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Domestication of Plants

Domestication is the evolution and creation of a mutualistic, interdependent relationship between humans and wild plants (and animals). During the domestication process, wild plants become selected for and adapted to human cultivation, use, and consumption. Domesticated plants are an inherent part of agriculture, and their appearance, evolution, and dissemination throughout the world is closely intertwined with the origin, spread, and current dominance of agriculture. The study of the domestication process is therefore in large part also the study of the origin and evolution of agriculture. Major lines of inquiry are determining the actual locations of agricultural origins and their characteristics, the causes for the adoption of agriculture, the effects of selection on plants during domestication (leading to the so-called domestication syndrome), and the consequences of the adoption of agriculture on a worldwide scale.

Domestication as a Genetic and Evolutionary Process

During the process of domestication, three sets of factors are of paramount importance to determine the degree, speed, and ultimate success of domestication. These include biological characteristics such as the length of the plant's life cycle and its reproduction method, environmental conditions such as the climate, and human cultural traits such as knowledge of the surrounding environment and toolmaking techniques. During domestication, evolutionary processes come into play. For example, naturally occurring or de novo mutations are selected, consciously or unconsciously, by humans. Mutant traits selected by humans increase yield under cultivation, enhance the flavor of the harvest (or reduce its toxicity), or improve the quality of the product. Demographic processes such as small sample size also influence the process of domestication.

The domestication selection process has led to profound changes in the morphology, biochemistry, and physiology of plants. These domestication traits are similar in widely different species and are collectively called the “domestication syndrome.” For grain and seed crops, the two most important traits of the syndrome are the loss of seed dormancy and dispersal. Both traits are essential in natural environments but are undesirable under cultivation. In addition, domesticated plants tend to be smaller than their wild progenitors, with fewer and shorter branches. However, the harvested parts, such as leaves, seeds, and fruits, tend to be larger and show more diversity in shape and color than do their wild progenitors. This diversity is a direct consequence of selection by humans, who favor novelty. Selection during domestication has been so marked in several crops that domesticates have lost the ability to survive without human intervention. Humans and their crops have, therefore, established an obligate mutualism, both depending on each other for survival.

Geographic Centers of Domestication

Agriculture originated independently in several regions of the world in so-called centers of agricultural origins or domestication, which are generally located on either side of the equator, between latitudes 35° N and 35° S. Many of these centers are located in bioregions with an alternation of dry and wet seasons, such as the Mediterranean, savanna, and tropical deciduous forest biomes. This alternation may have stimulated the transition from gathering to agriculture. Domestication centers are generally located in areas of high biodiversity that are often characterized by a heterogeneous topography. Biodiverse regions provided opportunities for the first farmers to experiment with a wide range of plants and to identify species that were more amenable to domestication. Figure 1 shows the approximate location and boundaries of six major centers of domestication and agricultural origins.

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