Wheat history in ancient Greece

Wheat as a staple food was cultivated in ancient Greece in prehistoric times. Cultivation of wheat began to spread beyond the Fertile Crescent after about 8000 BC. Jared Diamond in his excellent book, “Guns Germs and Steel”, traces the spread of cultivated emmer wheat starting in the “Fertile Crescent” about 8500 BC, reaching Greece by 6500 BC, Egypt shortly thereafter, followed by introductions in Germany and Spain by 5000 BC.

Cereals, vine, and oil were the basic agricultural products in ancient Greece like in the entire Mediterranean region. The choice to cultivate depended first on environmental conditions. Wheat was one of the main cereal crops in ancient Greek agriculture.

The coastal lowlands were very attractive for ancient people thus most of the human settlements had been established in such areas. Mild winters and hot summers are the characteristics of the coastal lowlands of the Greece. This type of climate is very advantageous for some annual crops like wheat and for some perennial crops like olive.

Bread made from wheat was eaten, and flour was sold in the markets of Athens and elsewhere. Grain from the Greek colonies in southern Italy was shipped to Athens through the port of Piraeus and ground into particularly soft white flour. In ancient Greece, a keen rivalry existed between cities as to which produce the best bread.

The Greeks planted “naked wheat,” an evolved variety whose grain could be easily separated from the hulls when threshed. Until the Greeks arrived, the Egyptians used only Triticum turgidum of the dicoccum variety, which require more labor to arrive at the same result.
Wheat history in ancient Greece

Ancient Egypt farming

Fourteen thousands years ago, the rains which had made the northeast Africa lush failed. Animals became scarce, forcing the pre-historic Egyptians to leave the plains and descend into the lower Nile River valley. 

They abandoned the nomadic life of the hunter and settled down to farming. Civilization in Egypt grew because of agriculture along the Nile River.

Farming began in the Nile Valley before 6000 BC. The Nile River flows north 4 145 miles from Lake Victoria in the mountains of modern Uganda and Tanzania to the Mediterranean Sea.

These early farmers, who lived in huts made of poles and sun-dried mud bricks, grew wheat for making bread and barley for brewing beer.

Every summer, when rainwater that had fallen earlier in Uganda and Tanzania finally reached Egypt, floodwaters soaked the dry soil and left fertile, mudlike silt that was perfect for growing crops.

When the flooding ended in early autumn, Egyptian farmers had to work quickly to prepare fields for planting.

They used the Nile’s water to irrigate dry land. A network of irrigation canals supplied crops growing farthest away from the river with water.

The land yielded rich harvest is surpluses could be traded or stored in case of a possible famine in the future. Egyptians farmers grew wheat, barley, peas, beans, inions, garlic, leeks, cucumbers, grapes, melons, pomegranates, figs, and dates to feed the growing population.

In a land where rain almost never falls, the Nile is Egypt’s most important resource. It provides fish, waterfowl, mud for making papyrus paper, and a central highway for the transport of goods, and people from one end of the land to the other.

The ancient Egyptians believed in an afterlife that was just like everyday life, only perfect. The wall paintings in tombs show farming scenes, show proper tools and farming methods. However, they also show rich people farming in their best clothes and crops growing very well to make things perfect.
Ancient Egypt farming

Wheat in ancient Egypt

The kingdom of ancient Egypt existed for over 3000 years. Wheat was one of the most common grains used in ancient Egypt.

During 12000 BC early people settle in the fertile Nile valley. Around 7000 years ago changes took place when some of these people began to farm land. They planted wild wheat seeds and cultivated the cereal plants which grew.

Before that Egyptians adopted a complex of crops including emmer wheat that was domesticated in southwest Asia between 9000 and 7000 BC.

By trial and error over centuries efficient methods of cultivation and processing were developed by Egyptians.

By choosing seeds form healthy plants their corps became strong and gave a good return of grain.

Harvesting wheat

Farming became the main business of ancient Egypt. They also grew flax and barley in large amounts. 

Emmer remained virtually the only wheat until Roman rule established durum as the main cereal crop.

In pharaonic Egypt, they transformed emmer wheat and other cereals into bread and beer, the staples of their diet.

Only the middle and upper class used wheat for making cakes while the poorer made do with cakes of barley.

Allotment of grain including wheat also often served as the wages for workmen and artisans.
Wheat in ancient Egypt

History of rice in Mississippi

In United States, the first commercial planting occurred in South Carolina in about 1685.

The more technologically sophisticated method of rice cultivation, which became increasingly common after 1750, made use of the natural rise and fall of water near tidal estuaries.

Rex L. Kimbriel, a Mississippi delta cotton farmer, first experimented with a small crop of rice in 1947 and in 1948 with four neighboring farmer planted 400 acres of rice.

Pumping probes and an early frost ruined their crop, but the potential was clear. In 1949, Kimbriel and other delta farmers planted 1800 acres in rice, built their own rice dryer.

Rice growing had spread to over one and a half million acres in several states by 1950.

Mississippi had fallen behind neighboring states in developing it, but the use of new methods of drying, combine harvesting and chemical insect control seemed about to launch rice as a major Delta crop.

Rice research done at the Delta Branch Experiment Station led to the development of optimal varieties and cultural practices for Mississippi rice farming. Mississippi rice farming was expanding rapidly by the middle of 1970s.
History of rice in Mississippi

Egyptian Farming and Food in 1300 BC

Egyptian Farming and Food in 1300 BC
Harvest of the fertile River Bank
Neat parcels of farmland bordered the Nile, and it was there that nearly all Egyptians worked. The boundaries between farmers’ fields were marked with special stones, and during the annual inundation the Nile’s water obliterated all landmarks except the stones. The dishonest farmer then had an unparalleled opportunity to move boundary stones in his favor, but stealing precious land in this way was one of the worst sins an Egyptian could commit.

When the river water started to recede, the farmer’s first tasks were to reinstate any migrant boundary stones, and to repair flood damaged to dykes. The Egypt’s yearly round of cultivation began in earnest. Peasants with digging sticks broke up the larger clods of earth: then came ox-drawn ploughs followed by sowers scattering seed by hand, and sheep or goats to tread the seed in.

Growing season
During the growing season, the farmers worked hard weeding and watering the crops. They also help to protect them from birds, and from straying cattle and even the hippopotamus.

Egyptian most important crops were wheat and barley, and flax which they grew for linen and linseed oil. Grain was harvested in March or April. All work in the fields and the threshing floor was a communal effort, and land owner provided musicians to play flutes while peasants worked.

End of the Season
The beehive-shaped silo each stored one type of grain, and a small farm would have several of them. Then everyone celebrated in honor of Renenutet, guardian goddess of harvest. The middle of March marked the beginning of the summer season of drought and heat. During this period it was vital to repair any damaged irrigation canals before the soil dried out and became too hard to dig. For a few weeks farmers enjoyed a brief rest before the floods came again.
Egyptian Farming and Food in 1300 BC