HST 197 Chapter Notes - Chapter 24: Vellum, Henna, Crop Rotation
Document Summary
Umayyad and abbasid empires created a zone of trade, exchange and communication stretching from india to iberia. Commerce throughout this zone provided vigorous economic stimulus from the countryside and cities of the early islamic world. Soldiers, administrators, diplomats and merchants traveled throughout the dar al-islam, they encountered many plants, animals and agricultural techniques peculiar to the empire"s various regions. They introduced useful crops to other regions. Most important of the transplants traveled west from india to persia, southwest asia, Staple crops: sugarcane, rice, sorghum, wheat, spinach, artichokes, eggplants, oranges, lemons, limes, bananas, coconuts, watermelons, mangoes, cotton, indigo and henna. New crops led to a richer and more varied diet. They also increased the quantities of food available because cultivators were able to extend the growing season. Most of the transplanted crops grew in high heat regions. Some crops has new industrial uses, these became the base of the thriving textile industry throughout the islamic world.
