So Shall You Reap: Farming and Crops in Human Affairs [Englisch] [Taschenbuch]

The Solbrigs (Otto is a Harvard University biology professor; Dorothy is a librarian in Harvard's Biological Laboratories) take readers on a fascinating journey through time to examine the history and evolution of agriculture and its influence on civilization. Starting with the prehistorical period, they cover the era of the hunter-gatherers, the domestication of plants, the rise of civilization, the spread of agriculture to European societies, the medieval period, the agricultural and industrial revolutions, and today's high-yield market-oriented agriculture. The Solbrigs relate details about the origins of crops and the contacts among societies that changed food consumption and cultivation practices, giving readers a global perspective on the role that each society played in bringing contemporary agriculture to the world community. The authors also discuss the problems faced by modern agriculture and offer some solutions for future sustainability. Recommended for general audiences and informed readers alike.
- Irwin Weintraub, Rutgers Univ. Libs., Piscataway, N.J.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc. -- Dieser Text bezieht sich auf eine andere Ausgabe: Gebundene Ausgabe .

"So Shall You Reap" is a broad-gauged exploration of the intersections of farming and history. Beginning with the prehistorical era, Otto and Dorothy Solbrig describe the evolution of farming. When and how did people learn to irrigate, to fertilize, to rotate their crops -- and why?Along with its fundamental importance to history, farming has radically altered the physical world. Natural landscapes have been completely transformed to provide room for growth on a large scale of a few species of plants and even fewer species of domesticated animals. Agriculture has altered the earth's biosphere and changed its geosphere: The soil has been modified, forests have been felled, swamps have been drained, rivers have been dammed and diverted."So Shall You Reap" presents a fresh and informed perspective on how farming and the crops we grow have changed us and our environment. By understanding the nature of the origins and evolution of agriculture, we will be better prepared to anticipate what the future may hold in store, and what must be done to increase food production while minimizing environmental problems.

With this work, Otto and Dorothy Solbrig examine the history and evolution of agriculture and its influence on civilization. They also look at how agriculture may develop in the future.