Agriculture began in the Valley of Mexico around 12,000 years ago, where early corn stocks were only about the size of a pinky finger—nothing like the crop we know today. Over 6,000+ years, cultivation spread from Mesoamerica into South America. Interestingly, the Amazon's famous terra preta black soil gardens were man-made, developed over at least 10,000 years by ancient peoples.
Agriculture originated in Valley of Mexico 12,000 years ago
Key facts
- Agriculture began in the Valley of Mexico approximately 12,000 years ago
- Early corn stocks were the size of a pinky, not like modern corn
- Crop cultivation spread from Mesoamerica into South America over 6,000+ years
- The Amazon terra preta black soil gardens are man-made, created over at least 10,000 years
- Mesoamerica extends from central Mexico to Guatemala, Belize, Honduras, and El Salvador
Sources
The beginning and growth of agriculture in Mexicoroyalsocietypublishing.org
The area was chosen because it was a promising region to search for wild maize, and what was believed to be wild maize was indeed found there, although the ...
Ancient agriculture in Mexico - CogWebcogweb.ucla.edu
The earliest macrofossils (cobs) of maize have been found in the arid highland Tchuacan and Oaxaca valleys. It has been argued on the basis of these ...
The Invention of American Agriculture in Tehuacan Valley - ThoughtCothoughtco.com
Extensive excavations in the valley's caves, particularly Coxcatlán Cave, led to the discovery of the earliest appearance at the time of several important ...
“4. AGRICULTURE” in “Pre-Hispanic Occupance in the Valley of ...open.uapress.arizona.edu
Here information pertaining to pre-Hispanic agriculture is synthesized from three sources—historical documentations, archaeological remains, and ethnographic ...
Aztec Agriculture: Floating Farms Fed the People - HistoryOnTheNethistoryonthenet.com
In terms of Aztec agriculture, in order to grow all this food, the Aztecs used two main farming methods: the chinampas and terracing. Chinampas were essentially ...
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