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Agriculture was central in theeconomy of ancient Greece, as it comprised the bulk of production and exchange.^[1] Nearly 80% of the population was^[when?] involved in this activity.^[2]

Most texts in theancient Greek language about agriculture are lost, except twobotany texts byTheophrastus (Historia Plantarum orEnquiry into Plants andOn the Causes of Plants, both writtenc. 350~287 BCE), andHesiod's poemWorks and Days (c. 700 BCE). In addition,Oeconomicus (from which book title the modern science ofeconomics took its name^[4]), written byXenophon around 360 BCE, is aSocratic dialogue principally abouthouseholdmanagement and agriculture.^[4]

The main texts are mostly from the Roman agronomists:Cato the Elder'sDe agri cultura,Columella'sDe re rustica,Marcus Terentius Varro andPalladius. Varro mentions at least fifty Greek authors whose works are now lost, such as the agricultural treatiseRusticatio (attributed toMago the Carthaginian, originally written inPunic and later translated into Greek and Latin). Scholars speculate whether this text may have been an early source for agricultural traditions in the Near East and Classical world. Ancient Greek agronomy was also influenced byBabylonian agriculture through the work of 4th-century writerVindonius Anatolius, who in turn influenced the 7th-century writerCassianus Bassus. Bassus'Eclogae de re rustica was excerpted in theGeoponika, a survivingByzantine text created during the reign ofConstantine VII Porphyrogenitus (r. 913–959) and later translated intoArabic,Syriac andArmenian.^[5] Some additional information on agriculture inRoman Greece may be found inPliny the Elder's encyclopaediaNatural History (77–79 CE).

Other than that, indirect evidence about the kind of food the ancient Greeks produced and traded might be inferred from mentions of dietary practices in literary texts, such as theOdyssey andIliad, or more historical narratives such as theHistory of the Peloponnesian War byThucydides. Yet, using such written sources about food to hypothesise about agriculture comes with a high level of uncertainty.

Aside from written sources,archaeology plays an important role in establishing facts and hypotheses around agricultural practices in ancient Greece. On the one hand, human-made tools that have been found may indicate what kinds of crops were grown, how the soil was cultivated, what kind ofanimal husbandry was practiced where and for what of purposes animals were kept. On the other hand,archaeobotany searches for remains of plants, charcoal, charred seeds and fruits present in stratigraphical layers of ancient settlements, and studies how their inhabitants probably used them in their lives.^[6]

For all attempts to match discoveries made by archaeobotanists with text-based sources, caution must be observed that the ancient Greek and Roman terminology used may be difficult to match with modernplant taxonomy's Greco-Latin botanical nomenclature.Kiel University archaeobotanist Helmut J. Kroll (2000) warned:

Whether a Greek plant name describes a species, a variety or a special landrace of a species is not sure. For examplesesame has often been mentioned in texts sinceLinear B. Archaeobotanical reports ofSesamum indicum in contrast are missing or of very young date. On the other hand, there is a Bronze and Iron Age oil plant,Gold-of-pleasure or false flaxCamelina sativa, of great importance in Middle Europe down to Northern Greece, which has no name in Greek literature, although Latincamelina is etymologically connected with Greekchamaelinon. Names shift from one species to another, earlysesame may beCamelina sativa; in lateHellenistic times it is surelySesamum indicum. The cooperation between botanists and classical philologists should be better, or, at best, some philologists should be hobby-botanists.^[7]

Differing ways of processing various products result in different kinds of remains that may be rediscovered and analysed. Kroll: "Hulled wheats have to bedehusked,winnowed et cetera before preparing a meal. A lot of residue is connected with these processes. The residues were often burnt and lots of charred plant remains are the result[.] Soemmer andeinkorn may get charred to a greater extent thanbread wheat which is put into the granary and into the pot or onto themillstone without any further processing."^[8] This means that the archaeobonatical evidence is not always representative of which crops people in the past actually cultivated and consumed, and common wheat (bread wheat) is underrepresented in thearchaeological record of ancient Greece.^[8] For similar reasons, common wheat (bread wheat) anddurum wheat (macaroni wheat) are often difficult distinguish in practice.^[8]

According to Kroll (2000), evidence from mainland Greece in the1st millennium BCE suggests "crops of the arable land can be grouped in cereals, millets, pulses, oil and fiber plants and in fruit trees."^[9]

Amongst cereals, about 7 or 8 different sorts could be distinguished:^[9]

1. hulled barley (Hordeum vulgare *vulgare); "naked barleyHordeum vulgare *nudum occurs only in Chalcolithic contexts"^[9]);
2. emmer (Triticum dicoccum),
3. einkorn (Triticum monococcum);
4. spelt (Triticum spelta),
5. common/bread wheat (Triticum aestivum) anddurum/macaroni wheat (Triticum durum); "these two [are] often put together as naked or freethreshing wheats; emmer, einkorn and spelt are hulled wheats"^[9]),
6. oats (Avena species); and
7. rye (Secale cereale).^[9]

Of these, emmer and einkorn were the main cereals duringNeolithic Greece (c. 7000 –c. 3200 BCE) andBronze Age mainland (Helladic) Greece) (c. 3200 –c. 1050 BCE).[9] Emmer and einkorn were primarily used for cooked meals, but are not as suitable for bread and pastry.^[10] While remains of pure einkorn are typically discovered in Northern Greece and pure emmer more in Central and Southern Greece, they have often been found together.^[8] Aside from them, hulled barley also served an important role in this early period (in ancient Greece and elsewhere in the Ancient Near East), as a sacred cereal used in religious offerings, or as the primary ingredient for flat bread, for paps, broses, and gruel.^[10]

In theLate Helladic III period (c. 1415–1050 BCE), mainland Greece transitioned from the Bronze to the Iron Age.[9] In Iron Age Greece, "naked wheat replaces emmer and einkorn as the main cereal besides barley."^[8] By the end of the 1st millennium BCE, common wheat (bread wheat) had become the main cereal of Greece and theGreek colonies.^[8] This species of cereal is very apt for baking (hence the nickname "bread wheat"), and in 1st-millennium BCE mainland Greece, "the bread oven in the yard or in a special room [was] a characteristic feature of every household."^[8] By contrast, ovens were rare in Bronze Age Greece, whenhearths were still at the centre of domestic living.^[8]

Spelt was much rarer in the 1st millennium BCE, only found mixed with bread wheat in central and southern Greece, but more specifically cultivated in northern Greece in a small scale.^[11] Unlike in Bronze and Iron Age Central Europe, spelt, oats and rye have never been a main cereal in Greece.^[12] Of the latter two, there is not even evidence that humans ate it; oats and rye might have been used aslivestockfodder instead.^[12] On the other hand, rye was commonly grown in thePontus region on the southeasternBlack Sea coast.^[12] It is possible that rye became a main cereal in theByzantine period inThrace, northern Greece andChalkidiki, but the evidence is limited.^[12]

During the early time^[when?] ofGreek history, as shown in theOdyssey, Greek agriculture - anddiet - was based on cereals (sitos, though usually translated aswheat, could in fact designate any type of cereal grain^{[according to whom?]}). Even if the ancients were aware of the better nutritional value of wheat, the growing of barley was less demanding and more productive.^{[citation needed]} Attempts have been made^{[by whom?]} to calculate Attica grain production in the period, but results have not been conclusive.^{[citation needed]}It did not take long for demand to outpace production capabilities, as arable land was limited.^{[citation needed]} The "tightness" of the land (στενοχωρία /stenokhôría) also explainsGreek colonization, and the importanceAnatoliancleruchies would have for the Athenian empire in controlling grain provision.^{[citation needed]}

Grapes, from theVitis vinifera flowering plant, have been commonly grown in settlements throughout Greece since theLate NeolithicDimini culture^[13] (c. 4800~3200 BCE), long before the introduction of the cultivated olive treeOlea europaea in theLate Bronze Age.^[14] Grapes do well in the rocky soil, but demand a lot of care.^{[clarification needed]} There is a lot of variety in grape pips found throughout prehistoric and classical Greece, and it is difficult to determine when and where grape vines were cultivated, or wherewine was collected from the wild.^[13] Likewise, it is impossible to determine where the so-called "wine–beer border" was in southeastern Europe; wine was made from grapes, andbeer frommalt usingbarley, and remains from both plants can be found everywhere throughout the soil layers of Greece from the 1st millennium BCE.^[15]

The Mediterranian coasts of central and southern Greece were well suited forolive trees, out of whicholive oil could be made.^[14] Olive plantations are a long-term investment: it takes more than twenty years for the tree to provide fruit, and it only fruits every other year.^{[citation needed]} Although the wild olive speciesOlea oleaster was native to the Mediterranean, it would be theOlea europaea, probably first cultivated in theLevant, that was introduced for large-scale arboriculture inMycenaean Greece in theLate Bronze Age.^[14] According toGreek mythology, it was the goddessPallas Athena who brought the cultivated olive to theAthenians, and taught them how to mill and press the olives for oil.^[14] Archaeobotanist Helmut J. Kroll (2000) stated that olives and olive oil were probably too precious to be traded on a large scale, as there is no evidence of olivepips inThessaly, the mountains ofEpirus, Macedon, and Thrace, outside the range of cultivation of olive trees near the Mediterranean coast.^[14] If anything, it was a rare, expensive, luxury product; in the inland regions where olives could not be grown, they were not imported, but replaced byflax (linseed),Camelina sativa (false flax) andpoppy instead.^[a]

Oil-seed plants such asflax (linseed),sesame, andpoppy were also grown.^[14] Additional vegetables includedcabbage,onion, andgarlic.^[16] Orchards included those offig,almond, apple, and pear trees.^[16]

Herb gardens in ancient Greece often includedsage,mint,thyme,savory, andoregano.^[16]

Animal husbandry, seen as a sign of power and wealth in the works ofHomer, was in fact not well developed in ancient Greece. While theMycenaean civilization was familiar with the rearing of cattle, the practice was restricted as a result of geographic expansion into less suitable terrain.Goats andsheep quickly became the most common livestock; less difficult to raise and providers of meat,wool, andmilk (usually in the form ofcheese).Pork andpoultry (chicken andgeese) were also raised. Oxen were rare and normally used as a work animal, though they were occasionally used as sacrificial animals (seeHecatomb).Donkeys,mules and their mixes were raised as pack or draught animals.^{[citation needed]}

Horses were raised on the plains ofThessaly andArgolis; it was a luxury animal, signifying aristocracy.The Clouds,ancient Greek comedy byAristophanes, illustrates the equestrian snobbery ofAthenian aristocrats: Pheidippides, the son of the hero is addicted to race-horses and so ruins his father Strepsiades.^{[citation needed]}

It is likely that most farms practiced some limited animal husbandry; poultry or small animals grazing on waste land or fed kitchen scraps. Combined farm/livestock operations also existed, as well as those specializing in livestock. An inscription^[24] also mentions a certain Eubolos ofElateia, inPhocis, the owner of 220 head of cattle and horses and at least 1000 sheep and goats. Flocks of sheep wereherded between the valley in winter and the mountains in summer. Taxes existed for the transit or stopover of flocks in cities.^{[citation needed]}

Cows were also sometimes raised, although they were not as common as other farm animals.^{[citation needed]}

Wood was exploited on a large scale; an estimated 90% of all wood and its carbonised product,charcoal, was used as afuel in ancient Greece andRome.^[27] The second-most important purpose of wood was to serve as building materials for buildings and ships.^[28] Homes and wagons were made of wood as was theard (aratron).^{[citation needed]}

The continuous exploitation of forests in the ancient Greek countryside led to seriousdeforestation, particularly around major urban and mining centres, increasingly necessitating timber trade to acquire lumber from other forests elsewhere around theMediterranean Sea.^[29] The Greek forests located in the highlands were denuded by goats andcharcoal production; it was not long before it had to be imported especially for ship production (seetrireme). Another driving factor of deforestation was land clearance for the purpose of farming.^[30] ByPlato's time (5th–4th century BCE), the environs of Athens had been mostly deforested, while the forests of the island ofEuboea were stripped almost entirely of accessible wood to fuel theindustrial silver mining complex of Laurion in southernAttica, providing only inferior timber thereafter.^[31]

The ancient Greeks and Romans undertook several responses in order to mitigate or counter the effects of deforestation and soil erosion, such as reforestation, afforestation, and the establishment of varioussacred groves as forests that were not to be altered, and where woodchopping, acquiring wood from dead branches or fallen trees, making fires, or hunting animals was strictly prohibited.^[32]

Beekeeping provided honey, the only source ofsugar known to the Greeks. It also was used in medicines and in the production ofmead. The ancient Greeks did not have access to sugarcane. TheHymettus region of Attica was known for the quality of honey produced there.^[33]Wax was also produced, used in thelost wax process to produce bronze statues as well as in medicines.

Bronze was used for farm tools and weaponry.

Hesiod'sWorks and Days (c. 700 BCE) andXenophon'sOeconomicus (c. 360 BCE) provide information about working off the land.[34] According toOeconomicus Chapters 16.8–19.19,Socrates (who is not historically known to have set good practical examples of household management in his own life,^[36] and "who has never spent a moment involved in farming"^[37]) recalls a past conversation with an Atheniangentleman-farmer (kaloskagathos) named Ischomachus.^[34] The latter asserts everyone already knows the basics of agriculture (20.2–11), and leads Socrates to discover all the essentials of good farming on his own.^[34]

The olive harvest took place from late autumn to the beginning of winter, either by hand or by pole. They were placed in wicker baskets and left to ferment for a few weeks before being pressed. The screw press, although referred to as theGreek press byPliny the Elder (XVIII, 37) was a late (2nd century BCE) Roman invention. Oil was preserved in terra cotta vases for use later. This was also the time for pruning of trees and vines and harvesting of legumes.^{[citation needed]}

Spring was the rainy season; farmers took advantage of this to bring fallow ground back into production. They have usually been thought to have practised biennialcrop rotation, alternating from year to year between fallow and cultivated, though Paul Halstead suggests that alternating between growing cereals and pulses is more likely.^[38] Attempts to introduce triennial crop rotation with legumes in the third year, ran into problems due to the poor Greek soil, lack of power, and absence of mechanization. The Greeks did not use animal manure, possibly due to the low number of cattle.^{[citation needed]} The only soil additive was weeds ploughed back into the ground after fields came out of fallow.^{[citation needed]}

In summer,irrigation was indispensable. In June, they harvested with sickles; the scythe was not used. Wheat was threshed with animal power; it was trampled by oxen, donkeys or mules, and the grain stored. Women andslaves ground it and made bread.^{[citation needed]}

In early autumn, they collected deadfall and prepared supplies of firewood; while winters were mild on the coast they could be brutal in the highlands. Farmers also had to break the hard crust that had formed over the summer on grain fields. To do this required three passes since theard was wooden (metal shares were rare) and only scratched the uppermost subsoil without inverting it. A hoe and mallet were also used to break clumps of earth. The fallow land for next year was sown by hand. This was the time of the grape harvest: the grapes were crushed by foot in large vats, then the wine was left to ferment in jugs. After that process, people could drink the ambrosial wine and enjoy it.^{[citation needed]}

In the nearly four centuries that passed between Hesiod and Xenophon, no improvements can be found in agriculture. Tools remained mediocre and there were no inventions to lighten the work of either man or animal. It was not until the rise ofRomans that thewater mill came into wide use, employing hydraulic power to augment muscle power. It took until the Middle Ages for true plows which turned the earth to be widely adopted. Neither irrigation, nor soil improvements, nor animal husbandry saw notable advances. Only the very richest of land, such as that ofMessinia was capable of supporting two crops per year.^{[citation needed]}

InSparta, the reforms ofLycurgus (c. 800 BCE) led to a drastic redistribution of land, with 10 to 18 hectare lots (kleroi) distributed to each citizen.^[citation needed] However, most inhabitants of Archaic and Classical Sparta (Lakedaimon) were not citizens, buthelots in a position commonly likened toserfdom orslavery.^[1] Their exact origins and status are unclear and debated, but a common theory suggests that many helots were originally free inhabitants ofMessenia and other regions, subjected by theSpartiates at the end of theFirst Messenian War (743–724 BCE). Sources suggest they were state-owned, land-bound serfs, who could not be bought or sold as the property of individual Spartiates, but were forced to work for them by the Lakedaimon state, mostly in agricultural work.^[1] A large percentage of their produce had to be handed over to their Spartiate overlords.^[1] On several occasions, the helots rose in revolt against their Spartiates oppressors, but unsuccessfully, amidst much suffering and costs.^[1] It was not until the end of theTheban–Spartan War (378–362 BCE) that most helots were liberated from agricultural serfdom by the Theban commanderEpaminondas. Thepenestai inThessaly held a similar status to the helots of Sparta.^[39]

With the exception ofAthens, and a few areas where aerial surveys have permitted analysis of historical land distribution, agricultural property allocation is not well known. Before the 5th century BCE, it is certain that the land belonged to great landowners, such as theAtticanEupatrides. Nevertheless, land use varied regionally; in Attica domains were divided among smaller plots, whereas inThessaly they had single tenants.^{[citation needed]}

From the 8th century BCE, tensions grew between the great landowners and the peasants, who were finding it more and more difficult to survive. This can probably be explained by population growth brought on by reduced infant mortality, and aggravated by the practice of equally subdividing land amongst several inheritors each generation (attested to by bothHomer andHesiod). In Athens, the crisis was resolved with the arrival ofSolon in 594 BCE. He forbadeslavery for debt and introduced other measures intended to help the peasants. In the 5th century BCE, the practice ofliturgy (λειτουργία /leitourgia - literally, "public work") placed the responsibility for provision of public services heavily on the shoulders of the rich, and led to a reduction in large scale land ownership. It is estimated that most citizens of hoplite rank owned around 5 hectares of land.^{[citation needed]} Elsewhere,tyrants undertook redistributions of land seized from wealthy political enemies.^{[citation needed]}

From the 4th century BCE onwards property starts to become concentrated among few land owners, including in Sparta where according toAristotle,the land has passed into the hands of a few (Politics, II, 1270a).^[40] Nevertheless, the aristocratic estates in Greece never achieved the scope of the great Romanlatifundia; during the classical period, the wealthyAlcibiades possessed only 28 hectares (Plato,1 Alcibiades, 123c).^[41] In all cases, land remains intimately associated with the concept of wealth. The father ofDemosthenes possessed 14talents and for land owned only a home, but he was the exception. When the bankerPasion made his fortune, he hurried to buy land.^{[citation needed]}

Some Greek land was public and/or sacred. Each city possessed such land and it is estimated that in Athens during the classical period these lands represented a tenth of cultivable land. This was an administrative division and the property of the city itself (for example inAttica, it was ademe) or a temple. These lands were leased to individuals.^{[citation needed]}

• Ancient Greek cuisine
• Economy of ancient Greece
• History of agriculture

• Burford, Alison.Land and Labor in the Greek World. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1993.
• Cole, Susan Guettel. "Demeter in the ancient Greek city and its countryside." InPlacing the Gods: Sanctuaries and Sacred Space in Ancient Greece, edited by Susan E.Alcock and Robin Osborne, 199–216. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1994.
• Hodkinson, Stephen. "Animal husbandry in the Greek polis. Paper presented at the Ninth International Economic History Congress at Bern, August 1986." InPastoral economies in classical Antiquity. Edited by Charles R. Whittaker, 35–74. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge Philological Society, 1988.
• --. "Imperial democracy and market-oriented pastoral production in classical Athens."Anthropozoologica 16 (1992): 53–61.
• Isager, Signe, and Jens Erik Skydsgaard.Ancient Greek Agriculture: An Introduction. 1st paperback ed. London: Routledge, 1995.
• McHugh, Maeve.The Ancient Greek Farmstead. Oxford: Oxbow Books, 2017.

• Economy of ancient Greece
• Agriculture by culture
• Agriculture in Greece
• History of agriculture

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