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Tamed salad
>> Researchers adapted the varieties of vegetables brought by the
European and Japanese immigrants to tropical climate conditions
Inor Ag. Assmann
The consumption of vegetables in Brazil started with the
arrival of the European and Japanese immigrants, in the early
years of the 20th century. The foreigners brought the seed with
them and started cultivating the foods that were part of their
diet in their homelands. It was only some decades later that scientific
research was devoted to olericulture.
In the 1940s, agronomic engineer Marcílio Dias (1915-
1974), professor at the Genetic Department at Luiz de Queiroz
College of Agriculture (Esalq), linked with the University of São
Paulo (USP), began to do research on the genetic enhancement
of horticultural crops. A graduate from the institution, he
had brought from Europe a variety of seeds, including tomato,
lettuce, broccolis, cauliflower, carrot, onion and eggplant and
submitted them to tropical climate conditions. If in the beginning
vegetables were harvested only in winter time and in cold
regions, after the conclusion of the research works they found
their way into all regions across Brazil and began to be cultivated
all year round.
Following on the heels of these first research works, other
institutions like the Agronomic Institute of Campinas (IAC) and
the Federal University of Viçosa, in Minas Gerais, began to devote
time to the subject. Also noteworthy are the studies conducted
in the Agronomic Institute of Pernambuco (IPA), especially
on onions and tomatoes, with the aim to supply the pro-
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