milpa

La Milpa
related: food, mexico editing: http://planeta.com/milpa

**Milpa** is a crop-growing system used throughout Mesoamerica. It has been most extensively described in the Yucatán peninsula area of Mexico. The word**milpa** is derived from the Nahuatl word phrase mil-pa, which translates into "maize field." - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Milpa  **Wikipedia** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Milpa

In Mexico, we call milpa (from the Nahuatl milpan de milli "planted plot" and bread "over") to the traditional agricultural system made up of a polyculture, which constitutes a dynamic space of genetic resources. Its main species is [|maize], accompanied by various species of beans, pumpkins, chilies, tomatoes, and many others depending on the region, for example the corn-bean-squash combination is known as "the mesoamerican triad." (En México, denominamos milpa (del náhuatl milpan de milli “parcela sembrada” y pan “encima de”) al sistema agrícola tradicional conformado por un policultivo, que constituye un espacio dinámico de recursos genéticos. Su especie principal es el [|maíz], acompañada de diversas especies de frijol, calabazas, chiles, tomates, y muchas otras dependiendo de la región, por ejemplo a la combinación de maíz-frijol-calabaza se le conoce como “la triada mesoamericana”.)
 * Biodiversidad**

In this agricultural system plants that grow in a natural way, mainly herbaceous species known as " [|quelites] " (for example, purslane, quintoniles, huazontle, turnips, romeritos, among others) are used. At the same time they take advantage of the shrubs and trees that live there, by providing fruits, fibers or seeds of local or regional interest. In this system, there are also species that can affect crops, such as some insects (elote worm) or the fungus known as " [|huitlacoche] " that proliferates in the corn grain. The milpa can also be just the corn. Because of the above, the milpa is a temporary agricultural system with maize and other species that are harvested or tolerated.

The interaction of a large number of species makes the milpa an ecosystem, where the different resources in the system (water, light, soil) are used in a complementary way. In this ecosystem, beneficial ecological interactions (biological control of insects, soil fertility and pollination) are favored, providing different benefits not only to the species that live in it, but also to the human communities that manage them, since the products obtained there favor a balanced diet and in some regions of the country remains the basis of their diet.

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The milpa is also known as milpan, chinamilpan, and huamilpa in Nahuatl Mixteca: itzzu Purépecha: tarheta Otomí: huähi Maya: kool Mazahua: tjöö Totonaco: takuxtu Tzotzil: yaxcol Tarahuma: ichírari Zapoteco: guela or cue
 * Translating**

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