Cultivated landscapes of native Amazonia and the Andes

"This book examines Indian agriculture in South America. The focus is on field types and field technologies, including agricultural landforms such as terraces, canals, and drained fields, which have persisted for hundreds of years. The evidence utilized comes from abandoned fields, historical documents, and current practices. What emerges is a picture of mostly successful indigenous farming practices in rain forests, savannas, swamps, rugged mountains, and deserts. And while this knowledge may not always be directly applicable to development today, it does provide us with some unique techniques and some basic principles for farming difficult environments."--BOOK JACKET.