The Kayapo Flexible Horticulture

Work, Life, and Value: Economic Anthropology ANTH 2301 The Kayapó: Flexible Horticulture A people tribe called the Kayapó are living next to the Xingu River in the eastern Amazonian jungle. Their neighbours call them such. The Kayapó have developed an inventive and adaptable style of life that meticulously cultivates the resources of the rainforest, savanna, and transitional zones by combining slash-and-burn horticulture with hunting, gathering, and some animal domestication (Posey 2002). The Kayapó, like other farming communities, are dependent on a limited number of staple carbohydrates, such as taro, sweet potatoes, manioc, and maize. They clear new garden plots every three to five years, leaving the existing ones barren. But the Kayapó plant fruit trees, medicinal plants, and other attractive vegetation that keeps the plots productive throughout the fallow time, instead than allowing the old plots regrow passively. In addition, they transfer edible and therapeutic plants using the pathways that cross their domain. For a portion of the year, the Kayapó use these routes as a complement to their farming activities when they go hunting and gathering. Men hunt anteaters, deer, armadillos, and wild pigs, while women gather fruits, nuts, and berries. The Kayapó gather honey, the delicious delicacy of the forest, on a daily basis, just as the Hadza. Another delicacy is the tortoise, which is mass-murdered on occasion during festivities. The Kayapó fish using nets, plant-based poison, and bows and arrows as well. Women may remain in the hamlet while the males go fishing or hunting. The Kayapó spend the most of the year in villages since they are farmers. A men's house is in the middle of a circle made up of extended-family homes that encircle a central public area. Groups based on gender, age, and extended family organise social events. In most communities, there are two men's organisations, one for men and one for women. A boy picks the society he wishes to join as an adult, generally the one of his future father-in-law. His wife joins the women's organisation connected to her husband's club after they are married. Every society has a leader and a designated meeting spot. In Kayapó culture, the seasons govern daily activities. The "low water" season is when planting takes place, and farming continues until harvest. Following this, wild fruits mature and draw animals for the "high water" hunting season. A time of relaxation, family outings, and more fishing comes next. And then a new year starts. The Kayapó culture has a calendar of ceremonies to commemorate these seasons. Celebrations mark the beginning and end of the agricultural and hunting seasons, and certain customs are followed to help these subsistence livelihoods succeed. The Kayapó are profoundly aware about their environment and work carefully to cultivate the diversity of flora and wildlife in the many ecological zones of their area. Every community has its share of knowledgeable people who are experts in soils, plants, animals, and medicines, in addition to an incredible reservoir of general knowledge. Within the continuum between forest and savanna, the Kayapó define several micro-zones, each of which is associated with a unique group of related flora, animals, and soil types. By planting particular plants in particular locations, they draw particular game species for hunting. To modify the temperature, moisture content, and shade of soils for farming purposes, ground cover materials such as plants, logs, leaves, straw, and bark are used. They use the vegetation that is removed and weeded during farming to fertilise particular crops with the ash of particular plants. They practise intricate types of plant intercropping that are mutually beneficial, and they carefully construct their gardens in concentric circles to provide each variety of plant the best possible light and water. For example, a number of plants are suitable "banana neighbours" when planted next to bananas. One of them is a herb known as "child-want-not," which Kayapó women use to control their fertility. The Kayapó, also known as "forest islands," form apêtê, or little regions of unique variety, in open spaces. They first cover a mound of nutrient-rich soil with a layer of organic debris, such as termite nests, and then they plant seeds and transplants of valuable trees and plants to form an apêtê. To increase the amount of light in the apêtê as the plants develop, the Kayapó chop down the tallest trees in the middle. The end result is a beautiful, shaded spot to rest in the middle of an open field, as well as a store of delicious and medicinal plants. Apêtê can also have vines that yield drinkable water, acting as a type of drinking fountain for those moving about the area. The Kayapó people's use of medicine depends on the preservation of plant biodiversity. They recognise and grow hundreds of plants that are used to cure particular conditions including snakebites, diarrhoea, and scorpion stings. They employ intricate classification frameworks to arrange their understanding of both diseases and flora. The Kayapó classify fifty distinct forms of diarrhoea and use a particular plant remedy for each. The Kayapó are experts in zoology as well. For the sake of farming and hunting, they research the morphology and behaviour of local wildlife. For example, Kayapó farmers purposefully build stinky ant nests around their garden plots when they find themselves overrun by leaf-cutting ants. The destructive leaf-cutting ants are driven away by the odorous ants' pheromones. Crushed smelly ants can also be breathed as a remedy to unclog sinuses. The Kayapó have a wide variety of pets, including as birds, snakes, spiders, and other animals. In one town alone, a survey discovered that over 60 different types of animals were kept as pets! It is recommended that kids watch their dogs' behaviour in order to get as much knowledge as they can. The Kayapó people possess an extensive body of knowledge about their surroundings, which they utilise to foster environmental sustainability and the biodiversity of plants and animals. Certain anthropologists propose that industrialised civilizations might get valuable insights into ecological sustainability and environmental management from horticultural communities like the Kayapó.