ISHS Acta Horticulturae 759: XXVII International Horticultural Congress - IHC2006: Global Horticulture: Diversity and Harmony, an Introduction to IHC2006
THE ORIGINS OF HORTICULTURAL TECHNOLOGY AND SCIENCE |
| Author: | J. Janick |
| Keywords: | history, horticulture |
| Abstract:
Horticulture is an ancient pursuit. Beginning some 10,000 years ago, our brilliant forebears discovered the horticultural craft secrets that are the basis of our profession. They initiated a revolution that changed forever the destiny of humans from scavenging, collecting, and hunting to agriculture. We all are the heirs and beneficiaries of this legacy from the past. Our roots derive from prehistoric gatherers, Sumerian, Egyptian, Chinese, and Korean farmers, Hellenic root diggers, medieval peasants, and gardeners everywhere who devised practical solutions to problems of plant growing for food, ornament, medicine, fiber, and shelter. The accumulated successes and improvements passed orally from parent to child, from artisan to apprentice, and became embedded in human consciousness via legend, craft secrets, and folk wisdom. It was stored in tales, almanacs, herbals, and histories and has become part of our common culture. More than practices and skills were involved as improved germplasm was selected and preserved via seed and graft from harvest to harvest and generation to generation. Practically all of our cultivated crops were selected and improved by prehistoric farmers. An array of technological approaches from primitive tools fashioned during the Bronze and Iron Ages through the development of the horticultural arts – irrigation, propagation, cultivation, pruning and training, drying, and fermentation – were devised to accommodate the needs and desires of humankind. The sum total of these technologies makes up the traditional lore of horticulture. It represents a monumental achievement of our forebears, unknown and unsung. Horticultural technology has been continuous over the millennia but in the last 100 years dramatic changes have occurred that have transformed horticulture from a craft to a science, and these changes will be displayed in the present Congress. However, all these advances are based solidly on the foundation of ancient techniques. | |
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