| Ancient Farming Jul 20th 2011, 10:01 Ancient farming methods used by farmers throughout the world varied quite a bit. Farmers developed many ways to maintain soils, ward off frost and freeze cycles and protect their crops from animals. On this page you'll find core concept definitions, articles on ancient farming techniques of the past and bibliographies of related topics. Mixed cropping, also known as inter-cropping or co-cultivation, is a type of agriculture that involves planting two or more of plants simultaneously in the same field. 
Clark Erickson (c) 1998) Raised fields are large artificial platforms of soil created to protect crops from flooding, and they were used in areas where flooding was a frequent problem. Slash and burn agricultureâ€"also known as swidden or shifting agricultureâ€"is a traditional method of tending domesticated crops that involves the rotation of several plots of land in a planting cycle. An agricultural "field system" is a term that refers to the suite of innovations used by prehistoric and historic farmers to improve crop success and reduce the impact of variable climates. Horticulture is a process by which a plot of soil is prepared for the planting of seeds, tubers, or cuttings. It is tended to control competition from intrusive plants (weeds), and protected from predatory animals including humans. 
China Photos / Getty Images Pastoralism is what we call herding of animalsâ€"whether they are goats, cattle, horses, camels or llamas. Pastoralism was invented in the Near East or southern Anatolia, at the same time as agriculture. Seasonality is a concept archaeologists use to describe what time of year a particular site was occupied, or some behavior was undertaken. It is part of ancient farming, because just like today, people in the past scheduled their behavior around the seasons of the year. Sedentism is the process of settling down. One of the results of relying on plants and animals is that those plants and animals require tending by humans. The changes in behavior in which humans build homes and stay in the same places to tend crops or take care of animals is one of the reasons archaeologists often say that humans were domesticated at the same time as the animals and plants. Subsistence is the term archaeologists use to describe the way a particular society or group gets foodâ€"whether that method is gardening, full fledged farming or trade and exchange. As they had done in Scandinavia, the Vikings established both summer and winter pasturages and hayfields in Iceland and Greenland. Sheep and other livestock were taken to summer pastures from May to September, but for the remainder of the year were brought to the estate boundaries of individual farms.   | |
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