Document 1a The mountains, windy plateaus and deserts of Peru are very diffi cult to farm. Over thousands of years, humans struggled to tame these harsh landscapes. They brought water to dry areas, dug terraced fi elds out of steep slopes and improved wild plants such as the potato until they became useful food crops. In Inca times, two-thirds of the farmers’ produce was set aside for the emperor and the priests, so there was little personal reward for the people who did the hard work. . . . Source: Philip Steele, Step Into the Inca World, Lorenz Books Document 1b Water in the canals absorbs the sun’s heat by day and radiates it back by night, helping protect crops against frost. The more fields cultivated this way, the bigger the effect on the micro- environment. The platforms are generally 13 to 33 feet wide, 33 to 330 feet long, and about 3 feet high, built with soil dug from canals of similar size and depth. Sediment in the canals, nitrogen-rich algae, and plant and animal remains provide fertilizer for crops. In an [modern- day] experiment, potato yields [using the above method] outstripped those from chemically fertilized fields. During droughts, moisture from the canals slowly ascends to the roots. During floods, the furrows [ditches] drain away excess runoff. The canals also supply water for crop irrigation. where when and why

Question

Document 1a The mountains, windy plateaus and deserts of Peru are very diffi cult to farm. Over thousands of years, humans struggled to tame these harsh landscapes. They brought water to dry areas, dug terraced fi elds out of steep slopes and improved wild plants such as the potato until they became useful food crops. In Inca times, two-thirds of the farmers’ produce was set aside for the emperor and the priests, so there was little personal reward for the people who did the hard work. . . . Source: Philip Steele, Step Into the Inca World, Lorenz Books Document 1b Water in the canals absorbs the sun’s heat by day and radiates it back by night, helping protect crops against frost. The more fields cultivated this way, the bigger the effect on the micro- environment. The platforms are generally 13 to 33 feet wide, 33 to 330 feet long, and about 3 feet high, built with soil dug from canals of similar size and depth. Sediment in the canals, nitrogen-rich algae, and plant and animal remains provide fertilizer for crops. In an [modern- day] experiment, potato yields [using the above method] outstripped those from chemically fertilized fields. During droughts, moisture from the canals slowly ascends to the roots. During floods, the furrows [ditches] drain away excess runoff. The canals also supply water for crop irrigation. where when and why

Answer 1

The documents describe the challenges and innovative agricultural techniques used in ancient Peru. The first document mentions how over thousands of years, humans struggled to farm in the harsh landscapes of Peru, including mountains, windy plateaus, and deserts. They implemented methods such as bringing water to dry areas, creating terraced fields on steep slopes, and improving wild plants like the potato for food crops. However, during Inca times, much of the farmers' produce was taken by the emperor and priests, leaving little personal reward for their hard work.

The second document details specific agricultural practices used in ancient Peru, such as cultivating fields with water in canals to absorb and radiate heat, protecting crops against frost. The platforms used for cultivation were built with soil dug from canals and provided fertilizer for crops through sediment, algae, and plant and animal remains. The document also mentions how these methods outperformed chemically fertilized fields in a modern-day experiment and how the canals helped with irrigation, droughts, and floods.

Overall, these documents highlight the ingenuity and resilience of ancient Peruvian farmers in overcoming the challenges of their environment through innovative agricultural techniques.