Ancient Amazonian farmers fortified valuable land they had spent years making fertile to protect it from conflict
Ancient Amazonian communities fortified valuable land they had spent years making fertile to protect it from conflict, excavations show.
Farmers in Bolivia constructed wooden defences around previously nutrient-poor tropical soils they had enriched over generations to keep them safe during times of social unrest.
These long-term soil management strategies allowed Amazonians to grow nutrient demanding crops, such as maize and manioc and fruiting trees, and this was key to community subsistence. These Amazonian Dark Earths, or
Terra Preta, were created through burning, mulching, and the deposition of organic waste.