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Chia, or salvia hispanica is a species of flowering plant in the mint family, Lamiaceae
Chia was used for food, medicine, rituals, energy foods, and even for paint and cosmetics in pre-Hispanic times.
It is associated with human selection and cultivation over time
Traits such as non-shattering seeds (closed calyx), increased seed size, altered plant architecture, and other morphological traits.
It was cultivated by 3500 BC but became especially important later
Archaeobotanical evidence (e.g. carbonized seeds) are scarce because chia seeds are small. They do not preserve well.
Detachment of seeds from the plant (shattering) is reduced in domesticated forms, making harvesting easier
Farmers also looked for increased seed size and yield, and other morphological changes such as branching and growth habit.
Check out chia, or salvia hispanica with some more neolithic architecture today.
Bibliography: MDPI Chia Seeds (Salvia Hispanica L.): An Overview—Phytochemical Profile, Isolation Methods, and Application
Full Link to USDA Database entry (https://fdc.nal.usda.gov/food-details/2710819/nutrients)
UFDC THE INCORPORATION OF CHIA (SALVIA HISPANICA LAMIACEAE) SEEDS INTO
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