All about the ancient tribes
The Aztecs learned to survive in their environment by constructing boats, which they used for fishing and hunting. They created remedies out of the many plants that they found in the region, and they established floating gardens as a means of increasing the amount of space that could be used for the production of food.
They were able to adjust to their surroundings. They constructed boats so that they could hunt and fish more effectively. They made medicinal preparations from of the many plants they discovered in the region. They accomplished this by cultivating food in gardens that were suspended in the water.
The Valley of Mexico is home to Lake Texcoco, which is surrounded by a humid and marshy environment in which the Aztecs established their civilization. The Aztecs were forced to overcome challenges that were unique to their area, such as the occurrence of regular floods. As a result, the Aztecs had to make certain adjustments in order to live and even prosper in their environment.
Because of the wet environment, there was an abundance of flora, and the Aztecs became knowledgeable about which plants had value as sources of sustenance. They found plants that could be eaten, and they also gathered herbs that might be used to make remedies.
The chinampa and the terracing were the two primary agricultural practices that the Aztecs utilized in order to produce all of their food. The Chinampas were basically raised bed gardens that were constructed as artificial islands on the surface of the shallow waters of Lake Texcoco.
How did the Aztecs adjust their lifestyle to the climate of their initial colony, which was located in the midst of a lake? They constructed islets in order to cultivate crops. What part did commerce play in the development of the Aztec civilization? The Aztecs created a sophisticated and extensive network of trade routes.
In the year 1325 A.D., they began draining the marshy area, constructing artificial islands on which they could produce gardens, and laying the foundations for their capital city, Tenochtitlan.
Because the island was too small to support a temple and a large number of gardens, the Aztecs frequently struggled to find sufficient supplies of food. Another environmental problem that they had to deal with was getting back to the main land, which was the center of civilization, because it was on the island.
Because the Aztecs resided in the midst of a lake, they had to construct chinampas, which are large platforms of dirt that float on shallow rafts. They then produced their harvests on these chinampas. Each individual floating garden may be as long as 100 meters.
The Aztecs constructed a vast network of aqueducts that supplied water for agricultural purposes as well as for bathing and drinking.
They concentrated on constructing sturdy foundations since the warm and frequently wet environment made the soil on their land prone to sinking. As a result, they were concerned about the stability of their buildings. The foundations of the structures that the Aztecs built were made out of tezontle, a beautiful volcanic stone that was also very simple to carve.
The Incas were able to build parts of the mountain that were suited for farming by carving flat planes into the rock. These regions are able to survive the challenges that are typical of mountain climates since they are surrounded by stone walls. The Incas were able to cultivate, and they also had domesticated types of plants that were better able to survive in severe environments.
Canoes could easily travel the lake canals that ringed each chinampa on all four sides, and the channels were broad enough to accommodate them. The water from these canals was used to irrigate crops and offered a quick and convenient route for goods to be transported to market.
The Aztecs would clean themselves in low hothouses that were similar to saunas on a regular basis. This was in addition to bathing in rivers and lakes. The bather splashed water on the wall while it was baking, which created steam. One of the walls had been heated to a red-hot temperature by an external fire.
Canoes were converted into barges by the Aztecs so that they could transport heavy building materials across great distances to their construction sites. Stones would be quarried and shaped at the quarry site in order to limit the amount of material that needed to be transported and the associated transport costs.