Agrobiodiversity in Amazonia

This essay uses the FAO definition of agrobiodiversity and shows how it translates into the context of Indigenous and traditional Amazonia. In Amazonia, forests were domesticated before gardens expanded into swiddens, which cycle into fallows and domesticated forests. Plant populations were domesticated both in forests and in gardens and swiddens. There are approximately 14,000 described flowering plant species in Amazonia, including approximately 6700 arboreal species. At least 600 species, the majority arboreal, contain populations domesticated to some extent, mostly for food, some for medicine, a few for magic and a few for manufacturing of technological implements or other necessities. A minimum of 4000 species were used and managed for medicinal purposes, another 700 were managed for food, 2000 to manufacture things, and 1000 in construction. The 2nd most important root crop in the world, manioc, was domesticated in Amazonia, as was cocoa, pineapple, rubber, chili pepper, tobacco, coca, sweet potato, and many others that are less important.