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Paleoindian Archaic Basketmaker II Basketmaker III Pueblo I Pueblo II Pueblo III
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The Basketmaker II Period : 1000 B.C. to A.D. 500FoodThe introduction of agriculture was probably the single most important development of the Basketmaker II period. Corn and squash first appeared in the Four Corners area about 1000 B.C. and in the Mesa Verde region proper by about 400 B.C. In the early days of agriculture, these domesticated plants supplemented a diet that still consisted mostly of wild plants and animals. But by about 200 B.C., domesticated plants, especially corn, were important sources of food to the Basketmaker II people (Figure 1). Once dried, corn could be ground into a fine meal or stored for future use.
The transition from hunting and gathering to farming was gradual, and exactly how the Basketmaker II people began experimenting with plant cultivation is unknown. These early farmers may have planted corn and squash in the spring, and then left their garden plots unattended as they continued on their seasonal rounds to hunt game and collect wild plants. In this scenario, they would have returned to their gardens later in the year to harvest the mature crops. Alternatively, some of the group may have stayed near the gardens through the growing season, tending the plants and protecting them from animal pests. Of course, wild plants and animals continued to be used throughout the Basketmaker II period, even as people’s reliance on domesticated plant foods grew. The leaves of some wild plants, such as goosefoot and pigweed, were probably eaten as “greens.” Ricegrass seeds and pinyon nuts may have been ground into meal. Deer, elk, bighorn sheep, rabbits, and rodents were still important sources of meat protein, and wild turkey was probably eaten as well (Figure 2).
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