Origin and domestication of chaya (Cnidoscolus aconitifolius Mill I. M. Johnst): Mayan spinach

Mesoamerica has been one of the most active centers of plant domestication worldwide. Along with many well-known and economically important plants that originated in Mesoamerica exist a variety of other lesser known domesticated plants many of which remain important on a local regional scale. One of these lesser known plants is chaya (Cnidoscolus aconitifolius, Euphorbiaceae), a shrub cultivated for its highly nutritious leaves. The article presents evidence bearing on the domestication and place origin of the cultivated varieties of chaya and proposes a model describing the process of their domestication.