What
is shifting cultivation?
Shifting
cultivation is an example of arable, subsistence and extensive
farming. It is the traditional form of agriculture in the rainforest.
This case study will focus on the Amazonian Indians in South America.
Indians in
tribes such as the Quicha and the Kayapo clear small areas of
vegetation. They then burn it because the ash provides nutrients
for the infertile soil. The land is then farmed for 2-3 years
before the Indians move on to another area of the rainforest.
This allows the area of rainforest to recover.
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