Early growth analysis in sotol plants (Dasylirion cedrosanum Trel.) under greenhouse conditions

Authors

  • Gustavo Trinidad Velázquez Cruz Universidad Autónoma Agraria Antonio Narro image/svg+xml
    • Data Curation
    • Formal Analysis
    • Investigation
    • Methodology
    • Writing – Original Draft Preparation
  • Dulce Victoria Mendoza Rodríguez Universidad Autónoma Agraria Antonio Narro image/svg+xml
    • Methodology
    • Project Administration
    • Supervision
  • Ana Luisa Gómez Espejo Universidad Autónoma Agraria Antonio Narro image/svg+xml
    • Supervision
    • Writing – Review & Editing
    • Writing – Original Draft Preparation
  • Manuel Humberto Reyes Valdés Universidad Autónoma Agraria Antonio Narro image/svg+xml
    • Conceptualization
    • Data Curation
    • Formal Analysis
    • Funding Acquisition
    • Investigation
    • Methodology
    • Project Administration
    • Resources
    • Supervision
    • Visualization
    • Writing – Review & Editing

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.19136/era.a13nVI.5074

Keywords:

Dasylirion, growth models, cross-validation

Abstract

Species of the genus Dasylirion (sotol) are native to the arid and semi-arid regions of northern Mexico and the southern United States. Their economic and cultural importance is primarily associated with the production of the distilled alcoholic beverage known as sotol. However, increasing exploitation of wild populations has raised concerns regarding the sustainability of the resource, highlighting the need for alternative plant production strategies. The objective of this study was to characterize the early growth of D. cedrosanum through the analysis of leaf length and stem diameter. To accomplish this, retrospective data from 600 plants grown under controlled greenhouse conditions were analyzed. Based on the data obtained, five growth models were evaluated: (a) Brody, (b) Mitcherlitch, (c) Gompertz, (d) Monomolecular, and (e) Logistic, of which only the Monomolecular and Logistic models converged. Both were compared using cross-validation, where the flexible monomolecular model showed better performance with the observed data. The model revealed an active growth pattern during the initial stages, followed by a slowdown in both leaf length and stem diameter. Lef length reached an average of 57.8 cm, whereas stem diameter reached 14.1 mm. Despite being developed under controlled conditions, the plants exhibited high variation in their growth rates. Understanding early growth from a plant production perspective is essential for optimizing nursery management protocols, promoting greater efficiency in obtaining high-quality plants in a shorter time.

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Author Biographies

  • Gustavo Trinidad Velázquez Cruz, Universidad Autónoma Agraria Antonio Narro

    Estudiante de maestría. Departamento de Fitomejoramiento. Universidad Autónoma Agraria Antonio Narro.

  • Dulce Victoria Mendoza Rodríguez, Universidad Autónoma Agraria Antonio Narro

    Técnico Académico. Departamento de Fitomejoramiento. Universidad Autónoma Agraria Antonio Narro.

  • Ana Luisa Gómez Espejo, Universidad Autónoma Agraria Antonio Narro

    Profesor e Investigador. Departamento de Fitomejoramiento. Universidad Autónoma Agraria Antonio Narro.

  • Manuel Humberto Reyes Valdés, Universidad Autónoma Agraria Antonio Narro

    Profesor e Investigador. Departamento de Fitomejoramiento. Universidad Autónoma Agraria Antonio Narro.

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Published

2026-08-07

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Section

SCIENTIFIC ARTICLE

How to Cite

Velázquez Cruz, G. T., Mendoza Rodríguez, D. V., Gómez Espejo, A. L., & Reyes Valdés, M. H. (2026). Early growth analysis in sotol plants (Dasylirion cedrosanum Trel.) under greenhouse conditions. Ecosistemas Y Recursos Agropecuarios, 13(VI), e5074. https://doi.org/10.19136/era.a13nVI.5074

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