Water, soil and seasonality in early cereal cultivation

Abstract The development of agricultural systems in the western Old World can be divided into three main phases. Initial cultivation probably took the form of a localized fixed‐plot horticulture in a narrow range of alluvial habitats. This was expanded both by diverting surface‐water to reach a wider area, and by adaptation to dry conditions by a better use of rainfall. Both required additional labour either for canal‐construction or soil‐preparation. The plough emerged as part of these developments, and in Europe its use was associated with major clearance of woodland. Truly intensive systems became common in the third phase, from the first millennium B.C. onwards, which was characterized in the Near East by the construction of large‐scale irrigation works, and in Europe by the development of the heavy plough.