Disentangling the effect of farming practice and aridity on crop stable isotope values: a present-day model from Morocco and its application to early farming sites in the eastern Mediterranean

Styring, Amy K., Ater, Mohammed, Hmimsa, Younes, Fraser, Rebecca, Miller, Holly, Neef, Reinder, Pearson, Jessica A. and Bogaard, Amy (2016) Disentangling the effect of farming practice and aridity on crop stable isotope values: a present-day model from Morocco and its application to early farming sites in the eastern Mediterranean. Anthropocene Review, 3 (1). pp. 2-22. ISSN 2053-020X

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Abstract

Agriculture has played a pivotal role in shaping landscapes, soils and vegetation. Developing a better understanding of early farming practices can contribute to wider questions regarding the long-term impact of farming and its nature in comparison with present-day traditional agrosystems. In this study we determine stable carbon and nitrogen isotope values of barley grains from a series of present-day traditionally managed farming plots in Morocco, capturing a range of annual rainfall and farming practices. This allows a framework to be developed to refine current isotopic approaches used to infer manuring intensity and crop water status in (semi-)arid regions. This method has been applied to charred crop remains from two early farming sites in the eastern Mediterranean: Abu Hureyra and ‘Ain Ghazal. In this way, our study enhances knowledge of agricultural practice in the past, adding to understanding of how people have shaped and adapted to their environment over thousands of years.

Item Type: Article
RIS ID: https://nottingham-repository.worktribe.com/output/778090
Additional Information: Copyright © 2016 by SAGE Publications
Keywords: Agriculture; Carbon; Crops; Manuring; Nitrogen; Watering
Schools/Departments: University of Nottingham, UK > Faculty of Arts > School of Humanities > Department of Archaeology
Identification Number: 10.1177/2053019616630762
Depositing User: Miller, Holly
Date Deposited: 24 Jul 2018 07:56
Last Modified: 04 May 2020 17:39
URI: https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/id/eprint/53100

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