2 years, 6 months ago
What North and South America countries terrace farmed?
Peru terraced farmed.
What other countries farmed hilly or mountainous terrain?
What other countries farmed hilly or mountainous terrain?
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M$1 Answer
Terrace potato farming near the city of Arequipa, Peru.
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/a/a4/Peru_terrace_farming.JPG/800px-Peru_terrace_farming.JPG
Well, as you already mentioned, Peru is one South American country that was terraced farmed many centuries ago (and it is still farmed today) during the Inca period. They mostly grew potato which was the base food for all the Inca civilization for centuries.
Other North American country where you can find traces of terrace farming in Colorado, USA, near the place of Wetherill Mesa, inside the Mesa Verde National Park, at the Anasazi archeological site of Long House. Here the Pueblo culture built multilevel houses with dozens of rooms embedded in the cliff canyon rocks about 800 years ago, leaving traces of terrace farming were these people grew corn, squash, and beans.
Other countries of the world where we can find terrace farming are China, Vietnam, Turkey, India, Philippines, Indonesia, and certain ancient places of England and Italy like Glastonbury Tor and Villa of the Papyri.
Long House, Mesa Verde National Park.
http://inlinethumb15.webshots.com/30158/2289513050029050106S600x600Q85.jpg
Well, as you already mentioned, Peru is one South American country that was terraced farmed many centuries ago (and it is still farmed today) during the Inca period. They mostly grew potato which was the base food for all the Inca civilization for centuries.
Other North American country where you can find traces of terrace farming in Colorado, USA, near the place of Wetherill Mesa, inside the Mesa Verde National Park, at the Anasazi archeological site of Long House. Here the Pueblo culture built multilevel houses with dozens of rooms embedded in the cliff canyon rocks about 800 years ago, leaving traces of terrace farming were these people grew corn, squash, and beans.
Other countries of the world where we can find terrace farming are China, Vietnam, Turkey, India, Philippines, Indonesia, and certain ancient places of England and Italy like Glastonbury Tor and Villa of the Papyri.
Long House, Mesa Verde National Park.
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M$
There is mounting evidence that the Chinese were in North and South America as early as 2000 BC. When did Terracing in Peru start? When did Terracing in China start? Is there a time correlation?
Unearthed Villa of the Papyri.
:) I am smelling Zheng He here? Well, not sure about Chinese transplanting terrace farming technology. Could be a possibility that Chinese explorers brought terrace farming knowledge to certain parts of America.... but we just need to remember, that the age of Chinese exploration we debated recently is framed in the 1400´s, and terrace farming such the ones found at the Inca Empire precede that date for a long shot.
So, it is Ok to affirm that terrace farming was already set in place in many places of the globe before any other culture had the chance to introduce that kind of knowledge.
As I mentioned before, there are clear examples of terrace farming like the one found at the destroyed city of Herculaneum, near Naples, Italy, on the slopes of volcano Vesuvius, the archeological site of Villa of the Papyri which is from the year 79 A.C., almost 2.000 years old.
Side and aerial schematics of the terraced complex of Villa of the Papyri.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terrace_(agriculture)
“Longji” terrace rice fields in Longsheng, Guangxi Province, southern China
When you look at the sophistication of Chinese Terrace farming, it seem logical too look to China, as a source of terrace technology. Where did the Chinese learn terrace farming? Could the Chinese have been influenced by the ancient Babylons and used the garden technology and be expand to the hills and mountains?
Terraced fields in Sa Pa, Vietnam look very similar to the contouring in Peru.
Contoured Terraces, Wubao, Shaanxi
The concept flourished at the same time on different parts of the world adjusted to the geographical environment of these cultures. I believe terrace farming was more like a vital necessity to control erosion and supply enough food for a growing population (like in Machu Pichu, Perú), for times of drought or flood (like in China)or for procuring food on difficult winters (like in Mesa Verde, Colorado), than any other thing.
Man made erosion (like in Peru or Italy) could have been the motive for the implementation of terrace farming there. Ornamental terrace could have been also the reason (for the Babylonians), likewise, seasonal flooding and rains in south East Asia (like in Vietnam or Philippines) with the aid of terrace farming, facilitated the means to cultivate rice.
What country was the first to terrace farm? Did the agricultural technology originate from America and spread to other parts of the world?
Or did the Chinese transplant terrace farming technology around the world?