Agriculture in Charnea

Agriculture in Charnea faces significant challenges due to the harsh conditions of the Ninva desert and the surrounding regions. The foremost limitation of the agricultural practices of the desert peoples is the scarcity of water which limits the areas that can be made arable to scattered patches where natural oases are found or artificial irrigation projects can be established, as well as some areas in far eastern Charnea and the Agala highlands where naturally occurring rivers and lakes can be exploited for irrigation. Another limitation is the poor soil quality common to most regions of the desert. The sandy soils across Charnea generally lack organic matter and nitrogen, while phosphorous content may be abundant in some areas and sparse in others. Thirdly, the strong winds and sandstorms typical of the Charnean environment threaten cultivated areas with damage to plants and structures or may even cause sand dunes to shift and overrun entire zones of cultivated land. Due to these and other conditions inhibiting agricultural practices, only 5 - 10% of the land area of Charnea is considered suitable for agriculture. However, many of the problems and challenges of agriculture in the harsh desert climate of Charnea can be overcome through engineering and agronomic techniques wherever water can be made available for irrigation. The rapid expansion of the Charnean population through the 19th into the 20th century has led to the country outpacing its agricultural yields, leading to a condition of net food importation.

Crops

The selection of productive plant species suitable for the environmental conditions and culture methods of Charnean agriculture are somewhat limited. In particular, crops preferred by Charnean agriculturalists tend to be able to survive with relatively small volumes of water and overcome the often poor nutritional qualities of the soil.

Acacia

Various species of acacia tree can be found on Charnean farmland as shade trees, grown in windbreaks, used for grazing and for their wood and other properties. The sap of acacia trees, often those that grow in the wild or in swale cultures, is used to produce acacia gum popular in many Charnean towns as a chewing gum and as the basis for many confections and deserts. Historically, acacia gum was one of the major exports of the region of Achra and greater Charnea along with salt, gold and dyes.

Mesquite

Mesquite trees where introduced to the Charneans in the 17th century by the Mutulese and spread through the region. Mesquite, in particular honey mesquite, is well adapted to the extreme aridity of the climate and can grow relatively quickly making it useful for mitigating erosion and blocking the advance of the desert in certain areas. The trees can be cut for their wood which has become prized as fuel among Charnean nomads for its distinct aroma. The seed pods can be dried and ground into a flour for making bread, which has become a staple of the nomadic population due to their traditional lack of access to the staple cereal grains. The trees require little maintenance in certain conditions and allow the nomads to periodically visit mesquite groves in their territory to collect wood and harvest the seeds before moving on. The flowers support honeybees and are preferred by many Charnean apiculturists for the quality of the honey produced from mesquite nectar and the ready availability of the trees for pollination in regions that would otherwise be relatively devoid of honey plants.

Oak

The Kermes oak is an especially hardy variety of oak tree well suited to the desert environment thanks to its resistance to drought and poor soil. It grows as a small shrub that may occasionally reach the height of a small tree, supporting the grazing of animals and frequently seeded in Charnean swale cultures primarily for this purpose. The acorns of kermes oak are edible and often collected by the nomadic peoples of the Ninva for sustenance, although they are relatively unpopular due to their bitter taste. This variety of desert oak sustains kermes scale insects, which can be collected and used to make crimson dye traded as a valuable commodity and used to color the crimson kaftans and other iconic red clothing typical of many of the cultures of Charnea.

Mastic

The Mastic tree is cultivated for its resin, which is aromatic and has antimicrobial and antifungal properties. The resin is used to produce gum and oils for culinary and medicinal purposes. While the gum may be used to flavor various drinks and dishes, it can also be turned into a chewing gum that is popular among the Tenerian nomads along with the gum arabic produced from Acacia resin. Compared to acacia gum, mastic gum is less sweet and has a much stronger, smokier flavor. Of the two, the nomads most often prefer the mastic variety while acacia gum is viewed as a sweet desert or snack for youths and a treat for city-dwellers.

Palms

Date palms are a very popular crop grown throughout Charnea and prized for its sweet fruits, being one of the most common trees and by far the most common palm variety to be cultivated in Charnea. Dates are widely eaten as a desert and as a sweetening element to a variety of dishes, while ground date seeds can be used as animal feed. The leaves and fibers of date palms are also utilized in traditional architecture as a roofing material and to construct large wind catchers, while the immature leaves may be eaten as a vegetable and the fibrous leaf sheaths can be used to make ropes and twine. The dwarf palm is valued for its hardiness and survivability, and is often seeded widely in the surrounding areas of a cultivated field to create windbreaks, halt advancing dunes and mitigate erosion. The leaves of the dwarf palm are used to make brooms and as a basket weaving material, while the immature husks of the plant are edible. The fruit is inedible but used for medicinal purposes as an astringent, and its pulp inhibits the germination of seeds and the activity of invertebrate pests such as weevils and beetles and so is occasionally used in seed stores for these purposes.

Hemp

Cultivation of hemp for food, textiles and for recreational substances is an ancient practice in Charnea. In particular, hemp products benefit from the plant's extremely fast rate of growth and can be produced in large quantities with only moderate investment of water and land area. Hemp paper is very common in Charnea as a more traditional form of paper for writing and other purposes, although it is less used than common wood pulp paper in the modern day. Hemp fiber is used for insulation and for the manufacture of ropes, clothing and textiles, while hemp seeds are edible and can be made into a slurry for baking or processed into an edible oil. The cannabis flowers are used for the production of psychoactive substances, particularly hashish which is popular in Charnean culture.

Flax

Flax is one of the oldest and most important crops in traditional Charnean agriculture because of the multiplicity of its products. It can be consumed as with other cereal grains, by grinding into flax seed meal that can be used to make bread. Ground flax carries the risk of oxidizing and becoming rancid within a week of being ground, and so requires particular care and immediate storage in sealed containers in order to remain suitable for use for a period of several months. Linseed oil produced from flax is an edible oil providing important nutrients, which can be used in conjunction with the as high grade fodder for animals. The oil is also useful for industrial purposes as a chemical agent in paint and wood finishes as well as the production of Linoleum. Flax fibers are used to manufacture linen, a textile prized in Charnea for its strength and fast-drying qualities. Linen has been produced in the region of east Charnea for thousands of years, being the primary type of textile used in the region. As with hemp, flax fibers can also be used to produce rope, canvas and even paper. Flax is preferred to cotton as a textile crop due to its lower water use, although its requirement of higher levels organic matter in its soils requires significant use of organic fertilizer and mulch to improve yields.

Methods of Culture

Swales

One of the oldest methods of agriculture in the Ninva is what is known as swale culturing, utilizing a swale typically in the form of a long depression backed by a berm running perpendicular to a slope where water may flow on a seasonal basis to slow and disperse the flow. This structure captures a portion of the runoff from sudden rains and flash floods that occur in some parts of Charnea, enabling the water to infiltrate into the area surrounding the swale structure, allowing for certain species of trees and shrubs to establish themselves in the otherwise arid conditions. The practice of swale cropping is suggested to have been established in prehistory by the ancestors of the modern day Amaziɣ peoples, and has been practices continuously by the nomadic Tenerian culture native to Charnea. The runoff capture structures are relatively simple to construct, generally requiring only the excavation of a long ditch across the face of a hill or other slope, utilizing the displaced material from the excavation to form a berm down-slope from the ditch. Additionally, the growth of shrubs and trees in the resulting swale system requires very little management to sustain, making it suitable for use by nomadic tribes that may periodically visit the swale culture to harvest foodstuffs, wood and other products as well as preform maintenance on the swale structure. Swale cultures are often not recognized as zones of cultivation by outside observers as they can often appear to be natural features of the landscape where native wild plants are growing. Due to the nature of the culture, water is often not fully accessible at the surface layers of soil and is only refreshed intermittently or seasonally making it difficult for many traditional crops to grow in the swale cultures. Trees such as olives, acacia kermes oak and mastic trees as well as certain species of mesquite introduced in modern times may be grown using the swale culture method.

Alley Cropping

Forms of agroforestry have been invented or introduced to Charnea, the most widely adopted of which is alley cropping. This is the practice of planting crops such as cereal grains, alfalfa or other nitrogen fixing cultivars in between rows of trees forming an alley-like elongated rectangular field. The main purpose of this practice in Charnea is to shelter crops from strong winds, as the rows of trees or tall shrubs on either side of the cultivated alley act as built-in windbreaks and prevent damage to the crops during wind storms. The trees used to form the flanks of the alley can also provide products such as wood and fruit as well as valuable commodities like dye and aromatic resin.