Research suggests sweet potatoes didn't originate in the Americas as previously thought
5/21/2018 03:00:00 PM
New research by an Indiana University paleobotanist suggests sweet potatoes originated in Asia, and much earlier than previously known.
IU Bloomington emeritus professor David Dilcher and colleagues in India identified 57-milion-year-old leaf fossils from eastern India as being from the morning glory family, which includes sweet potatoes and many other plants. The research suggests the family originated in the late Paleocene epoch in the East Gondwana land mass that became part of Asia.
"I think this will change people's ideas," Dilcher said. "It will be a data point that is picked up and used in other work where researchers are trying to find the time of the evolution of major groups of flowering plants."
Read more at
https://archaeologynewsnetwork.blogspot.com/2018/05/research-suggests-sweet-potatoes-didnt.html#Bt83EgU0dBvVQVAr.99
