Objective You will examine the physical environment of Central America. Introduction Central America is a tropical zone with a wide range of climates, vegetation, and agriculture products. In this lesson you will learn about these climates, what vegetation grows naturally in the climates, and what agricultural products the people of Central America grow. Physical Environment Central America connects North and South America as a land bridge. The Pacific Ocean and the Caribbean Sea border to the west and east. Mountains run all through the region. Many of these mountain ranges contain volcanoes, some active and some dormant. The isthmus of Panama is incredibly narrow. If you were to climb to the highest point in Panama, you could see both …show more content…
Even thoughts this is called the dry season, there is still chances for the occasional flash flood. Average rainfall for this time of the year is between 0.1 to 9.3 inches. Higher rainfall amounts are closer to the end of the dry season, like April and May. The average daily temperature is 83 degrees Fahrenheit. All the countries in this region are incredibly humid. Those along the Pacific coastline have slightly higher temperatures than those along the Caribbean coastline. Towards the center of the region, as you start to encounter the mountainous areas, the average temperature is closer to the mid-70s. As the elevation continues to rise, the temperatures average around 60 degrees Fahrenheit. Vegetation The natural vegetation of the area is just as diverse as the climate. Along the eastern lowlands of the region there are an abundance of rainforests. This contrasts with the Pacific coastline where evergreen forests are. High in the mountains the forests are mainly pine and oak trees. Along the coastline you will find more palms, vines, and Spanish moss, which create the dense rain forested …show more content…
Each country has its main export. Main exports of this region include bananas, tropical fruits, rice, coffee, corn, and sugarcane. Corn was established as the earliest crop of Central America. It was a major part of their life before the Europeans arrived. Other crops during this time, and current time, include squash, beans, and chili peppers. These crops were often traded within villages or other villages for materials that each other needed as well as to help sustain others. Nonfood crops such as cotton and tobacco were and still are vital parts of agriculture in Central America. Both crops are grown for personal use and trading. Crops like bananas, coffee, and sugarcane are the main export crops today. Bananas are mainly grown in Honduras and the Caribbean. Honduras is a leading exporter for bananas in the world. Coffee is grown in every country of Central America. Coffee takes as much as two months to harvest because of its slow ripening time. Sugarcane, like coffee, is widely grown. Sugarcane takes very little time to manage during the growing time, however that changes when it comes time to harvest. The harvesting of sugarcane is incredibly
Central America Central America, just south of Mexico and North of Panama, consists of just six countries; Guatemala, Belize, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Costa Rica. Of those six, all share a distinct common history except for Belize. Belize for one is incredibly small, and while Spanish is the official language of other Central American countries, in Belize English is spoken. So throughout this paper as I carelessly say 'Central American' I am not including Belize whose history and development was far different than the others. Although Central America is located close to the United States in relation to the Eastern Hemisphere, our ways of life are indescribably different.
The long-term effects of the Columbian exchange included the swap of food, crops, and animals between the New World and Old World, and the start of the transoceanic trade. In order to produce a profit, Portuguese explorers were the first to established sugar cane plantations in Brazil. They then sold this crop to the Old World where it was a popular commodity because it provided Europeans with a sweetener for foods. In addition, European produce was brought to the New World, including “…wheat, vines, horses, cattle, pigs, sheep, goats, and chickens… Where they sharply increased supplies of food and animal energy.” This fusion of crops between the Old and New World became fundamental in enhancing the diets and food of both populations.
BNatural Resources The mineral resources of the country are varied and extensive. Colombia is the major world
Much of the farming flourished in Mesoamerica, the Mexican valley of Tehuacan, is where the plant teosinte was specialized in becoming maize, the main crop of the Americas. They even learned that planting beans next to these crops enriched the soil to make them better. These great crops made for good trade with non-farming traders, due to their large surplus. Rich communities had become strong enough to capture their weaker neighbors and use them for labor and to gain riches such as land.
The progress of Latin America economically has made differences for the better or worse for several countries. In Central and South America, there are resources, industries, and agriculture that has been made gradually through the years. However, before the economic Latin America many know today, other civilizations lived first. In Central America, the Maya, Aztec, and Olmec lived there. (Document 1) The Mayans were known to live in the Yucatan Peninsula, while the Aztec lived in Tenochtitlan, and the Olmec in present day Veracruz and Tabasco. (Document 1) In South America, lived the Inca. The Inca lived in Peru, Chile. (Document 1) Aside from earlier civilizations, there are also four zones of climate. (Document 3) These types of climates are Tierra Helada (Frozen Land), Tierra Fria (Cold Land), Tierra Templada (Temperate Land), Tierra Caliente (Hot Land). All of these have different livestock and crops depending on the climate.
these crops and others back to their countries where people began to grow them. Potatoes, for example,
The plants in the Columbian Exchange impacted both the economic and ethnic aspects of both sides of the Atlantic. The plants that were unknown to the Europeans were Maize also known as corn, potatoes (sweet and white), and many different varieties of beans including snap, kidney, lima and others. The plants that were obscure to the Americans were rice, wheat, barley, oats, wine grapes, melons, coffee, olive, bananas, “Kentucky” bluegrass, daisies and dandelions. This had a big impact on their day to day diet, which affected the way they developed physically because the different amount of calories in the new
There were many items introduced to the New World and from the Old World from the New World to the Old World during the Columbian Exchange. Without the Columbian Exchange, these items such as flora, fauna, and disease would not have become worldwide, and these are not misfit creatures that no has ever heard of. The crops imported to the New World include rice, olives, sugar, coffee, lettuce, bananas, and more. There were many animals imported as well such as cattle and horses which were used for plowing large fields and moving heavy luggage from one place to another. However, among the benefits transported to the New World, sugar cane was the most important and still is in the modern world.
Summer: Refreshing sea breezes allow for pleasing conditions. Temperatures average to about 25*C (78*F) with 11 to 12 hours of daylight. It does not rain much during this season, about 29 dry days per month. Southeastern regions are affected by a subtropical anticyclone that permits temperatures to rise to 40*C.
when the colonists arrived to america, the "new world", they found that the native Americans mainly cultivated beans, maize (corn), and squash, in north america. Cassava, corn, potatoes, and quinoa, in south america. There was few domesticated animals such as guinea pigs and turkeys in mesoamerica, domestics dogs were spread, also there alpacas and llamas, they where used for
The foods that were adapted into each culture soon became vital during slavery. Sugar, bananas and citrus fruits were brought over by the Europeans which were eventually adopted into the American Indian culture; however, sugar became very important and played a lucrative role within the slavery economical world. Wheat and rice were two fundamental crops throughout America. Eventually, these two crops were exported from America helping to feed people in other countries. Overall, the foods introduced from both cultures had an effect and a huge impact towards people throughout the world.
America also got several new crops and plants from voyaging over to Europe numerous times. There were valuable crops that came from South America that were essential to them these crops were maize and potatoes. Sailors made long trips to get these and would spread them around the world they became very popular. In India potatoes immediately became popular because of how cheap they were and became a staple to there diets. Maize was popular because it was fast and easy to make it was a alternative for wheat and was thought to be healthier.
Sandwiched between the two pieces of lands, Central America is a region made up of attractive coral beaches, rocky elevated mountains, and interesting green rainforests. Its partner, the Caribbean, lies on the region’s eastern side and comprises of similar features. Overall, these unique characteristics has made the region suitable for growing variety types of agriculture. These landscapes has also shaped the climate and seasons. What’s more, these beautiful geographical features created rich culture and unforgettable history in the area.
By reading this article I learned that the food revolution changed a lot for the world’s economy. Such as potatoes became the basis for several great Andean empires. The peruvians grew corn in just as many varieties and diverse habitats and they cultivated the native American grain crops that in the Quechua they called kiwicha and quinua. The Incas produced other tuber and root crops, such as oca, anu, achira, papa liza, luki, and maca which none are in english. Also the peruvians sought to develop a different kind of plant for every type of soil, sun, and moisture condition.
Venezuela exports a variety of agricultural products including: corn, coffee, cocoa, sorghum, rice, tobacco, sugarcane, oilseeds, and cotton. In the 1960s, corn surpassed coffee as Venezuela’s leading crop. Despite the production decline of corn in the 1970s, production once again increased in the mid-1980s due to new agricultural policies. Before corn became the leading crop in Venezuela, major cash crops included both cocoa and coffee. These two crops dominated the economy of Venezuela in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries just after Venezuela’s independence from Spain. Over