestry
system (sensu Moreno-Calles et al. 2013), d) other systems
where the species can be found with different management
intensities, e) cultural group that manages the system, f)
locality, state, g) agroforestry practice (sensu Moreno-Calles
et al. 2011), h) ecological aspects and interactions, i) uses,
j) ecological status/management (sensu Blancas et al. 2010),
k) economic value, l) socio-cultural importance, m) density/
intensity/dominance, n) evidence of domestication (sensu
Colunga-GarcíaMarín et al. 2017, Figueredo-Urbina et al.
2017, Urbina et al. 2018).
Results
Agave species present in agroforestry systems in Mexico.
Based on the information from the current research and the
studies reviewed (75), 31 species and 4 intraspecific variants
of the genus Agave were registered in agroforestry systems;
29 records specified the presence of agaves identifying only
the genus. The species with the highest number of records is
Agave salmiana Otto ex Salm Dyck, which included refer-
ences to the variety A. salmiana var. ferox (K.Kock) Gentry
and the subspecies A. salmiana subsp. crassispina (Trel.)
Gentry, with 22 records in total, followed by A. fourcroydes
Lem., which was registered 14 times. Other species regis-
tered, in descending order of frequency are: A. angustifolia
Haw., A. americana L., A. americana var. marginata Trel.
in L.H.Bailey, A. tequilana F.A.C. Weber, A. marmorata
Roezl., A. cupreata Trel. & A. Berger, A. sisalana Perrine,
A. atrovirens Karw., A. mapisaga Trel. in L.H.Bailey, A.
lechuguilla Torr., A. potatorum Zucc., A. scaposa Gentry,
A. karwinskii Zucc., A. striata Zucc, A. striata subsp. falcata
(Engelm.) Gentry, A. triangularis Jacobi, A. angustiarum
Trel., A. asperrima Jacobi, A. rhodacantha Trel., A. prom-
ontorii Trel., A. peacockii Croucher, A. macroacantha Zucc.,
A. murpheyi F.Gibson, A. maximiliana Baker, A. inaequidens
K.Koch, A. aff. weberi J.F. Cels ex J.Poiss., A. deserti En-
gelm, A. kerchovei Lem., A. cerulata Trel, A. celsii Hook.
and A. aurea Brandegee (see Figure 1 and Appendix 1).
Traditional agroforestry systems. Homegardens.- This is a
type of agroforestry system generally found next to or very
near the houses of the families that manage them. With an an-
cient history, which is crucial among the traditional production
systems managed by household units in rural peasant zones. It
is characterized by its high richness of native and exotic spe-
cies diversity, and by its high complexity and structural vari-
ation (Ruenes-Morales & Montañez 2016). Such abundance
and heterogeneity determine the existence of microhabitats
that allow the conservation and use of the genetic resources
Figure 1. Species and number of studies that mention agave as part of an agroforestry system. *: Agave triangularis, A. angustiarum, A. asper-
rima, A. rhodacantha, A. promontori, A. peacockii, A. macroacantha, A. murpheyi, A. maximiliana, A. inaequidens, A. aff. weberi, A. deserti, A.
kerchovei, A. cerulata, A. celsii, and A. aurea with only one report.
Torres-García et al. / Botanical Sciences 97 (3): 263-290. 2019
266
necessary for the self-sufficiency and incomes of the family’s
members, mainly women (Moreno-Calles et al. 2016a)
This system was the most common among the studies
reviewed. Agave species were identified in 57 studies (13
species), of which A. fourcroydes was the most common
with ten records; A. angustifolia with seven: A. americana
with six; A. tequilana and A. sisalana five; A. salmiana
four; A. atrovirens and A. marmorata two, and A. angusti-
arum, A. lechuguilla, A. macroacantha, and A. striata with
one record each. Eleven records only specified the genus
level. The cultural groups mentioned in these studies as
managers of agave in their homegardens were the Maya
of the state of Yucatan, Campeche, and Quintana Roo (22
homegardens) (Herrera-Castro 1994, Poot-Pool 2008, Cahu-
ich-Campos 2012, Mariaca-Méndez 2012, Poot-Pool et al.
2012); Mestizo people from the states of Puebla, Chiapas,
Nayarit, Tabasco, Mexico (13 homegardens) (Stienen 1990,
Ruenes-Morales 1993, Tamayo-Ortega 1995, Gaytán-Ávila
et al. 2001, Blanckaert et al. 2004, Pagaza-Calderón 2008,
Rosales et al. 2008, Hernández-Soto 2009, Gómez-García
2011, Torres-Díaz 2011); the Nahua of Puebla (nine); the
Chontal of Tabasco (four); the Tzotzil/Tzeltal from Chiapas
(three) (Gutiérrez-Miranda 2003, Guerrero-Peñuelas 2007,
Pérezgrovas-Garza 2011); the Mazahua of the State of Mex-
ico (one); the Zapotec from Oaxaca (one) and the Totonac
of Puebla (one).
A) Structural role of Agaves in homegardens.- Within
these agroforestry systems agave density is mostly low, and
may vary from one to dozens of individuals. The agaves
within this system play different structural roles, such as that
of blocking the passage of cattle or people, parting from agro-
forestry practices such as live fences or hedges, protecting
the integrity of the homegarden and limiting the area that is
considered as belonging to that family (Ffolliott 1998). Aga-
ves can be found along the borders or places where they do
not represent an obstacle for moving around the homegarden,
given that these often grow to a considerable size, sometimes
occupying from 1 to 3 m2 or more, while homegardens usu-
ally cover relatively small areas (between 100 and 500 m2),
compared to other AFS in Mexico (1-4 ha). It is possible to
find isolated individuals at the center of the homegarden (see
Figure 2) or as part of vegetation islands.
Figure 2. Agave species and general management strategies in agroforestry systems. A) Metepantle in the municipality of Zacualtipán, Hidalgo
(Photo: G. Álvarez), B) A. americana in a family homegarden in the municipality of Tlahuiltoltepec, Oaxaca (Photo: A.I. Moreno-Calles), C) A.
triangularis and A. marmorata as part of a live fence in a AFS in a semiarid zone in Zapotitlán de las Salinas, Puebla. (Photo: I. Torres-García),
D) Live fences and island of A. rhodacantha in an agrosilvopastoral system in Zapotitlán de Vadillo, Jalisco. (Photo: I. Torres-García).
Agave in agroforestry systems of Mexico
267
B) Ecological-functional role of Agaves in homegardens.-
Agaves retain soil and humidity, promoting the infiltration
of water into the ground. When they are allowed to flower-
ing, they act as attractors of melliferous species (bees) and
beneficial nectarivorous species (birds, bats, and other small
mammals) both necessary to increase the productivity and
fructification of other important species that compose the
system, such as fruiting trees. Similarly, they are the habitat
for animal species such as reptiles (mainly small lizards
and snakes, see Figure 3), which control insect plagues and
rodents inside the system.
C) Utilitarian attributes of Agaves in homegardens.- In
total 16 use categories were reported, eight have two or more
records, being the most mentioned the ornamental, followed
by medicinal, edible, and obtaining of fiber as the most
important (see Figure 4 and Appendix 1). The majority of
the Agave species registered have mainly an ornamental use
with an aesthetic role in the system; there are other important
uses as well, such as the medicinal and edible uses, given
their immediate availability and accessibility as a constant
element of homegardens. In Mayan homegardens flower-
ing stalks and fibers are used as materials for constructing
ka´anche, a sort of traditional seed-bed or elevated horticul-
tural pots characteristic of this region, used for the production
of vegetables. Some uses represent an economic incomen this
category it is possible to include the commercialization of
pulque, fiber extraction, processing and commercialization
of crafts such as necklaces and rosaries, as well as articles
of common use such as morrales (bags) and mecapales (a
sort of rope implement made of agave fiber that is used to
carry bulks on the back and which is borne on the forehead).
In this system, it is possible to find the presence of species
that have been cultivated and selected for a long time, and
evident domestication syndromes are present, such as gigan-
tism of the leaves, fibers and the whole individual, as well
as a high concentration of carbohydrates. Species such as
A. fourcroydes, A. angustifolia, and A. tequilana are part of
a complex of species for which there is information about
their domestication processes and the relationship with their
wild relatives.
D) Management. Those individuals that are established
and maintained in homegardens, in the case of domesticated
species are mostly transplanted from adjacent homegardens
or from shoots of individuals that have flowered. Due to their
monocarpic reproduction, agaves die after flowering and are
then reproduced through stoloniferous or bulbil shoots. In
Figure 3. Ecological interactions of agave in agroforestry systems. A) Anolis nebulosus in Agave cupreata, municipality of Tzitzio, Michoacán
(Photo: I. Torres-García), B) Icterus wagleri feeding on an inflorescence of A. cupreata in the municipality of Tzitzio (Photo: C. Ojeda), C)
Leptonycteris sp. Feeding on the inflorescences of A. cupreata in the Tzitzio municipality (Photo: I. Torres-García), D) Aegiale hesperiaris in
A. scaposa in the municipality of Caltepec, Puebla (Photo: M. A. Negrellos-Balderas) and E) Sceloporus sp. in A. angustifolia in Zapotitlán de
Vadillo (Photo: I. Torres-García).
Torres-García et al. / Botanical Sciences 97 (3): 263-290. 2019
268
the case of wild species, individuals come from the adjacent
ecosystems, and are cultivated primarily through transplant-
ing the complete juvenile individuals that are of interest to
people. The transplant location depends on the design of each
homegarden and the function that transplanted agaves have
as part of the system.
Agroforestry terraces.- This AFS is embankment-based
structure located on the slopes of hills and mountains has
contributed to its archeological identification in several
zones of the country (Moreno-Calles et al. 2013, 2016b, and
Gonzáles-Jácome 2016). The architecture of this system al-
lows the conservation of soil and water trough of the roots
of the useful trees and agaves, perennial bushes, and others,
growing in board terraces allowing intensive annual and pe-
rennial management crops.
This system was mentioned in 21 of the studies reviewed
in which five species are mentioned; among them, Agave
salmiana was the most frequently referred to followed by
A. americana A. atrovirens, A. salmiana var. ferox, and A.
mapisaga. Seven studies identified the agaves only at the
genus level, eight focused on the study of metepantles or
terraces with agaves from the historic or prehistoric point of
view, presenting palynological evidence, archeological evi-
dence (as instruments to extract aguamiel), and archaeobo-
tanical evidence (as remains of roasting pits with agave fibers
associated with this type of agroforestry system in various
parts of the country). Places such as the Teotihuacan Valley,
Ixtapalapa, and Ixtacuixtla in Tlaxcala in central Mexico, but
also in places in the north of Mexico, such as Parras de la
Fuente, in Coahuila, La Quemada, in Zacatecas, and Cerro
Juanaqueña in Chihuahua, are all places with a record of this
agroforestry practice, all of them importantly including the
presence of agaves. Through their roots, agaves confer stabil-
ity to the terraces, which were usually established on slopes
highly susceptible to erosion. This system was practiced in
areas that were under high demographic pressure. Such was
the case of the Aztec settlement in the Valley of Mexico,
in which thousands of people lived before the arrival of
the Spaniards. One of the explanations for how this human
settlement survived highlights the intensive establishment of
this system.
A) Structural role of agaves in agroforestry terraces.- De-
pending on their extension, terraces can host hundreds or
thousands of individuals which are generally planted in lines
following the level curves. Among the functions of agaves
are, first of all, the limits created by the succulent and armed
Figure 4. Main uses of agave in agroforestry and agroforest systems. A) Agave triangularis being used to delimit a plot (Photo: I. Torres-García),
B) Condachos, Aegiale hesperiaris, roasting on a grill, municipality of Caltepec, Puebla (Photo: M.A. Negrellos-Balderas), C) Agave marmorata
used as a live fence, municipality of Zapotitlán de las Salinas, Puebla, D) Walls of traditional housing made with inflorescences of A. scaposa,
Municipality of Concepción Buenavista, Oaxaca, E) Goat barbacoa baked using leaves of A. salmiana var. ferox, municipality of Concepción
Buenavista, Oaxaca, F) Distillation of mezcal made with A. cupreata in the municipality of Tzitzio, Michoacán (Photos: I. Torres-García).
Agave in agroforestry systems of Mexico
269
rosettes, which at the same time intercept and diminish the
effect of rain on soil, allowing in this way the infiltration
of water into the ground. Adding on to these effects, there
is the strong hold of superficial roots (see Figure 2), which
contribute to the effective prevention of erosion and to the
conservation of the architecture of terraces.
B) Ecological-functional role of agaves in agroforestry
terraces.- Some species of Agave in these systems are hosts
to larvae of some lepidopteran species. These larvae have
specialized to hatch, feed, grow, and find refuge on the tis-
sues of agaves and depend completely on their existence to
complete their life cycle. These larvae have been used as food
by many cultures. In agaves other animals such as rodents,
lagomorphs, and some reptiles also find shelter and when
agaves bloom, they provide food to several insect, bat and
bird species. The flowering stalks are perching and nesting
sites for many bird species (see Figure 3). Some species
defecate plant propagules that could be incorporated to the
system.
C) Utilitarian attributes of agaves in agroforestry ter-
races.- These systems integrate the cultivation of diverse
grains that are sown in the terrace structure under the shelter
of agaves, therefore this structural component is at the same
time a source of multiple resources. Regarding this issue the
most important uses reported were aguamiel and fermented
beverage (pulque), edible, fuel and provision of edible insects
the most important ones (Figure 4) (Blanton 1972, Mar-
tínez-Saldaña et al. 1993, Hard et al. 1999, Martínez-Saldaña
2007, Borejsza et al. 2008). In the past, large metepantle
extensions were linked to great civilizations. The gathering
of aguamiel in these systems represented a source of water
in those relatively semiarid zones of the Mexican Plateau,
as well as a source of food with high nutritional content.
Moreover, the flowering stalks were elements for construc-
tion, while the thorns and teeth were employed to produce
sharp instruments for sewing and performing rituals. The
fibers were used to spin and sew textiles, the leaves for con-
struction of roofs in the manner of tiles and when dry, these
same leaves could be used as fuel for cooking food. Such
was the versatility and importance of this resource that the
plant was worshipped and even deified in the Aztec world-
view. In contemporary times, the gathering of aguamiel and
pulque for commercialization has radically diminished since
the second half of the past century (Álvarez-Ríos 2015).
Nevertheless, currently these systems can be found in large
extensions within the country in the states of Tlaxcala and
Hidalgo, where resources such as aguamiel and pulque are
collected, as well as edible insects for direct consumption by
households and for commercialization. Another activity that
characterizes this region is the use of agave leaves to prepare
barbacoa de borrego (sheep barbecue), being sheep, a tradi-
tional animal managed in this area. The barbacoa is prepared
in a pit oven in which the meat is covered with agave leaves,
which serve as insulation from the direct heat of the ashes
and give this regional dish a special taste.
D) Management.- The multiple individuals of agave that
integrate this AFS have been obtained, selected and propa-
gated asexually, through transplanting of stoloniferous shoots
of the mother plants that were used and whose lifecycle has
come to an end. This type of management is practiced in the
case of domesticated species and their varieties: exchange of
plants of other regions with similar management is performed
by inhabitants with the intention of incorporating variants
with different attributes. In the case of wild species, juve-
nile individuals may be transplanted from the surrounding
ecosystems or may be tolerated at the moment of removing
vegetation in order to cultivate other crops, and also trans-
planted in the same field to form the contention lines that
form the terraces.
Agroforestry systems in semiarid zones: Melgas, apantles
and coaxustles in the Tehuacán Valley, Puebla.- This type
of AFS was recorded in 7 studies and included the presence
of species like Agave salmiana var. ferox, A. scaposa, A.
marmorata, and A. potatorum, with at least 9 use categories
(see Appendix 1. It is in the semiarid zones of the Tehuacán-
Cuicatlán Biosphere Reserve, which is inhabited by commu-
nities of Popolocan and Nahuatl ascent. All Agave species
mentioned grow wild in the ecosystems within community
territory. In these agroecosystems, a considerable number
of individuals from species that form part of native forests
are tolerated, promoted and/or protected due to the different
benefits that can be obtained from them, agaves being the
most precious elements.
Within these systems, agaves have the main function of
limiting plots of land and constitute live fences to prevent
the passage of cattle into the milpa (Figure 2). Agave pota-
torum (papalometl) and A. marmorata (pitzometl) are used
in the community to produce alcoholic beverages like mezcal
and pulque which have in recent years diminished due to
extraction of individuals from populations of these species.
Therefore, the authorities of the Biosphere Reserve have
intervened to influence the communitarian authorities so as
to establish a prohibition of extraction/felling of A. potato-
rum. Available literature reports that in some AFS of the
Tehuacán Valley there exist the necessary conditions for this
species to grow, given the species needs for nursing plants to
germinate and establishment (Rangel-Landa et al. 2015). It
is within these systems where various species with different
nursing qualities can be found, such as diverse bush species
that are tolerated as part of agroforestry practices. These
systems are also propitious spaces for seed dispersal by ani-
mals. The existence of proper conditions is very important
for the conservation of these delicate interactions. Wild and
cultivated agave extraction for mezcal production and sale
has high cultural importance in this community, for it is not
only consumed in patronal fests, but also as a remedy or
stimulant for the hard labor in the fields. There is high de-
mand for mezcal produced in this locality, and it has already
a regional market, which means economic incomes for the
families that produce it (Torres-García 2009, Moreno-Calles
& Casas 2010, Torres-García et al. 2013, Delgado-Lemus et
al. 2014a, Torres-García et al. 2015b). Agave marmorata is
employed to make cough syrup, pulque and mezcal, the flow-
ering scapes are used in Easter to adorn churches, houses, and
streets, as well as for making bird nests in houses; flowers
are also consumed (the flower buds are called cacayas) and
Torres-García et al. / Botanical Sciences 97 (3): 263-290. 2019
270
leaves are used as fuel (mezontete). Another singular species
in these ASF is A. scaposa, a common species that is gener-
ally found as part of agroforestry practices like hedgerows
and live fences, with the main purpose of retaining soil. This
species has the highest abundance dominance in milpa-chi-
chipera ASF. Also, its floral scapes are highly appreciated
for house construction due to a scarcity of trees with straight
trunks (Figure 4). In San Luis Atolotitlán, there exist rules
that establish that in order to cut a flowering stalk, it needs
to have blossomed and freed its seed, allowing for its natu-
ral regeneration, considering the biotic interactions as well
that occur in the flower, which is visited by multiple nec-
tarivorous species of insects, birds, and bats. It is also very
important for the culinary culture of this community, since
it is the habitat of a highly appreciated edible insect called
condacho, of the species Aegiale hesperiaris Walker. These
larvae can be found in the inner part of the succulent base of
the leaves of this agave, and to extract them it is necessary to
cut the leaves with much care so as not to harm the larvae. In
this process agaves, which are in general those that have not
blossomed, may be harmed, causing their death. Given these
risks, rules were established by the community, allowing for
the extraction of these larvae only one or two days in the
year in the month of June (Figure 3 and 4) (Moreno-Calles
& Casas 2010, Moreno-Calles et al. 2011, Moreno-Calles
et al. 2016a).
Newly established agroforestry systems. Agrosilvopastoral
systems and agaves in Jalisco.- On the foothills of the Ne-
vado de Colima and the Volcán de Fuego in the Zapotitlán
de Vadillo municipality in the community with the same
name, it is possible to find some experiences of integrated
management of mezcal agaves. This region continues a tra-
dition of more than 300 years in the production of mezcal,
tuxca or mezcal wine, spirits based on the fermentation of
two species, one wild Agave angustifolia and the other with
incipient domestication A. rhodacantha. In the beginning of
the past century mezcal production in the zone was sustained
by the extraction of wild agave populations in the tropical dry
forest of the region, mainly A. angustifolia. It was during the
1990´s that these wild populations began to diminish. Con-
sidering this fact many families began to select plants with
attributes desired for mezcal production and took them from
wild habitats to cultivate them in their agricultural systems.
A particular experience in Zapotitlán de Vadillo is that of one
family that has developed an integral cultivation system that
alternates around 14 wild varieties of A. angustifolia with
corn, bean, squash, and other annual products, as well as with
other forest elements that have been tolerated within parcels,
such as pitayas (Stenocereus queretaroensis (F.A.C.Weber
Buxb) which provide edible fruits, mezquites (Prosopis laevi-
gata (Humb. & Bonpl. ex Willd.) M.C.Johnst., species whose
sweet pods are used as forage or for human consumption,
among other uses and huamúchiles (Pithecellobium dulce
(Roxb.) Benth.), which are trees that provide shade to people
and cattle (Figure 2). These areas are also used by goats that
feed on the multiple weeds and forage that grows in this
system. Of the two agave species present in this system,
around 14 varieties of A. angustifolia, have been identified
as having been obtained from the wild, and reproduced in
this system through stoloniferous shoots, and transplanted in
lines of only one variety (Vargas-Ponce et al. 2007, Vargas-
Ponce et al. 2009). There are two varieties of A. rhodacantha
identified by people, who mention that they are only known
as cultivated varieties, and these have evidence of domesti-
cation, mainly due to the size of individuals, the length of
their leaves and the use that they had in past times for fiber
provision. Their traditional names also evidence their use,
because they are commonly known as ixtero verde (ixte or
ixtle is another way of naming the fibers that come from
Agave) and ixtero amarillo. Seven use categories have been
registered for this species, the most important being mezcal
production, followed by their use as live fences, food, condi-
ment for barbacoa, medicinal, fiber and as a fermented drink
(see Appendix 1). Currently, mezcal production in this region
depends mainly in the production of agaves from agricultural
lands that were established as a response to the shortage in the
past. The production of mezcal wine or tuxca in this region is
also a cultural activity of economic importance that has pre-
vailed for many generations and in recent years, has reached
commercialization channels at the local and national levels.
Agave agroforests in western Mexico.- This type of man-
agement has been observed and documented for species such
as A. cupreata, A. inaequidens, and A. maximiliana. Although
these are multipurpose species, they are currently used main-
ly for the preparing of spirits from mezcal and raicilla in Mi-
choacán and Jalisco, respectively. This type of management
has evolved in recent years. Spirit producers and managers of
these species remark that mezcal in Michoacán and raicilla in
Jalisco have been produced for at least 300 years. However,
these species only started to be reproduced and cultivated in
the past 15 to 20 years through sexual propagules, the only
effective form of reproduction for species of the Crenatae
group. The main reason why people started growing this
crop was as a response to market pressure which caused the
decrease in wild populations, as well as the growth in the
number of producers in these zones.
In the case of Agave cupreata in the state of Michoacán,
the cultivation of this species began approximately 20 years
ago, mainly in the municipalities of Madero, Charo, Tz-
itzio, and Morelia. Cultivation of A. cupreata in this region
was a reaction to pressure over the resource, which was
used for making mezcal, and this activity determined a criti-
cal decrease of its wild populations. Experimentation with
plant production in nurseries through seed sowing, started in
the municipality of Madero. The tendency was to establish
monocultures, similarly to A. tequilana; however, there are
other cases in the region principally in Tzitzio and Charo,
where A. cupreata is spread through agroforestry practices,
through seeds in rustic nurseries. The main purpose of the
plants grown in these nurseries is to reforest through planta-
tions with a very high density of agaves, in places found
on the transition between oak-pine forests and tropical dry
forest, where relicts populations of these species can be
found, and can be taken as a sign of the ideal habitat for pro-
duction of this agave species. In these forest areas clearings
Agave in agroforestry systems of Mexico
271
of bushy species take place and some tree species have been
tolerated, such as tepehuajes (Lysiloma spp.), papelillos and
copales (Bursera spp.), anonas (Annona sp.), palo dulce (Ey-
senhardtia polystachya (Ortega) Sarg.), and palms (Brahea
pimo Becc.) among others (Figure 5). Cattle are also allowed
to feed in these systems, having the care of letting cattle feed
where agaves already have a proper age, size, and configu-
ration that allow it to resist being stepped-on by cattle. Al-
though the predominant use in of A. cupreata in Michoacán
in the present is the production and marketing of mezcal, nine
other categories of use have been registered (see Appendix
1). In order of importance these are: as food, medicinal uses
of the baked or grilled stem, the use of flowers as attractors
for deer hunting, as live fences, ornamental, and ceremonial
uses, and as a diversity of instruments and utensils (nests
for little parrots, seats, thorns to take out splinters, caps for
bottles). The bagasse that remains from mezcal production is
used as a biofertilizer. Another highly demanded use is the
commercialization of juvenile plants for the establishment
of plantations to make mezcal, and the commercialization of
seed, a product that can cost between US$210 and US$263
($4000 and $5000 Mexican pesos) per kilo.
Agave inaequidens has a similar history. In the munic-
ipalities of Indaparapeo and Queréndaro -with around 40
maguey managers and mezcal producers- around 20 years
ago producers began to establish monocultures of agave as a
response to the shortage of wild agave due to a faster extrac-
tion-to-regeneration rate, following the production tendency
of tequila maguey. Nevertheless, there exist wild popula-
tions managed in situ which are reforested with individuals
produced in rustic nurseries. Several management practices
contribute to the conservation of this species. Among these
practices it is possible to find the tolerance of agaves when
clearing the underbrush in forest patches of pine-oak and
pine-fir, the protection or promotion of specific individuals
when transplanting to sites with better conditions for growth,
and the dispersion of seeds by scattering on favorable sites
for germination –in total 10 types of in situ management
practices (Figure 5). A total of 16 use categories and 34
specific uses have been registered for this species of which
the most important by order of mention is the making of
mezcal, which has had a boom in the past 10 years (see Ap-
pendix 1). However, to a lesser extent it also has edible and
medicinal uses, it is used as insulation and as condiment for
Figure 5. Agave agroforests. A, B) Agave cupreata agroforests in the municipality of Tzitzio and Charo, Michoacán, C) Agroforests of A.
maximiliana in the municipality of Mascota, Jalisco, D) Agroforests of A. inaequidens in the municipality of Queréndaro, Michoacán (Photos: I.
Torres-García).
Torres-García et al. / Botanical Sciences 97 (3): 263-290. 2019
272
making barbacoa, as veterinary medicine, for the extraction
of aguamiel and pulque, as live fences, forage, construction
material, fiber extraction, sale of juvenile agave, erosion con-
trol, as bait to attract deer for hunting, for ornamental uses,
and as utensils (Torres-García et al. 2015a).
In the case of Agave maximiliana in the region of Mas-
cota, Jalisco, registries mention that 15 years ago the rates of
extraction of wild populations of this species determined its
critical decrease, promoting the establishment of commercial
monocultures in deforested areas and abandoned agricultural
lands. Some managers have established agroforests with aga-
ves such as the ones mentioned above; these sites result from
the clearing of forests and the planting of juvenile agave that
have been grown in rustic nurseries in pine-oak forest zones
(Figure 5). Inhabitants recognize the incidence of frost in the
zone, a fact that affects species found in open areas with no
canopy cover. It is in these areas that inhabitants have estab-
lished this crop, trying to reproduce the natural conditions of
the populations that grow under tree canopy in order to keep
them from frost. For this species, 11 use categories have been
registered, of which the most important is the making and
marketing of raicilla, (a spirit that is going through a market
boom) followed by uses as medicine, fuel, forage, marketing,
and bartering, as fertilizer, as ornament, as insulation and
condiment, as a fermented drink, to retain soil and as bait
for deer hunting (Huerta-Galván 2018).
Agave agroforest management in Guerrero. In the Moun-
tain region of Chilapa, Guerrero, there exists a management
experience that has been developing for many years. This
experience has been the fruit of the interaction between the
community of Nahuatl mezcal producers of Acateyahualco,
Guerrero and the non-governmental organization GEA A.C.
(Grupo de Estudios Ambientales y Sociales). GEA has nearly
20 years carrying out arduous participatory action research
that has had a positive impact in the community´s manage-
ment of their territory and its natural resources. This commu-
nity has developed an important management strategy, based
on ecological information generated through demographic
studies of the local wild Agave cupreata populations, which
integrates the biological and reproductive dimension of this
species in the design and application of annual systematic
monitoring schemes. Indicators regarding the structure of
wild agave populations are analyzed in community assem-
blies. In this way, the community decides how many mature
agaves can be extracted based on the harvest thresholds es-
tablished in the demographic models; that is harvesting that
does not alter the recruitment rates in order to allow for popu-
lation equilibrium. This monitoring scheme allows maguey
to be harvested in a period of one year, and it specifies that
it can only be processed by the community of Acateyahualco
to satisfy its demand of mezcal. At the same time, the com-
munity practices a rotation system of the extraction sites,
by establishing different stands within natural vegetation,
where they carry extraction and monitoring. This extraction
model implies that the sites where extraction happens must
be shifted over time in order to assure that natural regenera-
tion of the species happens in its natural habitat, allowing
individuals to naturally blossom and disperse their seeds.
They also have a systematized management of the cattle that
grazes on this territory. The management of cattle assures
seed production, dispersion, and establishment of new agave
generations, at the same time that pollination processes are
promoted. On one hand, the restriction of cattle to enter plots
where mezcal seeds are germinating protects these seeds
from being eaten. On the other hand, this restriction allows
tender inflorescences to blossom in order to let pollination
processes occur. When seeds germinate and there are seed-
lings on the fields, cattle may step over these seedlings, so the
entrance of cattle into these stands during these susceptible
stages is restricted. This species is mainly pollinized by bats
of the genus Leptonycteris and given that this agave does not
produce stoloniferous shoots, seeds are the only way it can
reproduce. This is an example of community management of
a collective resource through a very interesting collaboration
between Academia, NGOs and rural communities to sustain-
ably manage natural resources, ecosystems and territories
(Illsley et al. 2007, Martin et al. 2011, Illsley et al. 2018).
Forest areas next to this community are being conserved
for being the natural habitat of Agave cupreata. This action
contributes significantly to the conservation of diversity of
accompanying species and ecosystem benefits that are de-
terminant to the quality of life of the community. Mezcal
is a very important part of local and regional culture: it is
consumed in patronal fests and is one of the few cultural
activities that determine a tangible economic income for the
inhabitants of this community.
Discussion
In total, our study identified 31 species of Agave (of the 210
described, according to García-Mendoza et al. 2019), within
traditional AFS and newly established AFS in Mexico; that
is, 11 percent of total Agave richness. However, these are
preliminary and surely underestimated data, for the research
efforts have to the present focused on specific regions and
ethnic groups, leaving out others that also have an important
history of AFS and agave management. Moreover, adding to
this bias in the regions and ethnic groups studied, the lack
of studies regarding AFS and agaves is also because studies
that concentrate on these topics are only very recently gain-
ing importance and being performed (Moreno-Calles et al.
2016b). Other problems also limit the analysis efforts of this
study, such as the lack of studies that identify agaves to the
species level. An explanation for this can be that Agave spe-
cies are hardly collected to be put in a herbarium, or that the
sampling does not always coincide with the presence of floral
structures, and above all, that the preparation of herbarium
samples requires dedication and specialized techniques, or
that species under agroforestry management are not of inter-
est to wider groups of researchers. The lack of herbarium
material makes it difficult to identify species, moreover when
these are domesticated cultivars.
Agave are indisputably one of the most important groups
of resources for the survival and development of Arido-
american and Mesoamerican cultures. Just as Gentry (1982)
Agave in agroforestry systems of Mexico
273
reported in his works dedicated to this group of plants, focus-
ing on the symbiosis Agave-human, the present study also
reports this symbiosis, which is reflected in the multiple utili-
tarian, cultural, evolutionary and socioeconomic expressions
studied. Magueyes, agaves, mezcales, lechuguillas, among
others (Agave spp.), have an elevated number of uses (22) at
the local level compared to other plant species. Agaves are a
crucial part of the lives of the communities, providing nutri-
tion, energy production, construction, making of medicinal
remedies, as well as an important base for the generation of
economic resources needed in a rural context. It is of interest
that in Figure 6 these species have a greater number of uses
in agroforestry milpas, family homegardens and terraces in
comparison to agroforests destined to produce mezcal. This
tendency is worrisome because it not only represents the loss
of ecological and biocultural richness, it also represents the
loss of the multiple functions of these species as they are
integrated into global emerging markets, as is the case for
mezcal, edible insects or the so-called superfoods markets,
as in the case of agave syrup. This situation poses a dilemma
about the production models where the satisfaction of local
rural necessities (food, health, housing, fuel, preservation
of soil and water) competes with the global urban “necessi-
ties” like recreation with alcoholic beverages or alternative
nutrition through so-called “superfoods”. Many species show
clear signs of domestication and the archaeobotanical, pale-
ontological, historic, and contemporary and actual evidences
suggest a long history of their importance within agricultural,
forest and agroforestry systems. According to our work, 12
of the 64 existing cultural groups present in the territory
(Boege 2008) have incorporated and maintained agaves in
ethnoagroforestry systems and various mestizo groups also
use these elements as part of their management systems. It
is possible that due to the wide distribution of this genus
of plants in Mexico many more cultures use them in their
agri-food systems.
Homegardens represent one of the oldest, and most inti-
mate agroforestry management systems, given that in general
they are adjacent to houses and they play many roles, from
aesthetics, ornamental and utilitarian purposes, such as serv-
ing as food and medicine. González-Jácome (2009), deter-
mined that homegardens are living laboratories where selec-
tion processes and hybridization processes may have taken
place, for it is in these places where species with disjunctive
distributions found and coincided with each other. These
AFS are generally vast in diversity and surely, processes like
the ones mentioned above took place in these places. In this
context, one of the species most documented for the Mexican
Southeast is Agave fourcroydes, species that is recognized
as the product of the domestication of A. angustifola (Col-
unga-GarcíaMarín & May-Pat 1997, Colunga-GarcíaMarín
& Zizumbo-Villarreal 2004).
Terraces like homegardens, are systems with an ancient
history in several regions and cultures in our country. There
is palynological and archaeological evidence of this exten-
sive practice related to the development of some highly popu-
lated Mesoamerican cultures (Blanton 1972, Evans 1990,
Trombold & Israde-Alcantara 2005, Borejsza et al. 2008).
Nevertheless, the extension and use of this type of system
has diminished at a significant and accelerated rate since the
last half of the 20th century. The main reason for this is the
decay in the consumption of pulque in a number of places
in Mexico, but mainly in Mexico City (Álvarez-Ríos 2015).
The theft of the cuticle of the maguey pulquero leaves for the
making of mixiotes also discourages managers of this species
(Moreno-Calles et al. 2016b).
The existence of a gradient of management applied to dif-
ferent species of Agave registered in agroforestry systems is
evident. This gradient can be observed from in situ to ex situ
management (Casas et al. 2007, Blancas et al. 2010), which
also expresses a complexity gradient. In situ management; in
the case of community forest management, no reforestation
nor complex manipulation actions are performed; the work is
already strategic, since it incorporates ecological techniques
appropriated by inhabitants, and a decision-making process
through the community assembly, to decide the extraction
rates based on models. Under this management regime, the
forest is not radically impacted, only when mature individu-
als are harvested, and while transporting them to the places
where mezcal is produced. In agroforests, there is an impact
directed mainly at the understory vegetation in order to es-
tablish agave produced in nurseries, which implies greater
effort and planning, besides harvesting. Ex situ management:
it is in homegardens and terraces where managers apply a
greater complexity of management practices, since these are
environments with a high presence of domesticated and cul-
tivated species. These places also count with several tolerated
wild species, as well as wild elements that have been either
transplanted, tolerated or promoted, from adjacent natural
systems into these agroforestry systems. The presence of
these tolerated or promoted wild species in homegardens
and terraces also implies the accompanying development of
agricultural labors and the maintenance of lines or borders
of agave within these systems.
Challenges and perspectives in the management of Agave in
AFS in Mexico. The loss of Agave species and the abandon-
ment of these agroforestry systems is a phenomenon related
to multiple factors, some of them associated to migration
and transculturation. The collective TEK of communities
has suffered losses, and above all the loss of the practice of
this knowledge. Another determining factor for the abandon-
ment in the use of agave, mainly the fibers, a very important
use in the past centuries, has been caused by the production
of cordage by the hydrocarbon industry, polyethylene, etc.
This industry came to displace the making of cordage made
with agave in practically the entire Mexican territory and
determined the fall of a very important economic activity
for the Yucatán peninsula in the past century. However, the
preservation of Agave fourcroydes in family homegardens is
an example of how cultures treasure resources, those same
resources that may have been displaced by market tendencies
and which are maintained and managed in these environ-
ments due to utilitarian and aesthetic reasons, although at a
smaller scale, but fulfilling biocultural and ecological func-
tions in the present.
Torres-García et al. / Botanical Sciences 97 (3): 263-290. 2019
274
Figure 6. Comparison of the percentages of mentions of the registered use categories in this study for agave present in various agroforestry sys-
tems. For comparison purposes they were separated into: a) use categories with the highest number of mentions, b) use categories with the least
number of mentions.
Agave in agroforestry systems of Mexico
275
The crisis of distilled spirits in Mexico, the market ten-
dencies and the boom in mezcal demand are determining the
establishment of monocultures, which are systems that in the
long term become dependent on agrotoxics, and determine
many biological, environmental and sociocultural losses. The
establishment of new agroforestry and forest management
forms described in this study are alternatives to produce raw
material for this industry. They also promote the conserva-
tion of part or the whole of biodiversity of the ecosystems
where they are found. At the same time, all this biodiversity
represents an opportunity for designing future strategies for
management and conservation of such valuable genetic re-
sources. The market tendencies could recognize –through
labeling and publicity- those spirits that come from these
types of management.
The recognition, valuation and promotion of this impor-
tant group of resources within these management systems,
beyond the production of spirits, is very important in the
effort to guarantee the availability of the different types of
foods and raw materials for productive activities. As well
as considering the sub-products that are disposed of in the
production of spirits, such as leaves, bagasses, and vinasses.
The leaves are left in the fields were harvesting of the agave
heads occur, bagasses are the fibers that are disposed after
distillation (Martínez-Gutiérrez et al. 2015) and vinasses are
acidic liquids that are also disposed, mainly to water bod-
ies, after distillation (Robles-González et al. 2012). These
sub-products which represent a development potential in
agriculture, food, and pharmaceuticals and an alternative to
complement the economy of producers (López-Romero et al.
2018). Likewise, it is important to guarantee the preservation
of important elements of the identity of the communities and
cultural groups that host this diversity.
Agroforestry systems are spaces where wild and agricul-
tural diversity coexist (Casas et al. 1997a, Moreno-Calles et
al. 2013), and in Mexico, agaves are very important compo-
nents of these systems. Commonly, Mesoamerican agaves
constitute complexes of wild and domesticated taxa whose
identity also represents a constant scientific challenge. In this
way, including agaves in the agricultural or forest component
is frequently very difficult. Domesticated agaves are part of
the agricultural component, while wild agave is part of the
forest component. This definition, the lack of research and
the difficulty in identifying agave and their wild or domes-
ticated status make it difficult to arrive at conclusions. This
first approach allows to identify: (1) the structural, functional
and cultural importance of Agave in agroforestry systems, (2)
the importance of such spaces for the conservation of these
species (wild and domesticated) and agave varieties, ergo,
their role in in situ conservation of these genetic resources,
(3) the need to do in-depth research about the composition of
these systems and the related links to agave management, (4)
the importance of going in-depth into the management tech-
niques for agave in these systems as a basis to take advan-
tage of the techniques developed traditionally in conservation
programs in forests and agroforestry systems, (5) the value
of studying these systems as referents of their value in the
conservation of biodiversity and of biocultural heritage.
Acknowledgements
We thank the Dirección General de Asuntos del Person-
al Académico (DGAPA) for the postdoctoral scholarship
awarded to the first author. We also thank the Consejo
de Ciencia y Tecnología (CONACYT) and Red Temática
de Sistemas Agroforestales de México (RedSAM) Project
293348 and la Red de Productos Forestales No Maderables
(RED-PFNM), project 293914, for the support provided to
this research. To the National Autonomous University of
Mexico (UNAM) for the academic and technical support
and for the resources received through the DGAPA PAPIIT
IN200417 and IN206217, the DGAPA PAPIME PE209517
projects.
Literature cited
Aguilar J, Illsley C, Marielle C. 2003. Los sistemas agrícolas
de maíz y sus procesos técnicos. In: Esteva G, Marielle C.
Sin maíz no hay país. Consejo Nacional para las Culturas
Populares: México, D.F 83-122
Aguilar-Støen M, Moe SR, Camargo-Ricalde SL. 2009. Home
gardens sustain crop diversity and improve farm resilience
in Candelaria Loxicha, Oaxaca, Mexico. Human Ecology 37:
55-77. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10745-008-9197-y
Alcorn JB. 1984. Huastec Mayan ethnobotany. University
of Texas Press, Austin Texas. ISBN-0292715439; 978-
0292715431
Altieri MA. 1999. The ecological role of biodiversity in agroeco-
systems. Agriculture, Ecosystems and Environment 74: 19-
31. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/S0167-8809(99)00028-6
Altieri MA. 2009. Green deserts: Monocultures and their im-
pacts on biodiversity. In: Emanuelli MS. Jons J, Monsalve
S, Eds. Red Sugar, Green Deserts: Latin American Report
on Monocultures and Violations of the Human Rights to Ade-
quate Food and Housing, to Water, to Land and to Territory.
Sweden: FIAN International, pp. 67-76. ISBN: 9197718831;
978-9197718837
Altieri MA, Merrick L. 1987. In situ conservation of crop ge-
netic resources through maintenance of traditional farming
systems. Economic Botany 41: 86-96.
https://www.jstor.org/stable/4254942
Altieri MA, Toledo VM. 2011. The agroecological revolution
in Latin America: rescuing nature, ensuring food sovereignty
and empowering peasants. Journal of Peasant Studies 38:
587-612. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/03066150.2011.582947
Altieri MA, Trujillo J. 1987. The agroecology of corn produc-
tion in Tlaxcala, Mexico. Human ecology 15: 189-220. DOI:
https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00888380
Álvarez-Lugo MA. 1997. Estudio etnobotánico de las plantas
medicinales presentes en los huertos familiares en la co-
munidad de Balzapote Veracruz. BSc Thesis, Universidad
Nacional Autónoma de México. México DF, 117 pp.
Álvarez-Ríos GD. 2015. Del maguey al vaso: El manejo del pul-
que en las pulquerías del Distrito Federal y en las localidades
abastecedoras. BSc Thesis, Universidad Nacional Autónoma
de México. Morelia, Michoacán, 135 pp.
Arriaga L, Rodríguez-Estrella R. 1997. Los Oasis de la Penín-
Torres-García et al. / Botanical Sciences 97 (3): 263-290. 2019
276
sula de Baja California, México. Centro de Investigacio-
nes Biológicas del Noroeste, La Paz, BCS, México. ISBN:
9686837155
Barkin D, Suarez B. 1982. Fin de la autosuficiencia alimentaria.
Universidad de Texas: Centro de Ecodesarrollo. 9684293178,
978-9684-293175
Bautista-Tolentino M, López-Ortíz S, Pérez-Hernández P, Var-
gas-Mendoza M, Gallardo-López F, Gómez-Merino FC.
2011. Sistemas agro y silvopastoriles en la comunidad El
Limón, municipio de Paso de Ovejas, Veracruz, México.
Tropical and Subtropical Agroecosystems 14: 63-76.
Blancas J, Casas A, Lira R, Caballero J. 2009. Traditional
Management and Morphological Patterns of Myrtillocac-
tus schenckii (Cactaceae) in the Tehuacán Valley, Central
Mexico. Economic Botany 63: 375.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12231-009-9095-2
Blancas J, Casas A, Rangel-Landa S, Moreno-Calles AI, Tor-
res I, Pérez-Negrón E, Solís L, Delgado-Lemus A, Parra
F, Arellanes Y, Caballero J, Cortés L, Lira R, Dávila P.
2010. Plant Management in the Tehuacán-Cuicatlán Valley
Mexico. Economic Botany 64: 287-302.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12231-010-9133-0
Blanckaert I, Swennen RL, Paredes-Flores M, Rosas-López R,
Lira-Saade R. 2004. Floristic composition, plant uses and
management practices in homegardens of San Rafael Coxcat-
lán, Mexico Valley of Tehuacán-Cuicatlán. Journal of Arid
Environments 57: 39-62.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-1963(03)00100-9
Blanton RE. 1972. Prehispanic Adaptation in the Ixtapalapa
Region, Mexico. Science 175: 1317-1326.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1126/science.175.4028.1317
Boege E. 2008. El patrimonio biocultural de los pueblos indíge-
nas de México: hacia la conservación in situ de la biodiver-
sidad y agrodiversidad en los territorios indígenas. México
DF: Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia-Comisión
Nacional para el Desarrollo de los Pueblos Indígenas. ISBN:
978-968-03-0385-4
Borejsza A, Rodríguez-López I, Frederick CD, Bateman MD.
2008. Agricultural slope management and soil erosion at La
Laguna. Journal of Archaeological Science 35: 1854-1866.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jas.2007.11.024
Bowen S, Zapata AV. 2009. Geographical indications, terroir,
and socioeconomic and ecological sustainability: the case of
Tequila. Journal of Rural Studies 25: 108-119.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jrurstud.2008.07.003
Cahuich-Campos DR. 2012. La calidad de vida y el huerto
familiar, desde la percepción ambiental de las familias de
X-Mejía, Hopelchén, Campeche. PhD. Thesis, El Colegio de
la Frontera Sur. Lerma, Campeche, 254 pp.
Campos-Salas N, Casas A, Moreno-Calles AI, Vallejo M. 2016.
Plant management in agroforestry systems of rosetophyllous
forests in the Tehuacán Valley, Mexico. Economic Botany
70: 254. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12231-016-9352-0
Casas A, Viveros JL, Caballero J. 1994. Etnobotánica mixteca:
sociedad, cultura y recursos naturales en la Montaña de
Guerrero. México: Instituto Nacional Indigenista/Consejo
Nacional para la Cultura y las Artes. ISBN: 968-29-6421-0
Casas A, Vázquez MC, Viveros JL, Caballero J. 1996. Plant
management among the Nahua and the Mixtec of the Balsas
river basin: an ethnobotanical approach to the study of plant
domestication. Human Ecology 24: 455-478.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02168862
Casas A, Caballero J, Mapes C, Zárate S. 1997a. Manejo de la
vegetación, domesticación de plantas y origen de la agricultura
en Mesoamérica. Boletín de la Sociedad Botánica de México
61: 31-47. DOI: https://doi.org/10.17129/botsci.1537
Casas A, Pickersgill B, Caballero J, Valiente-Banuet A. 1997b.
Ethnobotany and domestication in xoconochtli Stenocereus
stellatus (Cactaceae) in the Tehuacán Valley and La Mixteca
Baja, Mexico. Economic Botany 51: 279-292.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02862097
Casas A, Otero-Arnaiz A, Pérez-Negrón E, Valiente-Banuet
A. 2007. In situ management and domestication of plants
in Mesoamerica. Annals of Botany 100: 1101-1115. DOI:
https://doi.org/10.1093/aob/mcm126
Casas A, Valiente-Banuet A. Viveros J L, Dávila P, Lira R, Cor-
tés L, Medina R, Rodríguez-Arévalo I. 2001. Plant resources
of the Tehuacán-Cuicatlán Valley, México. Economic Bota-
ny. 55: 129-166. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02864551
Caso-Barrera L, Aliphat-Fernández M. 2006. Cacao, vanilla and
annatto: three production and exchange systems in the South-
ern Maya lowlands, XVI-XVII centuries. Journal of Latin
American Geography 5: 29-52.
https://www.jstor.org/stable/25765138
Chavero EL, Roces MEA. 1988. Ethnobotany in a tropical-
humid region: the home gardens of Balzapote, Veracruz,
Mexico. Journal of Ethnobiology 8: 45-79.
Colunga-GarcíaMarín P, May-Pat F. 1997. Morphological varia-
tion of henequen (Agave fourcroydes, Agavaceae) germplasm
and its wild ancestor (A. angustifolia) under uniform growth
conditions: diversity and domestication. American Journal of
Botany 84: 1449-1465.
Colunga-GarcíaMarín P, Larqué-Saavedra A, Eguiarte L, Lar-
gué SA, Zizumbo-Villarreal D. 2007. En lo ancestral hay
futuro: del tequila, los mezcales y otros agaves. Mérida:
Centro de Investigación Científica de Yucatán, AC. Consejo
Nacional de Ciencia y Tecnología-Comisión Nacional para
el Conocimiento y Uso de la Biodiversidad. ISBN: 978-968-
6532-18-0
Colunga-GarcíaMarín P, Torres-García I, Casas A, Figueredo-
Urbina CJ, Rangel-Landa S, Delgado-Lemus A, Vargas O,
Cabrera-Toledo D, Aguirre-Dugua, Eguiarte L, Zizumbo-
Villarreal D, Carrillo-Galván G. 2017. Los agaves y las
prácticas mesoamericanas de aprovechamiento, manejo y
domesticación. In: Casas A, Torres-Guevara J, Parra F, Eds.
Domesticación en el Continente Americano Vol 2. Lima:
Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México-Universidad
Nacional Agraria de La Molina, pp. 273-308.
Colunga-GarcíaMarín P, Zizumbo-Villarreal D. 2004. Domes-
tication of plants in Maya Lowlands. Economic Botany 58:
101-110.
Consejo Regulador del Mezcal. 2015. Informe estadístico. <www.
crm.org.mx/PDF/INF_ACTIVIDADES/INFORME2017.
pdf> (accessed March 19, 2019).
Consejo Regulador del Tequila 2019. Información estadística.
<http://www.crt.org.mx/EstadisticasCRTweb> (accessed
Agave in agroforestry systems of Mexico
277
March 25, 2019)
Delgado-Lemus A, Casas A, Téllez O. 2014a. Distribution,
abundance and traditional management of Agave potatorum
Zucc. in the Tehuacán Valley, Mexico: bases for sustainable
use of non-timber forest products. Journal of Ethnobiology
and Ethnomedicine 10: 63.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/1746-4269-10-63
Delgado-Lemus A, Torres I, Blancas J, Casas A. 2014b. Vulner-
ability and risk management of Agave species in the Tehuacán
Valley, México. Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine
10: 53. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/1746-4269-10-53
De Luna-Valadez B, Macías-Rodríguez FJ, Esparza-Frausto G,
León-Esparza E, Tarango-Arámbula LA, Méndez-Gallegos
SJ. 2013. Recolección de insectos comestibles en Pinos Za-
catecas: descripción y análisis de la actividad. Agroproduc-
tividad 6: 5.
Emanuelli MS, Jonsén J, Monsalve-Suárez S. 2009. Red sugar,
green deserts. Sweden: FIAN International. ISBN 978-91-
977188-3-7
Esparza-Frausto G, Macías-Rodríguez FJ, Martínez-Salvador
M, Jiménez-Guevara MA, Méndez-Gallegos SDJ. 2008. In-
sectos comestibles asociados a las magueyeras en el ejido To-
losa, Pinos, Zacatecas, México. Agrociencia 42: 243-252.
Evans S. 1990. The Productivity of Maguey Terrace Agriculture
in Central Mexico during the Aztec Period. Latin American
Antiquity 1: 117-132. DOI: https://doi.org/10.2307/971983
Ffolliott PF. 1998. Multiple Benefits of Arid Land Agrofor-
estry Home Gardens and Riparian Ecosystems. In: Josiah SJ.
Ed. North American Conference on Enterprise Development
Through Agroforestry. Tucson: University of Arizona.
Figueredo-Urbina CJ, Casas A, Torres-García I. 2017. Morpho-
logical and genetic divergence between Agave inaequidens,
A. cupreata and the domesticated A. hookeri. Analysis of
their evolutionary relationships. PLOS ONE 12: e0187260.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0187260
García-deMiguel J. 2000. Etnobotánica Maya: Origen y evolu-
ción de los Huertos Familiares de la Península de Yucatán,
México. PhD. Thesis, Universidad de Córdoba, 247 pp.
García-Mendoza AJ. 2004. Agaváceas. In: García-Mendoza
AJ, Ordoñez MJ, Briones-Salas M, Eds. Biodiversidad de
Oaxaca. Ciudad de México: Instituto de Biología-Universi-
dad Nacional Autónoma de México-Fondo Oaxaqueño para
la Conservación de la Naturaleza-World Wildlife Fund, pp.
159-160. ISBN: 9703220452
García-Mendoza AJ, Franco-Martínez IS, Sandoval-Gutiérrez D.
2019. Cuatro especies nuevas de Agave (Asparagaceae, Aga-
voideae) del sur de México. Acta Botanica Mexicana 126:
1-18. DOI: https://doi.org/10.21829/abm126.2019.1461
Gaytán-Ávila C, Vibrans H, Navarro-Garza H, Jiménez-Ve-
lázquez M. 2001. Manejo de huertos familiares periurbanos
de San Miguel Tlaixpan, Texcoco, Estado de México. Boletín
de la Sociedad Botánica de México 69: 39-62.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.17129/botsci.1646
Gentry HS. 1982. Agaves of continental North America. Tuc-
son: University of Arizona Press. ISBN-10: 0816523959;
978-0816523955
Gómez-García E, Sol-Sánchez A, García López E, Pérez
Vázquez A. 2016. Valor de uso de la flora del Ejido Sinaloa
1a sección, Cárdenas, Tabasco, México. Revista Mexicana
de Ciencias Agrícolas. 14: 2683-2694
Guerrero-Peñuelas AG. 2007. El impacto de la migración en el
manejo de solares campesinos, caso de estudio La Purísima
Concepción Mayorazgo, San Felipe del Progreso, Estado de
México Investigaciones Geográficas, Boletín del Instituto de
Geografía 63: 105-124.
Gil-Vega K, González-Chavira MG, Martínez-de la Vega OM,
Simpson J, Vandemark G. 2001. Analysis of genetic di-
versity in Agave tequilana var. Azul using RAPD markers.
Euphytica 119: 335-341.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1017553107303
Godfray HCJ, Beddington JR, Crute IR, Haddad L, Lawrence
D, Muir JF, Pretty J, Robinson S, Thomas SM, Toulmin C.
2010. Food Security: The Challenge of Feeding 9 Billion
People. Science 327: 812-818.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1185383
Gómez-García E. 2011. Etnobotánica del ejido Sinaloa 1ra Sec-
ción, Cárdenas Tabasco, México. MSc. Thesis, Colegio de
Postgraduados. H. Cárdenas, Tabasco. 82 pp.
Gonzáles-Jácome A. 2009. El maíz como producto cultural des-
de los tiempos antiguos. In: Morales-Valderrama C, Rodrí-
guez-Lazcano C. Eds. Desgranando una Mazorca. Orígenes
y Etnografía de los Maíces Nativos. Suplemento 52, Instituto
Nacional de Antropología e Historia pp. 40-67.
Gonzáles-Jácome A. 2016. Sistemas agrícolas en orografías
complejas: Las terrazas de Tlaxcala. In: Moreno-Calles AI,
Casas A, Toledo VM, Vallejo-Ramos M. Eds. Etnoagrofor-
estería en México. Morelia: Universidad Nacional Autónoma
de México-Escuela Nacional de Estudios Superiores-Insti-
tuto de Investigaciones en Ecosistemas y Sustentabilidad.
ISBN 978-607-01-8641-4
Gutiérrez-Miranda LD. 2003. Etnobotánica de huertos famili-
ares o solares en el poblado de Gabriel Esquinca, Chiapas.
BSc. Thesis, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México.
México, DF, 114 pp.
Hard RJ, Zapata JE, Moses BIZ, Roney JR. 1999. Terrace Con-
struction in Northern Chihuahua, Mexico: 1150 B.C and
Modern Experiments. Journal of Field Archaeology 26: 129-
146. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1179/jfa.1999.26.2.129
Hernández-Roldan E, Tarango-Arámbula LA, Ugalde-Lezama
S, Hernández-Juárez A, Cortez-Romero C, Cruz-Miranda Y,
Morales-Flores FJ. 2017. Hábitat y densidad de nidos de la
hormiga escamolera (Liometopum apiculatum Mayr) en una
UMA de Zacatecas, México. Agroproductividad 10: 10-18
Hernández-Soto D. 2009. Estudio de huertos familiares en el
municipio de Coxcatlán, Puebla. BSc. Thesis, Universidad
Nacional Autónoma de México. Los Reyes Iztacala, Estado
de México. 92 pp.
Herrera-Pérez L, Valtierra-Pacheco E, Ocampo-Fletes I, Torne-
ro-Campante MA, Hernández-Plascencia JA, Rodríguez-
Macías R. 2017. Ecological practices in Agave tequilana
Weber under two culture systems in Tequila, Jalisco. Revista
Mexicana de Ciencias Agrícolas 18: 1-14.
Herrera-Castro ND. 1994. Los huertos familiares en el oriente de
Yucatán. MSc. Thesis, Universidad Autónoma de Yucatán.
Mérida, Yucatán. ISBN: 9686843272
Holt-Gimenez E, Patel R. 2009. Food Rebellions: Crisis and the
Torres-García et al. / Botanical Sciences 97 (3): 263-290. 2019
278
Hunger for Justice. Cape Town: Pambazuka Press. ISBN:
978-0-935028-34-8
Huerta-Galván OF. 2018. Uso y manejo de Agave maximiliana:
producción de Raicilla en el municipio de Mascota, Jalisco.
BSc. Thesis, Universidad de Guadalajara. Zapopan, Jalisco.
76 pp.
Hunter R. 2009. Positionality, Perception, and Possibility in
Mexico's Valle del Mezquital. Journal of Latin American
Geography 8: 49-69. http://www.jstor.org/stable/25765262
Illsley C, Vega E, Pisanty I, Tlacotempa A, García P, Mo-
rales P, River G, García J, Jímenez V, Castro F, Calzada M.
2007. Maguey papalote: hacia el manejo campesino sustent-
able de un recurso colectivo en el trópico seco de Guerrero,
México. In: Colunga-GarcíaMarín P, Eguiarte L, Largué SA,
Zizumbo-Villarreal D, Eds. En lo Ancestral hay Futuro: del
Tequila, los Mezcales y otros Agaves. Mérida: Centro de
Investigación Científica de Yucatán, AC, pp. 319-338. ISBN:
978-968-6532-18-0
Illsley C, Torres-García I, Hernández-López JJ, Morales-More-
no P, Varela-Álvarez R, Ibañez-Couch I, Nava-Xinol H.
2018. Manual de manejo campesino de magueyes mezcale-
ros forestales. México: Grupo de Estudios Ambientales AC.
ISBN: 978- 607-95925-1- 6
Jose S, Gold MA, Garrett HE. 2012. The future of temper-
ate agroforestry in United States. In: Nair PKR, Garrity D,
Eds. Agroforestry the Future of Global Land Use, Advances
in Agroforestry 9. Dordrecht: Springer, pp. 217-245. DOI:
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-4676-3_14
Jose S, 2009. Agroforestry for ecosystem services and environ-
mental benefits: an overview. Agroforestry Systems 76: 1-10.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10457-009-9229-7
Kass DCL, Somarriba E. 1999. Traditional fallows in Latin
America. Agroforestry Systems 47: 13.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1006243903174
Larios C, Casas A, Vallejo M, Moreno-Calles AI, Blancas J.
2013. Plant management and biodiversity conservation in
Náhuatl homegardens of the Tehuacán Valley, Mexico. Jour-
nal of ethnobiology and ethnomedicine 9: 74.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/1746-4269-9-74
LaRochelle S. 2003. Common property and Traditional Eco-
logical Knowledge: Biodiversity Conservation in the sierra
Taraumara. MSc. Thesis, University of Manitoba. Winipeg,
Canada. 120 pp.
Loredo C, Beltrán S, Sarreón JL, Domínguez CM. 2005. Prácti-
cas mecánicas para el control de la erosión hídrica. Prácti-
cas para la conservación de suelo y agua en zonas áridas y
semiáridas, INIFAP-CIRNE-Campo Experimental San Luis,
Libro técnico.
López-Romero JC, Ayala-Zavala JF, González-Aguilar GA,
Peña-Ramos EA and González-Ríos H. 2018. Biological ac-
tivities of Agave by-products and their possible applications
in food and pharmaceuticals. Journal of the Science of Food
and Agriculture 98: 2461-2474.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/jsfa.8738
López-Yáñez L. 1990. Cercos vivos en zonas áridas (Agrosilvi-
cultura en el desierto chihuahuense). BSc. Thesis, Universi-
dad Autónoma Chapingo. Chapingo, México 194 pp.
MacNeish RS. 1967. A summary of the subsistence. In: Byers,
DS. ed. The prehistory of the Tehuacán Valley. Volume one:
Environment and subsistence. University of Texas Press.
Austin, Texas. pp: 290-331.
Magdaleno-Miranda L, García-Moya E, Valdéz-Hernández JI,
delaCruz-Isidro V. 2005. Evaluación del sistema agroforestal
“árboles en terrenos de cultivo”, en Vicente Guerrero, Tlax-
cala, México. Revista Fitotecnia Mexicana.
Mariaca-Méndez R. 2012. El huerto familiar del sureste de
México. Villahermosa: Secretaría de Recursos Naturales y
Protección Ambiental del Estado de Tabasco-El Colegio de
la Frontera Sur. ISBN: 9786077637684
Martin MP, Peters CM, Palmer MI, Illsley C. 2011. Effect of
habitat and grazing on the regeneration of wild Agave cu-
preata in Guerrero, Mexico. Forest Ecology and Manage-
ment 262: 1443-1451.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foreco.2011.06.045
Martínez-Gutiérrez GA, Ortiz-Hernández YD, Aquino-Bolaños
T, Bautista-Cruz A, López-Cruz JY. 2015. Properties of Aga-
ve angustifolia Haw. bagasse before and after its composting.
Comunicata Scientiae 6: 418-429.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.14295/CS.v6i4.800
Martínez-Palacios A, Morales-García JL, Guillén-Rodríguez
S. 2015. Aspectos sobre manejo y conservación de Agaves
mezcaleros en Michoacán. Universidad Michoacana de San
Nicolás de Hidalgo, Secretaría de Agricultura, ganadería,
desarrollo Rural, Pesca y Alimentación, Consejo Estatal de
Ciencia, Tecnología e Innovación. 176 p. ISBN: 978-607-
811-643-0
Martínez-Saldaña T, Romero-Contreras AT. 1993. La coloni-
zación agrícola Tlaxcalteca del norte de México. In: Navarro-
Garza H, Colin JP, Milleville P. eds. Sistemas de Producción
y Desarrollo Agrícola. Texcoco: Colegio de Postgraduados,
pp. 297-304. ISBN 968-839-161-1
Martínez-Saldaña T. 2007. El uso del riego ancestral en la agri-
cultura contemporanea, el caso de los sistemas de riego en el
árido mexicano, Conference paper. Modernización de riegos
y uso de tecnologías de la información, organizado por Redes
de Riegos CYTED y PROCISUR, y Facultad de Agronomía,
Universidad Mayor de San Andrés, La Paz, Bolivia
Moreno-Calles AI, Casas A, Blancas J, Torres I, Masera O, Ca-
ballero J, García-Barrios L, Pérez-Negrón E, Rangel-Landa
S. 2010. Agroforestry systems and biodiversity conserva-
tion in arid zones: the case of the Tehuacán Valley, Central
México. Agroforestry Systems 80: 315-331.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10457-010-9349-0
Moreno-Calles AI, Casas A. 2010. Agroforestry systems: res-
toration of semiarid zones in the Tehuacán Valley, Central
Mexico. Ecological Restoration 28: 361-368.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.3368/er.28.3.361
Moreno-Calles AI, Casas A, García-Frapolli E, Torres-García I.
2011. Traditional agroforestry systems of multi-crop “milpa”
and “chichipera” cactus forest in the arid Tehuacán Valley,
Mexico: their management and role in people’s subsistence.
Agroforestry Systems 84: 207-226.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10457-011-9460-x
Moreno-Calles AI, Casas A, Rivera-Romero A, Romero-Bautista
YA, Rangel-Landa S, Fisher-Ortíz RA, Alvarado-Ramos F,
Vallejo-Ramos M, Santos-Fita D. 2016a. Ethnoagroforestry:
Agave in agroforestry systems of Mexico
279
integration of biocultural diversity for food sovereignty in
Mexico. Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine 12: 54.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/s13002-016-0127-6
Moreno-Calles AI, Casas A, Toledo VM, Vallejo M. 2016b.
Etnoagroforestería en México. Morelia: Universidad Na-
cional Autónoma de México-Escuela Nacional de Estudios
Superiores – Instituto de Investigaciones en Ecosistemas y
Sustentabilidad. ISBN: 9786070281648
Moreno-Calles AI, Toledo VM, Casas A. 2013. Los sistemas
agroforestales tradicionales de México: una aproximación
biocultural. Botanical Sciences 91: 375-398.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.17129/botsci.419
Moreno-Calles AI, Soto-Pinto ML, Cariño-Olvera MM, Palma-
García JM, Moctezuma-Pérez S, Rosales-Adame JJ, Monta-
ñez-Escalante PI, Sosa-Fernández VJ, Ruenes-Morales MR.
2019. Los Sistemas Agroforestales de México: Formación,
Investigación y Acciones Emergentes. Consejo Nacional de
Ciencia y Tecnología-Universidad Nacional Autónoma de
México.
Nabhan GP, Garcia J, Routson R, Routson K, Carintilde M.
2010. Desert oases as genetic refugia of heritage crops: per-
sistence of forgotten fruits in the mission orchards of Baja
California, Mexico. International Journal of Biodiversity
and Conservation 2: 56-69. DOI: 10.5897/IJBC
Nabhan GP, Rea AM, Reichhardt KL, Mellink E, Hutchinson
CF. 1982. Papago influences on habitat and biotic diversity:
Quitovac oasis ethnoecology. Journal of Ethnobiology 2:2,
124-143.
Nair PKR. 1985. Classification of agroforestry systems. Agro-
forestry Systems 3: 97-128.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00122638
Nair PKR, Gordon AM, Mosqueda-Losada MR. 2008. Agro-
forestry. In: Jorgensen SE, Fath B, eds. Encyclopedia of
Ecology. Elsevier. ISBN: 978-0-08-045405-4
Pagaza-Calderón EM. 2008. Efecto de la urbanización y el
cambio cultural en la estructura florística de los huertos fa-
miliares y su papel en la conservación de especies silvestres.
Un estudio de caso en Tlacuilotepec, Puebla. MSc. Thesis,
Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México. México, DF.
110 pp.
Patrick LL. 1977. A cultural geography of the use of seasonally
dry, sloping terrain: the metepantli crop terraces of Central
Mexico. PhD. Thesis. University of Pittsburgh. 298 pp.
Peñuelas-Guerrero AG. 2007. El impacto de la migración en el
manejo de solares campesinos, caso de estudio La Purísima
Concepción Mayorazgo, San Felipe del Progreso, Estado de
México. Boletín Del Instituto de Geografía 63: 105-124.
Pérez-Botho B, Jiménez-Velázquez MA, Sánchez-Escudero J,
García-Cué JL, Muratalla-Lúa A. 2015. Agricultura tradicio-
nal en El Botho, Alto Mezquital, estado de Hidalgo. Revista
mexicana de ciencias agrícolas 6: 1215-1227.
Pérezgrovas-Garza R. 2011. El traspatio como elemento del
sistema de vida en Aguacatenango, Chiapas. In: Pérezgro-
vas-Garza R, Rodríguez Galván G, Zaragoza-Martínez L,
Eds. El traspatio Iberoamericano, Experiencias y Reflex-
iones en Argentina, Bolivia, España, México y Uruguay.
Tuxtla Gutiérrez: Universidad Autónoma de Chiapas. ISBN:
978-607-8207-06-0
Pérez-Sánchez JM. 2012. Ambiente, agricultura y cultura: las
terrazas de Ixtacuixtla, Tlaxcala. PhD Thesis. Universidad
Iberoamericana. México DF. 192 pp.
Poot-Pool WS, van der Wal H, Flores JS, Pat-Fernández JM,
Esparza-Olguín L. 2012. Composición y estructura de huer-
tos familiares y medios de vida de productores en Pomuch,
Campeche. In: Flores JS, Ed. Los huertos familiares en Me-
soamérica. Mérida: Universidad Autónoma de Yucatán, pp.
39-68. ISBN: 9786070060151
Poot-Pool SW. 2008. Arquitectura, estructura y composición
específica de solares y medios de vida de productores de
mayores y menores capitales en Pomuch, Campeche. MSc.
Thesis, El Colegio de la Frontera Sur. Villahermosa, Tabas-
co. 112 pp.
Puig H. 1994. Agroforestry in Mexico: Can the past be a guar-
antee for the future?. Experientia 50: 621.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01952861
Rangel-Landa S, Casas A, Dávila P. 2015. Facilitation of Agave
potatorum: An ecological approach for assisted population
recovery. Forest Ecology and Management 347: 57-74. DOI:
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foreco.2015.03.003
Ramírez-Rodríguez R. 2004. El maguey y el pulque: Memoria
y Tradición convertidas en Historia 1884-1993. BSc. The-
sis, Benemérita Universidad Autónoma de Puebla. Puebla,
Puebla. 378 pp.
Reynoso-Santos R, López-Báez W, López-Luna A, Ruíz-Corral
JA, Castro-Mendoza I, Cadena-Iñiguez P, Valenzuela-Núñez
LM, Camas-Gómez R. 2016 Áreas potenciales para el cul-
tivo del agave (Agave americana L.) en la meseta Comiteca,
Chiapas. Agroproductividad 9: 56-61.
Rico-Gray V, Chemás A, Mandujano S. 1991. Uses of tropical
deciduous forest species by the Yucatecan Maya. Agroforestry
Systems 14:149. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00045730
Robles-González V, Galíndez-Mayer J, Rinderknecht-Seijas N,
Poggi-Varaldo HM. 2012. Treatment of mezcal vinasses: A
review. Journal of Biotechnology 157: 524-546.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbiotec.2011.09.006
Rosales JJ, Cevallos J, Vázquez JM, Hernández F. 2008. La
diversidad de sistemas agroforestales en el Sur y Costa Sur
de Jalisco. In: Palma-García JM, Sanginés-García L, Eds.
IV Reunión Nacional sobre Sistemas Agro y Silvopastoriles
“Estrategias Ambientalmente Amigables”. Colima: Univer-
sidad de Colima.
Ruenes-Morales MR. 1993. Estudio de los huertos familiares en
los ejidos El Ahuacate y Adolfo López Mateos de la Sierra
de San Juan, Nayarit. MSc. Thesis, Universidad Nacional
Autónoma de México. México DF. 144 pp.
Ruenes-Morales MR, Montañez PI. 2016. Comprensión de la
diversidad biocultural de los huertos de la península de Yu-
catán. In: Moreno-Calles AI, Casas A, Toledo VM, Vallejo
M. eds. Etnoagroforestería en México. Morelia: Universidad
Nacional Autónoma de México-Escuela Nacional de Estu-
dios Superiores-Instituto de Investigaciones en Ecosistemas
y Sustentabilidad. ISBN 978-607-01-8641-4
Russo L. 1990. Agroforestry in the northern Mexican drylands:
A case study from Durango. MSc. Thesis. The Univer-
sity of Arizona. 73 pp. https://repository.arizona.edu/han-
dle/10150/144631
Torres-García et al. / Botanical Sciences 97 (3): 263-290. 2019
280
Somarriba E, Beer J, Alegre-Orihuela J, Andrade H, Cerda R,
DeClerck F, Campos J. 2012. Mainstreaming agroforestry in
Latin America. In: Nair PKR, Garrity D, Eds. Agroforestry
the Future of Global Land Use, Advances in Agroforestry 9.
Dordrecht: Springer.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-4676-3
Stienen H. 1990. The agroforestry potential of combined produc-
tion systems in north-eastern Mexico. Agroforestry Systems
11: 45-69. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00122811
Tamayo-Ortega V. 1995. Estudio de los huertos familiares con
un sistema agroforestal en la comunidad de Comacalco,
Tabasco. MSc. Thesis, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de
México. Los Reyes Iztacala, Estado de México. 119 pp.
Torres-Díaz P. 2011. Sustentabilidad de huertos familiares en
la comunidad de Tziscao, La Trinitaria, Chiapas. MSc. The-
sis. Colegio de Postgraduados. San Cristóbal de las Casas.
Chiapas. 87
Torres F, Rojas A. 2015. Política económica y política social en
México: desequilibrio y saldos. Problemas del Desarrollo
46: 41-66. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rpd.2015.06.001
Torres-García I. 2009. Dinámica poblacional de dos morfos de
Agave potatorum Zucc. en el Valle de Tehuacán-Cuicatlán:
bases para su manejo sustentable. MSc. Thesis, Universidad
Nacional Autónoma de México. Morelia, Michoacán. 78 pp.
Torres-García I, Blancas J, León A, Casas A. 2015a. TEK, local
perceptions of risk and diversity of management practices of
Agave inaequidens in Michoacán, Mexico. Journal of Eth-
nobiology and Ethnomedicine 11: 61.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/s13002-015-0043-1
Torres-García I, Casas A, Vega E, Martínez-Ramos M, Del-
gado-Lemus A. 2015b. Population dynamics and sustainable
management of mezcal agaves in central Mexico: Agave po-
tatorum in the Tehuacán-Cuicatlán Valley. Economic Botany
69: 26-41. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12231-014-9295-2
Torres I, Casas A, Delgado-Lemus A, Rangel-Landa S. 2013.
Aprovechamiento, demografía y establecimiento de Agave
potatorum en el Valle de Tehuacán, México: aportes ecológi-
cos y etnobiológicos para su manejo sustentable. Zonas Ári-
das 15: 92-109.
Trejo L, Limones V, Peña G, Scheinvar E, Vargas-Ponce O,
Zizumbo-Villarreal D, Colunga-GarcíaMarín P. 2018. Ge-
netic variation and relationships among agaves related to
the production of Tequila and Mezcal in Jalisco. Industrial
Crops and Products 125: 140-149.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.indcrop.2018.08.072
Trejo-Salazar R-E, Eguiarte LE, Suro-Piñera D, Medellín RA.
2016. Save our bats, save our Tequila: industry and science
join forces to help bats and agaves. Natural Areas Journal
36: 523-530. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3375/043.036.0417
Trombold CD, Israde-Alcantara I. 2005. Paleoenvironment
and plant cultivation on terraces at La Quemada, Zacatecas,
Mexico: the pollen, phytolith and diatom evidence. Journal
of Archaeological Science 32: 341-353.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jas.2004.10.005
Urbina CJF, Casas A, Martínez-Díaz Y, Santos-Zea L, Gutiér-
rez-Uribe JA. 2018. Domestication and saponins contents in
a gradient of management intensity of agaves: Agave cuprea-
ta, A. inaequidens and A. hookeri in central Mexico. Genetic
Resources and Crop Evolution 65: 1133-1146.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10722-017-0601-6
Valenzuela-Zapata AG, Macías-Macías A. 2014. La indicación
geográfica Tequila: lecciones de la primera denominación
de origen mexicana. Comisión Nacional para el Conocimien-
to y uso de la Biodiversidad. México DF. ISBN: 978-607-
8328-09-3.
Vallejo M, Casas A, Pérez-Negrón E, Moreno-Calles AI,
Hernández-Ordoñez O, Tellez O, Dávila P. 2015. Agrofor-
estry systems of the lowland alluvial valleys of the Tehuacán-
Cuicatlán Biosphere Reserve: an evaluation of their biocul-
tural capacity. Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine
11: 8. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/1746-4269-11-8
Vallejo M, Ramírez MI, Reyes-González A, López-Sánchez JG,
Casas A. 2019. Agroforestry Systems of the Tehuacán-Cui-
catlán Valley: Land Use for Biocultural Diversity Conserva-
tion. Land 8: 24. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/land8020024
Vallejo-Ramos M, Ramírez I, Casas A, Reyes-González A,
López-Sánchez JG. 2018. Cambios en la distribución de
sistemas agroforestales en el paisaje del Valle de Tehuacán-
Cuicatlán, México. Ecosistemas 27: 96-105.
DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.7818/ECOS.1501
van Dijk VM, Casas A, Moreno-Calles AI. 2017. Semiarid
ethnoagroforestry management: Tajos in the Sierra Gorda,
Guanajuato, Mexico. Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethno-
medicine 13: 34.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/s13002-017-0162-y
Vargas-Ponce O, Zizumbo-Villarreal D, Colunga-GarcíaMarín
P. 2007. In situ diversity and maintanenace of traditional
Agave landraces used in spirits production in West-Central
Mexico. Economic Botany 61: 362.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1663/0013-0001(2007)61[362:ISDA
MO]2.0.CO;2
Vargas-Ponce O, Zizumbo-Villarreal D, Martínez-Castillo J,
Coello-Coello J. Colunga-GarcíaMarín P. 2009. Diversity
and structure of landraces of Agave grown for spirits under
traditional agriculture: a comparison with wild populations
of A. angustifolia (Agavaceae) and commercial plantations of
A. tequilana. American Journal of Botany 96: 448-457. DOI:
https://doi.org/10.3732/ajb.0800176
Xochitiotzin-Hernández M. 2005. Prácticas agroforestales pre-
sentes en los diferentes sistemas de producción agrícola en
el estado de Tlaxcala. MSc. Thesis, Universidad Autónoma
Chapingo. Chapingo, México. 161 pp.
Zuria I, Gates JE. 2006. Vegetated field margins in Mexico:
their history, structure and function, and management. Hu-
man Ecology 34: 53.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10745-005-9002-0
Associated editor: José Arturo de Nova Vazquez
Author contribution: ITG: Coordination, design of the research,
sampling, systematization and interpretation of information, writing
and revision of manuscript. AIMC: Conception, coordination,
design of the research, writing and revision of manuscript. AC:
Research design, writing and revision of manuscript. JB: Research
design, writing and revision of manuscript. FJRS: Sampling and
systematization of information, writing and revision of manuscript.
Agave in agroforestry systems of Mexico
281
Appendix 1. Agave species present in agroforestry systems in Mexico (S/R no record).
Agave species Common name Type of AFS Cultural
Group
Locality State Agroforestry
practices
Uses Author/year
A. americana
var. marginata
maguey pinto Homegarden Nahua Coyomeapan Puebla crop Ornamental Larios et al. 2013
A. americana maguey Homegarden Maya Yucatán Mariaca-Méndez 2012
A. americana maguey Homegarden Maya Quintana Roo Mariaca-Méndez 2012
A. americana Metepantle Otomí (Hñähñú) El Botho, found in
the Alto Mezquital
region
Hidalgo terraces Edible, fuel, aguamiel Pérez-Botho et al. 2015
A. americana maguey manso Metepantle Ixtacuixtla Tlaxcala terraces, hedges Gathering of gusano
blanco and chinicuil,
soil retention, aguamiel,
pulque, construction fiber
(iscapul)
Pérez-Sánchez 2012
A. americana Homegarden Maya Pomuch, Mpio
Hecelchakán
Campeche Ornamental Poot-Pool et al. 2012
A. americana maguey Comitán Chiapas Distilled spirits Reynoso-Santos et al.
2016
A. americana maguey Homegarden Mestizo Adolfo López
Mateos and el
Ahuacate
Nayarit Edible and live fence Ruenes-Morales 1993
A. americana maguey,
mexcaltenechtly
Homegarden Coyomeapan Puebla crop Edible Larios et al. 2013
A. angustiarum cacaya Homegarden Mestizo/Nahua Coxcatlán Puebla homegarden Edible flowers Hernández-Soto 2009
A. angustifolia ixtle Agrosilvopastoral Mestizo El Limón, Paso de
Ovejas municipality
Veracruz hedges Possibly live fence Bautista-Tolentino et
al. 2011
A. angustifolia agave Homegarden Mestizo Ejido Sinaloa 1ra
Sección, Cárdenas
Tabasco Ornamental, to hang
clothes
Gómez-García et al.
2016
A. angustifolia ki Homegarden Maya X-uilub, Municipio
de Valladolid
Yucatán homegarden Utensil, medicinal, fiber Herrera-Castro 1994
A. angustifolia Homegarden Tsotsil/Tseltal Chiapas Ornamental Mariaca-Méndez 2012
A. angustifolia Homegarden Chontal Tabasco Craft making (necklesses
and rosaries),
Construction, Domestic
uses (soap), ornamental,
tools, insecticide,
medicinal
Mariaca-Méndez 2012
A. angustifolia Homegarden Maya Yucatán Mariaca-Méndez 2012
A. angustifolia Homegarden Maya Quintana Roo Mariaca-Méndez 2012
Torres-García et al. / Botanical Sciences 97 (3): 263-290. 2019
282
Agave species Common name Type of AFS Cultural
Group
Locality State Agroforestry
practices
Uses Author/year
A. angustifolia Homegarden Maya Campeche Mariaca-Méndez 2012
A. angustifolia Temperate zones Tlaxcala Xochitiotzin-Hernández
2005
A. angustifolia lineño many
varieties
Agrosilvopastoral Mestizo Zapotitlán de
Vadillo
Jalisco agriculture
mixed, milpa-
agave pitayas-
mezquite
Distilled spirits (mezcal),
food, live fence,
construction, forage,
medicine, ornamental,
ritual (mezcal)
Vargas-Ponce et al.
2009
A. angustifolia Arid zones México recently crops,
before they
were extracted
wild
Altieri & Merrick 1987
A. asperrima maguey Arid zones Chihuahua desert Chihuahua Live fence Live fence, forage,
medicine, pest control,
aesthetic value
López-Yáñez 1990
A. atrovirens Homegarden Mestizo San Miguel
Tlaixpan, Texcoco
Estado de
México
Drink, medicinal Gaytán-Ávila et al.
2001
A. atrovirens maguey
pulquero
Temperate zones Tlaxcala hedges Pulque Xochitiotzin-Hernández
2005
A. atrovirens Metepantle Tlaxcaltecas
(Nahua)
Tlaxcala Martínez-Saldaña &
Romero-Contreras 1993
A. atrovirens Metepantle Mexica (Nahua) Valle de
Teotihuacán
México terraces Food, aguamiel, pulque,
fibers (textiles), live fence,
fuel, fertilizer, medicinal,
construction, forage
Evans 1990
A. atrovirens Homegarden Mestizo,
Totonac and
Nahua
Tlacuilotepec Puebla Ornamental Pagaza-Calderón 2008
A. aurea Arid zones San Ignacio, El
Pilar
Baja
California
Arriaga & Rodríguez-
Estrella 1997
A. cerulata Arid zones San Ignacio Baja
California
Arriaga & Rodríguez-
Estrella 1997
A. convallis jabalí Managed
forests,agroforests
Zapotec San Dionisio
Ocotepec
Oaxaca This study
A. cupreata maguey
mezcalero /
yaave ndishi
Long fallow Mixtec Alcozauca Guerrero Fibers Casas et al. 1994
A. cupreata papalote Managed forests,
agroforests
Nahuatl Zitlatla,
Ahuacuotzingo,
Chilapa
Guerrero Mezcal Illsley et al. 2007
Agave in agroforestry systems of Mexico
283
Agave species Common name Type of AFS Cultural
Group
Locality State Agroforestry
practices
Uses Author/year
A. cupreata papalote Managed forests,
agroforests
Nahuatl Zitlatla,
Ahuacuotzingo,
Chilapa
Guerrero Mezcal Illsley et al. 2007
A. cupreata papalote Managed forests,
agroforests
Nahuatl Zitlatla,
Ahuacuotzingo,
Chilapa
Guerrero Mezcal Illsley et al. 2007
A. cupreata chino Managed forests,
agroforests
Mestizo Tzitzio Michoacán greenhouses
and
reforestation
in wild sites
where agave
populations
already existed
Mezcal, food This study
A. cupreata chino Agrosilvopastoril Mestizo Tzitzio Michoacán Agave crops
with forest
elements and
cattle
Mezcal, food Martínez-Palacios et
al. 2015
A. desertii ´a´ud / agave
del desierto
Arid zones Papago Quitovac Sonora Edible, fiber Nabhan et al. 1982
A. fourcroydes henequén verde
/ kij
Homegarden Maya X-Mejía,
Hopelchén
Campeche Medicinal Cahuich-Campos 2012
A. fourcroydes sisal Long fallow Maya Guatemala Caso-Barrera &
Aliphat-Fernández 2006
A. fourcroydes henequén Homegarden Maya Temax Yucatán homegarden Fibers García-deMiguel 2000
A. fourcroydes ki, ch´eelem Homegarden Maya X-uilub, Municipio
de Valladolid
Yucatán homegarden Utensils, medicinal, fibers Herrera-Castro 1994
A. fourcroydes henequén Long fallow Mestizo Ciudad Victoria Tamaulipas Long fallow Fibers Kass & Somarriba 1999
A. fourcroydes henequén Homegarden Maya Yucatán Mariaca-Méndez 2012
A. fourcroydes Henequén Homegarden Maya Quintana Roo Mariaca-Méndez 2012
A. fourcroydes henequén Homegarden Maya Campeche Mariaca-Méndez 2012
A. fourcroydes henequén Homegarden Maya Campeche Ornamental, medicinal Mariaca-Méndez 2012
A. fourcroydes henequén Homegarden Maya Pomuch, Mpio
Hecelchakán
Campeche Medicinal Poot-Pool 2008
A. fourcroydes henequén Arid zones Huastec SLP,
Veracruz
Fibers Puig 1994
A. fourcroydes Homegarden Maya Tixcacaltuyub y
Tixpeual
Yucatán Medicinal, apiculture,
fibers and live fence
Rico-Gray et al. 1991
Torres-García et al. / Botanical Sciences 97 (3): 263-290. 2019
284
Agave species Common name Type of AFS Cultural
Group
Locality State Agroforestry
practices
Uses Author/year
A. fourcroydes Tamaulipas,
Nuevo León
and Coahuila
Stienen 1990
A. fourcroydes henequén Homegardens Mestizo ejido de Tziscao,
La Trinitaria
Chiapas Ornamental Torres-Díaz 2011
A. inaequidens maguey alto,
bruto
Managed forests,
agroforests
Mestizo Queréndaro,
Indaparapeo
Michoacán greenhouses
and
reforestations
in wild sites
where agave
populations
already existed
Distilled beverages, edible,
medicinal, construction,
medicinal, veterinary,
forage, aguamiel, pulque,
ornamental, fiber, hunting,
bird nests, soil retention
Torres-García et al.
2015a
A. karwinskii cachitún Arid zones Mestizo Zapotitlán Salinas Puebla hedges and
limits
To limit plots Moreno-Calles et al.
2013
A. karwinskii Arid zones Valles Centrales Oaxaca hedges and live
fences
Mezcal, live fences, food This study
A. lechuguilla lechuguilla Homegarden Noroeste de
México
homegarden Fibers Ffolliott 1998
A. lechuguilla lechuguilla Otomí (Hñähñú) El Botho, located in
the Alto Mezquital
region
Hidalgo Fibers Pérez-Botho et al. 2015
A. lechuguilla lechuguilla Silvopastoril Mestizo Peñón Blanco Durango Fibers, forage (flores) Russo 1990
A. lechuguilla lechuguilla Arid zones Chihuahuan desert Chihuahua hedges Live fences, crop
protection
López-Yáñez 1990
A.
macroacantha
cacaya or rabo
de león
Homegarden Mestizo/Nahua Coxcatlán Puebla homegarden Edible flowers Hernández-Soto 2009
A. mapisaga maguey
pulquero
Arid zones Mestizo San Luis
Atolotitlán,
Caltepec
Puebla lines to prevent
erosion, live
fences, terraces
Soil control, aguamiel and
pulque
Moreno-Calles et al.
2013
A. mapisaga maguey,
xayametl
Metepantle La Malinche Tlaxcala terraces Edible, aguamiel, pulque,
distilled spirits, extraction
of edible insects,
medicinal, construction,
fuel, live fences, as
a perch, ceremonial,
religious
Patrick 1977
A. mapisaga maguey Arid zones Chihuahuan desert Chihuahua live fence Live fence, aguamiel and
pulque, forage, medicinal,
pest control, aesthetic
value
López-Yáñez 1990
Agave in agroforestry systems of Mexico
285
Agave species Common name Type of AFS Cultural
Group
Locality State Agroforestry
practices
Uses Author/year
A. marmorata pitzometl Arid zones Mestizo San Luis
Atolotitlán,
Caltepec
Puebla hedges,
vegetation
islands, terraces
Mezcal, food, live fence,
fuel
Moreno-Calles et al.
2011
A. marmorata pichomel Homegardens Mestizo,
Nahuatl
San Rafael
Coxcatlán
Puebla Edible, medicinal Blanckaert et al. 2004
A. marmorata Homegardens Mestizo/Nahuatl Coxcatlán Puebla homegarden Ornamental Hernández-Soto 2009
A. marmorata pitzometl,
pichomel
Arid zones Mestizo Zapotitlán Salinas Puebla hedges and
lines
To limit plots, medicinal,
ceremonial, construction,
utensils, soil retention,
live fence, aguamiel and
pulque
Moreno-Calles et al.
2013
A. marmorata
Arid zones Mestizo,
Nahuatl
Zapotitlán Salinas,
Quiotepec
Puebla y
Oaxaca
metepantles,
apantles
Vallejo et al. 2015
A. marmorata tepeztate Managed forests,
agroforests
Zapotec San Dionisio
Ocotepec
Oaxaca forest
management
Mezcal This study
A. maximiliana lechuguilla Managed forests,
agroforests
Mestizo Mascota Jalisco greenhouses
and
reforestation in
wild forest sites
where there
existed agave
populations
Distilled spirits (raicilla),
edible, medicinal, forage,
barbacoa, sale and barter,
ornamental, fermented
drink, soil retention, bait,
fertilizer
Huerta-Galván 2018
A. mitis magueyito Homegarden Coyomeapan Puebla crop Ornamental Larios et al. 2013
A. murpheyi maguey Arid zones Papago Quitovac Sonora Edible, fiber Nabhan et al. 1982
A. peacockii maguey ixtlero Arid zones indigenous and
Mestizo
several Puebla,
Oaxaca
diverse Casas et al. 2001
A. potatorum papalometl Arid zones Mestizo San Luis
Atolotitlán,
Caltepec
Puebla hedges,
vegetation isles
Mezcal, food Moreno-Calles et al.
2011
A. potatorum papalometl Arid zones Indigenous and
Mestizo
various Puebla,
Oaxaca
diverse Casas et al. 2001
A. potatorum tobalá Managed forests,
agroforests
Zapotec San Dionisio
Ocotepec
Oaxaca This study
A. promontorii Arid zones San Bartolo, Punta
San Pedro, Boca de
la Sierra
Baja
California
Arriaga & Rodríguez-
Estrella 1997
Torres-García et al. / Botanical Sciences 97 (3): 263-290. 2019
286
Agave species Common name Type of AFS Cultural
Group
Locality State Agroforestry
practices
Uses Author/year
A. rhodacantha ixtero, amarillo
and verde
Agrosilvopastoral Mestizo Zapotitlán de
Vadillo
Jalisco mixed
agricultura,
milpa-agave
pitayas-
mezquite
Distilled spirits (mezcal),
food, live fences,
Construction, forage,
medicinal ornate, ritual
(mezcal), fibers
Vargas-Ponce et al.
2007
A. salmiana pulquero Arid zones hedges,
vegetation lines
Pulque, live fence Campos-Salas et al.
2016
A. salmiana Homegarden Mestizos/
Nahuatl
Coxcatlán Puebla homegardens Ornamental Hernández-Soto 2009
A. salmiana maguey Homegarden Maya Campeche Ornamental Mariaca-Méndez 2012
A. salmiana maguey Metepantle Mestizo Vicente Guerrero Tlaxcala hedges and
lines
Pulque Magdaleno-Miranda et
al. 2005
A. salmiana Metepantle Tlaxcaltecas
(Nahuatl)
Tlaxcala Martínez-Saldaña &
Romero-Contreras 1993
A. salmiana ametl Metepantle La Malinche Tlaxcala terraces Edible, aguamiel,
pulque, distilled spirits,
edible insect extraction,
medicinal, construction,
fuel, live fence, perch,
ceremonial religious uses
Patrick 1977
A. salmiana Metepantle Vicente Guerrero Tlaxcala Magdaleno-Miranda et
al. 2005
A. salmiana Metepantle Mestizo,
Nahuatl
Zapotitlán Salinas,
Quiotepec
Puebla and
Oaxaca
metepantles,
apantles
Vallejo et al. 2015
A. salmiana mexcali,
pulquero
Homegarden Coyomeapan Puebla crop Edible, pulque Larios et al. 2013
A. salmiana maguey Arid zones Chihuahuan desert Chihuahua live fence Live fences, aguamiel and
pulque, forage, medicinal,
pest control, aesthetic
value
López-Yáñez 1990
A. salmiana maguey Metepantle Mexica
(Nahuatl)
Ixtapalapa México terraces Pulque, edible, soil
retention, fibers
Blanton 1972
A. salmiana pulquero Arid zones hedges,
vegetation lines
Pulque, live fence Campos-Salas et al.
2016
A. salmiana maguey Homegarden Mestizo,
Nahuatl
San Rafael
Coxcatlán
Puebla Edible Blanckaert et al. 2004
A. salmiana
var.
crassispina
maguey Arid zones Chihuahuan desert Chihuahua live fence Live fence, forage,
medicinal, pest control,
aesthetic value
López-Yáñez 1990
Agave in agroforestry systems of Mexico
287
Agave species Common name Type of AFS Cultural
Group
Locality State Agroforestry
practices
Uses Author/year
A. salmiana
var.
crassispina
maguey criollo Managed forests,
agroforests
Mestizo Pinos Zacatecas Mezcal, insects (gusano
blanco, gusano rojo,
escamoles)
De Luna-Valadez et
al. 2013
A. salmiana
var.
crassispina
maguey verde Arid zones Mestizo Pinos Zacatecas Mezcal, forage and
collection of edible
insects, (gusano blanco,
gusano rojo and
escamoles)
Esparza-Frausto et al.
2008
A. salmiana
var.
crassispina
Arid zones Mestizo “El Milagro”
Municipio Villa
González Ortega
Zacatecas Collection of edible
insects, escamoles
Hernández-Roldán et
al. 2017
A. salmiana
var. ferox
xilometl,
tlilmetl, prieto
corriente or
criollo
Metepantle La Malinche Tlaxcala terraces Edible, aguamiel, pulque,
distilled spirits, collection
of edible insects,
medicinal, construction,
fuel, live fence, perch,
ceremonial, religious
Patrick 1977
A. salmiana
var. ferox
de puya Arid zones Mestizo San Luis
Atolotitlán,
Caltepec
Puebla hedges,
vegetation
islands, terraces
Forage, fuel, live fence,
construction
Moreno-Calles et al.
2011
A. salmiana
var. ferox
de puya Arid zones Mestizo San Luis
Atolotitlán,
Caltepec
Puebla hedges,
vegetation
islands
Forage, fuel, live fence,
construction
Blancas et al. 2009
A. salmiana
var. ferox
maguey de puya Arid zones Mestizo San Luis
Atolotitlán,
Caltepec
Puebla lines to prevent
erosion, live
fences, terraces
Construction, fuel, forage,
to limit plots, live fence
Moreno-Calles et al.
2013
A. scaposa de potrero Arid zones Mestizo San Luis
Atolotitlán,
Caltepec
Puebla hedges,
vegetation
islands
Construction, Edible
insects, fuel, forage, to
limit plots, live fence
Moreno-Calles et al.
2011
A. scaposa maguey de
potrero
Arid zones Mestizo San Luis
Atolotitlán,
Caltepec
Puebla hedges and
lines
To limit plots, collection
of edible insects
Moreno-Calles et al.
2011
A. scaposa maguey de
potrero
Arid zones Mestizo San Luis
Atolotitlán,
Caltepec
Puebla lines to prevent
erosion, live
fence, terraces
Construction, condachos
habitat, fuel, forage, to
limit plots, live fence,
edible flowers
Moreno-Calles et al.
2011
A. sisalana maguey de ixtle Homegarden Mestizo/Tsotsil Gabriel Esquinca
Municipio de San
Fernando
Chiapas homegarden Ornamental, fibers Gutiérrez-Miranda 2003
A. sisalana henequén Homegarden Chontal Tabasco Ornamental Mariaca-Méndez 2012
A. sisalana agave Homegarden Maya Yucatán Mariaca-Méndez 2012
Torres-García et al. / Botanical Sciences 97 (3): 263-290. 2019
288
Agave species Common name Type of AFS Cultural
Group
Locality State Agroforestry
practices
Uses Author/year
A. sisalana henequén
pequeño
Homegarden Maya Campeche Ornamental, fibers Mariaca-Méndez 2012
A. sisalana henequén Homegarden Maya Chontal Comalcalco Tabasco Tamayo-Ortega 1995
A. sp. flor de maguey Homegarden Coyomeapan Puebla crop Ornamental, edible Larios et al. 2013
A. sp. maguey Homegarden Balzapote Veracruz Ornamental Chavero & Roces 1988
A. sp. maguey Metepantle México crop Surface runoff control,
humidity retention
Loredo et al. 2001
A. sp. Homegarden Mestizos/
Nahuatl
Coxcatlán Puebla homegardens Ornamental Hernández-Soto 2009
A. sp. maguey Metepantle precolombine/
actual
Valle del Mezquital Hidalgo terraces Hunter 2009
A. sp. maguey Long fallow Mestizo Not specified, it
mentions the North
of Mexico region
North México long fallow Food Kass & Somarriba 1999
A. sp. henequén Homegarden Maya Yucatán Fibers Mariaca-Méndez 2012
A. sp. maguey verde Homegarden Chontal Tabasco Condiment, ornamental,
medicinal
Mariaca-Méndez 2012
A. sp. maguey Metepantle Parras de la Fuente Coahuila Martínez-Saldaña 2007
A. sp. maguey Homegarden Tzeltal Aguacatenango Chiapas Ornamental Perez-Grovas 2011
A. sp. Homegarden Maya Tixcacaltuyub y
Tixpeual
Yucatán Medicinal, apiculture,
fibers
Rico-Gray et al. 1991
A. sp. mesagoli Temperate zones Rarámuri Basíhuare,
Municipio de
Guachochi
Chihuahua Edible (heart and quiote),
the juice is added to
tesgüino
LaRochelle 2003
A. sp. chawí Rarámuri Basíhuare,
Municipio de
Guachochi
Chihuahua Edible (heart), juice is
added to tesgüino
LaRochelle 2003
A. sp. Homegarden Tamaulipas,
Nuevo León
and Coahuila
Live fence, fuel Stienen 1990
A. sp. Metepantle Mestizo,
Nahuatl
Zapotitlán Salinas,
Quiotepec
Puebla y
Oaxaca
metepantles,
apantles
Vallejo et al. 2015
A. sp. maguey Temperate zones Tlaxcala Live fence Xochitiotzin-Hernández
2005
A. sp. Arid zones El Bajío central
México
hedges Live fence Zuria & Gates 2006
A. sp. Homegarden Zapotec Loxicha, Oaxaca Oaxaca Edible, ornamental Aguilar-Støen et al.
2009
Agave in agroforestry systems of Mexico
289
Agave species Common name Type of AFS Cultural
Group
Locality State Agroforestry
practices
Uses Author/year
A. sp. México Terraces Aguilar et al. 2003
A. sp. Homegarden Balzapote Veracruz homegardens Medicinal, veterinary
medicine
Álvarez-Lugo 1997
A. sp. maguey and
pulquero
Homegarden Mazahua La Purísima
Concepción
Mayorazgo, San
Felipe del Progreso
Estado de
México
solar Fuel, live fence, pulque
extraction for family
consumption
or for sale
Guerrero-Peñuelas 2007
A. sp. maguey aviludo Metepantle Ixtacuixtla Tlaxcala terraces, hedges To gather gusano
blanco and chinicuil,
soil retention, aguamiel,
pulque, fibers construction
(iscapul)
Pérez-Sánchez 2012
A. sp. Metepantle Colonial origin la Laguna Tlaxcala terraces Pulque, soil retention Borejsza et al. 2008
A. sp. Metepantle prehistoric Cerro Juanaqueña Chihuahua terraces Hard et al. 1999
A. spp. maguey/mezcal Arid zones Mestizo Baja
California
Nabhan et al. 2010
A. spp. Agrosilvopastoral Mestizo Peñón Blanco Durango Live fence Russo 1990
A. spp. Metepantle La Quemada Zacatecas terraces Food, aguamiel Trombold & Israde-
Alcantara 2005
A. spp. Arid zones Nahuatl and
Mestizo
Chilapa-Centro
Montaña de
Guerrero
Guerrero cropping and
application
of organic
fertilizer,
reforestation
and fencing of
the spring with
maguey
Mezcal, soil retention,
infiltration
Aguilar et al. 2003
A. spp. Metepantle Tlaxcala hedge
plantation,
terraces
Terraces, to limit plots Altieri &Trujillo 1987
A. striata Homegarden Tamaulipas,
Nuevo León
and Coahuila
Live fence, fibers Stienen 1990
A. striata
subsb. falcata
maguey Arid zones Chihuahuan desert Chihuahua live fence Live fence, forage,
medicinal, pest control,
aesthetic value
López-Yáñez 1990
A. tequilana agave azul
tequilero
Homegarden Maya Campeche Ornamental Mariaca-Mendéz 2012
A. tequilana agave azul Agrosilvopastoral Jalisco Tequila Rosales et al. 2008
A. tequilana agave azul Homegarden Jalisco Tequila Rosales et al. 2008
Torres-García et al. / Botanical Sciences 97 (3): 263-290. 2019
290
Agave species Common name Type of AFS Cultural
Group
Locality State Agroforestry
practices
Uses Author/year
A. tequilana tequila Homegarden Maya Yucatán Mariaca-Méndez 2012
A. tequilana tequila Homegarden Maya Quintana Roo Mariaca-Méndez 2012
A. tequilana tequila Homegarden Maya Campeche Mariaca-Méndez 2012
A. tequilana
var. azul
azul Agrosilvopastoral Mestizo Tequila Jalisco Tequila, sale of maguey
plants
Herrera-Pérez et al.
2017
A. triangularis tunecho Arid zones Indigenous and
mestizos
various Puebla,
Oaxaca
diverse Live fence Casas et al. 2001
A. weberi maguey manso Arid zones Xichu, sierra gorda Guanajuato slash and burn Aguamiel, fibers van Dijk et al. 2017
