Hoe-farming
Encyclopedia
Hoe-farming is a collective term for certain forms of agriculture. In the farming of some early societies
, and in some traditional cultures of the recent times or the near past, the tillage
was done with simple manual tools like digging stick
s or hoes
, for example seeding was done manually by making holes for the seeds, putting them inside, then covering them.
The precursor to hoe-farming may be intensive gathering
. As for its future, it does not necessarily “become superseded” by applying plough
and animal traction, because ecological
factors are also very important. Even the prevalence of the tsetse fly
can matter . Also cultural factors
can be considered (for example the local belief system can contain taboo
s against animal traction).
Hoe-farming often coincides with long fallow systems and shifting cultivation
, contrasted to permanent plough-based cultivation systems and the intensification of agriculture
. Hoe-farming may contain slash and burn
clearance techniques, but they are not strictly necessary. It is usually embedded in the logic of subsistence agriculture
.
, India
and Maritime Southeast Asia
, and the middle parts of the Americas
. Presumably early forms of agriculture were much more widespread in the past, but could remain dominant against the spread of intensive farming
mainly in the tropics
.
The Isanzu
were hoe-farming people (while the neighboring Hadzabe
kept on living as hunter-gatherer
s).
History of agriculture
Agriculture was developed at least 10,000 years ago, and it has undergone significant developments since the time of the earliest cultivation. The Fertile Crescent of Western Asia, Egypt, and India were sites of the earliest planned sowing and harvesting of plants that had previously been gathered...
, and in some traditional cultures of the recent times or the near past, the tillage
Tillage
Tillage is the agricultural preparation of the soil by mechanical agitation of various types, such as digging, stirring, and overturning. Examples of human-powered tilling methods using hand tools include shovelling, picking, mattock work, hoeing, and raking...
was done with simple manual tools like digging stick
Digging stick
In archaeology and anthropology a digging stick is the term given to a variety of wooden implements used primarily by subsistence-based cultures to dig out underground food such as roots and tubers or burrowing animals and anthills...
s or hoes
Hoe (tool)
A hoe is an ancient and versatile agricultural tool used to move small amounts of soil. Common goals include weed control by agitating the surface of the soil around plants, piling soil around the base of plants , creating narrow furrows and shallow trenches for planting seeds and bulbs, to chop...
, for example seeding was done manually by making holes for the seeds, putting them inside, then covering them.
The precursor to hoe-farming may be intensive gathering
Intensive gathering
Intensive gathering entails the tending-to of wild plants. Intensive gathering or "tending" methods include weeding, discouraging predators, pot-irrigation, and limited harvesting to ensure reproduction. The same system of methods is involved in cultivation, a process which additionally requires...
. As for its future, it does not necessarily “become superseded” by applying plough
Plough
The plough or plow is a tool used in farming for initial cultivation of soil in preparation for sowing seed or planting. It has been a basic instrument for most of recorded history, and represents one of the major advances in agriculture...
and animal traction, because ecological
Ecology
Ecology is the scientific study of the relations that living organisms have with respect to each other and their natural environment. Variables of interest to ecologists include the composition, distribution, amount , number, and changing states of organisms within and among ecosystems...
factors are also very important. Even the prevalence of the tsetse fly
Tsetse fly
Tsetse , sometimes spelled tzetze and also known as tik-tik flies, are large biting flies that inhabit much of mid-continental Africa between the Sahara and the Kalahari deserts. They live by feeding on the blood of vertebrate animals and are the primary biological vectors of trypanosomes, which...
can matter . Also cultural factors
Cultural anthropology
Cultural anthropology is a branch of anthropology focused on the study of cultural variation among humans, collecting data about the impact of global economic and political processes on local cultural realities. Anthropologists use a variety of methods, including participant observation,...
can be considered (for example the local belief system can contain taboo
Taboo
A taboo is a strong social prohibition relating to any area of human activity or social custom that is sacred and or forbidden based on moral judgment, religious beliefs and or scientific consensus. Breaking the taboo is usually considered objectionable or abhorrent by society...
s against animal traction).
Hoe-farming often coincides with long fallow systems and shifting cultivation
Shifting cultivation
Shifting cultivation is an agricultural system in which plots of land are cultivated temporarily, then abandoned. This system often involves clearing of a piece of land followed by several years of wood harvesting or farming, until the soil loses fertility...
, contrasted to permanent plough-based cultivation systems and the intensification of agriculture
Intensive farming
Intensive farming or intensive agriculture is an agricultural production system characterized by the high inputs of capital, labour, or heavy usage of technologies such as pesticides and chemical fertilizers relative to land area....
. Hoe-farming may contain slash and burn
Slash and burn
Slash-and-burn is an agricultural technique which involves cutting and burning of forests or woodlands to create fields. It is subsistence agriculture that typically uses little technology or other tools. It is typically part of shifting cultivation agriculture, and of transhumance livestock...
clearance techniques, but they are not strictly necessary. It is usually embedded in the logic of subsistence agriculture
Subsistence agriculture
Subsistence agriculture is self-sufficiency farming in which the farmers focus on growing enough food to feed their families. The typical subsistence farm has a range of crops and animals needed by the family to eat and clothe themselves during the year. Planting decisions are made with an eye...
.
Examples
A traditional area of hoe-farming (“Hackbaugürtel”) included Sub-Saharan AfricaSub-Saharan Africa
Sub-Saharan Africa as a geographical term refers to the area of the African continent which lies south of the Sahara. A political definition of Sub-Saharan Africa, instead, covers all African countries which are fully or partially located south of the Sahara...
, India
Indian subcontinent
The Indian subcontinent, also Indian Subcontinent, Indo-Pak Subcontinent or South Asian Subcontinent is a region of the Asian continent on the Indian tectonic plate from the Hindu Kush or Hindu Koh, Himalayas and including the Kuen Lun and Karakoram ranges, forming a land mass which extends...
and Maritime Southeast Asia
Maritime Southeast Asia
Maritime Southeast Asia refers to the maritime region of Southeast Asia as opposed to mainland Southeast Asia and includes the modern countries of Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Brunei, East Timor and Singapore....
, and the middle parts of the Americas
Americas
The Americas, or America , are lands in the Western hemisphere, also known as the New World. In English, the plural form the Americas is often used to refer to the landmasses of North America and South America with their associated islands and regions, while the singular form America is primarily...
. Presumably early forms of agriculture were much more widespread in the past, but could remain dominant against the spread of intensive farming
Intensive farming
Intensive farming or intensive agriculture is an agricultural production system characterized by the high inputs of capital, labour, or heavy usage of technologies such as pesticides and chemical fertilizers relative to land area....
mainly in the tropics
Tropics
The tropics is a region of the Earth surrounding the Equator. It is limited in latitude by the Tropic of Cancer in the northern hemisphere at approximately N and the Tropic of Capricorn in the southern hemisphere at S; these latitudes correspond to the axial tilt of the Earth...
.
The Isanzu
Isanzu
The Isanzu are an ethnic and linguistic group based in the Iramba District of Singida Region in central Tanzania. In 1987 the Isanzu population was estimated to number 32,400 . They speak a Bantu language , have matrilineal descent groups and are agriculturalists who subsist on sorghum, millet...
were hoe-farming people (while the neighboring Hadzabe
Hadzabe
The Hadza, or Hadzabe, are an ethnic group in north-central Tanzania, living around Lake Eyasi in the central Rift Valley and in the neighboring Serengeti Plateau. The Hadza number just under 1000...
kept on living as hunter-gatherer
Hunter-gatherer
A hunter-gatherer or forage society is one in which most or all food is obtained from wild plants and animals, in contrast to agricultural societies which rely mainly on domesticated species. Hunting and gathering was the ancestral subsistence mode of Homo, and all modern humans were...
s).