‘Multi-cropping’, Intercropping and Adaptation to Variable Environments in Indus South Asia

Abstract

Past human populations are known to have managed crops in a range of ways. Various methods can be used, singly or in conjunction, to reconstruct these strategies, a process which lends itself to the exploration of socio-economic and political themes. This paper endeavours to unpack the concept of 'multi-cropping' by considering diversity and variation in the cropping practices of the populations of South Asia's Indus Civilisation. It argues that nuanced interpretations of the evidence provided by the combinations of crop seeds and weeds present in specific contexts and phases of occupation can reveal much about Indus cropping strategies, which in turn enables consideration of issues related to adaptation, intensification and resilience in the face of changing social, political, economic and environmental climates.

Landscapes of Urbanization and De-Urbanization: A Large-Scale Approach to Investigating the Indus Civilization’s Settlement Distributions in Northwest India

“…This apparent pattern may be the result of data quality, as the most widely distributed site locations appear to correspond to older surveys ( figure 7 a ), but the patterns are not mutually exclusive, and their co-occurrence suggests that the people who established these early settlements did not adopt a single approach to obtaining or accessing water. Petrie and colleagues ( 2017 ) have suggested that this distribution likely set the stage for the Indus Civilization’s later emergence, positioning settlements to take advantage of a wide variety of water sources.…”

“…The pattern appears to have been variable, however, and the reduction of settlement in the northwestern corner of the sample area (Singh et al 2011 : 101) was more pronounced than the reduction in the number of Mature Harappan sites near Rakhigarhi (Singh et al 2010 : 46; Petrie et al 2017 ). Given the apparent diversity in cropping practices that is evident in northwestern India’s Mature Harappan period (Petrie 2017 ; Petrie et al 2016 , 2017 ; Bates et al 2017a , 2017b ; Petrie and Bates 2017 ), and the problematic linkage between site location and watercourses that has often been assumed (see review by Petrie and colleagues [ 2017 ] and Singh and colleagues [ 2010 : 44, 2011 : 102]), it is essential to further investigate the socio-economic and environmental dynamics that contributed to this concentration of settlement during the height of the Indus Civilization.…”

“…This transformation is likely associated with climate change, and it has been suggested that a weakening summer monsoon prompted communities in northwestern India to diversify their agricultural practices (Madella and Fuller 2006 ). However, it is clear that this diversity emerged well before cities and may have provided the risk buffering and mitigation necessary to maintain food surpluses in the face of climate change (Petrie et al 2016 , 2017 ; Petrie 2017 ; Petrie and Bates 2017 ).…”

Dry, rainfed or irrigated? Reevaluating the role and development of rice agriculture in Iron Age-Early Historic South India using archaeobotanical approaches

“…The production of kharif and rabi crops is not solely dependent on the monsoon rains however. Irrigation technologies allow for the production of multiple crops (including double or even triple rice cropping (Petrie and Bates 2017)) in areas that would not necessarily receive enough rainfall (for example, by pumping ground water). Local environments and geographies also play a role, such as in the Kaveri delta in Tamil Nadu where multiple cropping is supported by the waters of the delta.…”

'Not all that burns is wood'. A social perspective on fuel exploitation and use during the Indus urban period (2600-1900 BC)

“…The nature of this regional diversity is particularly evident in the analyses of subsistence practices with recent works stressing the role of ecological variability within the vast area occupied by the Indus Civilisation [e.g. 3 , 8 – 9 ].…”