Perennial vegetables: A neglected resource for biodiversity, carbon sequestration, and nutrition

meta-analysis, often from many sources, so references cannot be shown here. However, the “meta-analysis” sheet of the Perennial Vegetable Nutrition Data in the supplemental materials shows sources for all nutrition data. Note that several species only make the chart due to the combination of different plant parts. Woody perennials were the largest group in this category, with 62% of species being woody. They are followed by herbaceous perennials (25%), and vines (13%). Leaves are the part eaten for 81%, with leaves and flowers and/or fruit for 13% and fruit for 13%. Table 5 shows the multi-nutrient species with the greatest potential to address industrial diet deficiencies. Note that several species only make the chart due to the combination of dif- ferent plant parts and may or may not be ranked for an individual part. Note that several spe- cies only make the chart due to the combination of different plant parts. Woody perennials were again the largest group in this category, with 58% of species being woody. They are fol- lowed by herbaceous perennials (29%), and vines (13%). A majority (75%) feature leaves as the sole edible part, with 17% leaves with additional parts, and 8% shoots. For each nutrient, the ten crops with highest concentrations were ranked. See S2 Table “Top Ten Species by Nutrient Concentration” for results. Of these species with at least one elite-level nutrient concentration, 52% are woody, 33% are herbaceous perennials, and 15% are vines. For the part used, 64% are leaves, 13% are fruits and unripe seeds, 7% are flowers or

flowerbuds, and 5% are shoots. Fig 2. Domestication status. This figure shows the number and relative portion of cultivated PV species by domestication status. “Global” indicates produced in more than one region, with global sales over $1 billion USD. “Minor global” crops are produced in multiple regions, with value under $1 billion. “Regional” crops are cultivated only in their region of origin. “Historic” crops were cultivated historically but have been abandoned as crops. “New and experimental” crops are new to cultivation or under active breeding development. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0234611.g002 PLOS ONE Perennial vegetables: A neglected resource for biodiversity, carbon sequestration, and nutrition PLOS ONE | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0234611 July 10, 2020 10 / 19