The domestication of artichoke and cardoon: from Roman times to the genomic age.
BACKGROUND
The history of domestication of artichoke and leafy cardoon is not yet fully understood and when and where it occurred remains unknown. Evidence supports the hypothesis that wild cardoon is the wild progenitor of both these crops. Selection for large, non-spiny heads resulted in artichoke and selection for non-spiny, large stalked tender leaves resulted in leafy cardoon. The two crops differ in their reproductive system: artichoke is mostly vegetatively propagated and perennial, while leafy cardoon is seed propagated and mostly grown as an annual plant. Here, new trends in artichoke cultivation are analysed, while the consequences of these tendencies on the conservation of artichoke genetic resources are highlighted.


METHODS
The historical and artistic records, together with recent literature on genetics and biosystematics, are examined with the aim of achieving a better understanding of the present-day knowledge on the domestication of these two crops.


CONCLUSIONS
Historical, linguistic and artistic records are consistent with genetic and biosystematic data and indicate that the domestication of artichoke and cardoon diverged at different times and in different places. Apparently, artichoke was domesticated in Roman times, possibly in Sicily, and spread by the Arabs during early Middle Ages. The cardoon was probably domesticated in the western Mediterranean in a later period.
Sonnante
Gabriella
G
CNR - Institute of Plant Genetics, Via Amendola 165/A, 70126 Bari, Italy.
Pignone
Domenico
D
Hammer
Karl
K
D000383:Agriculture / Q000266:history*; D005075:Biological Evolution; D018556:Crops, Agricultural / Q000033:anatomy & histology / Q000235:genetics; D031942:Cynara / Q000033:anatomy & histology / Q000235:genetics; D031943:Cynara scolymus / Q000033:anatomy & histology; D014644:Genetic Variation; D006579:Heterozygote; D049668:History, 15th Century; D049669:History, 16th Century; D049670:History, 17th Century; D049671:History, 18th Century; D049672:History, 19th Century; D049673:History, 20th Century; D049674:History, 21st Century; D049690:History, Ancient; D049691:History, Medieval; D019083:Mediterranean Region; D012639:Seeds