The Mayans practiced slash and burn agriculture, cutting down trees and burning them to clear land for crops. They grew corn, beans, and squash using a traditional intercropping system called the "Milpa". To prevent soil erosion on hillsides, they developed terrace farming, creating flat surfaces at different levels. The Mayans also hunted deer, rabbit, turkey and bear as sources of food. Chocolate was an important part of their diet, drinking it as both a frothy beverage and a pulpy mush.

1. Josh and Jackie’s Slideshow of Mayan Farming
Thursday, February 7, 13

2. What do you think
these people are So
Hard!
doing?
They’re farming
crops. See the
picture below.
|
/
The Mayas, like others who cultivated the tropical rain
That’s what they’re forest, practiced cut and burn agriculture. Because
trying to get from growth is so rapid in tropical rain forests, the nutrients
the fields and they’re provided by dead plants and animal droppings get used
trying to get the up very quickly. Rain forest soil is not fertile ground for
corn. growing crops.
Thursday, February 7, 13

3. SLASH AND BURN FARMING METHOD
In the slash and burn method the
farmers first cut down the trees
which was the slash part. Next they
burned the tree stump and then
burnt the tree that they cut down.
Thursday, February 7, 13

4. THE MILPA SYSTEM
The "Milpa" system is a
traditional intercropping system ~~~>
of corn, lima bean, common
bean, and squash.
Thursday, February 7, 13

5. The
Terrace Farming
mayan
people Since ancient
times, farmers
made have built
terraces to shore
giant like up a hillside,
stairs but creating several
levels of farms.
for In a small,
seemingly
farming so inhospitable
the water place, they can
grow the crops
wouldn’t they need to
grow to survive.
wipe out
all the
The picture
crops. to the left is a close up
picture of The farming
<~~~ method
Terrace Farming
Thursday, February 7, 13

6. CHOCOLATE
Just as you drink chocolate milk and hot chocolate,
they too drank chocolate in many forms...
from a frothy drink to a pulpy mush.
The Mayans referred to chocolate as “THE DRINK
OF THE GOD”
l
l
/
Thursday, February 7, 13

7. Ways of Mayan corn preparing
After harvesting, the Mayans soaked
kernels in a solution of water and
lime, thereby removing the casings
from each kernel.
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8. Game
They hunted food too, not just farmed crops. They went out into the woods
with their sons and hunted for other food such as deer, rabbit, turkey and
bear.
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9. THE END
That’s all folks
Thursday, February 7, 13

10. Bibliography
http://www.kidsnewsroom.org/elmer/infocentral/frameset/civilizations/maya/daily/index.html
http://www.mayankids.com/mmkpeople/foods.htm
http://5jc.wikispaces.com/Mayan+food+and+cooking
http://mayas.mrdonn.org/farmers.html
Thursday, February 7, 13