How on earth would you feed a city of over 200,000 people when the land around you was a swampy lake? Seems like an impossible task, but the Aztec managed it by creating floating gardens known as chinampas, then they farmed them intensively.
These ingenious creations were built up from the lake bed by piling layers of mud, decaying vegetation and reeds. This was a great way of recycling waste from the capital city Tenochtitlan. Each garden was framed and held together by wooden poles bound by reeds and then anchored to the lake floor with finely pruned willow trees. The Aztecs also dredged mud from the base of the canals which both kept the waterways clear and rejuvenate the nutrient levels in the gardens.
At Te Papa we decided that a scale model of the chinampas would be a major feature in Aztecs: Conquest and Glory. Made by the clever folk at Te Mahi, the model, pictured, shows just how lush, colourful, and dynamic the chinampas were.
A variety of crops were grown, most commonly maize or corn, beans, chillies, squash, tomatoes, edible greens such as quelite and amaranth. Colourful flowers were also grown, essential produce for religious festivals and ceremonies. Each plot was systematically planned, the effective use of seedbeds allowed continuous planting and harvesting of crops.
Between each garden was a canal which enabled canoe transport. Fish and birds populated the water and were an additional source of food.
Farming families often lived on earthen platforms near the chinampas in houses made of cane, wood, and reeds. Each chinampa could be farmed by an average of 10 – 15 people, from the same family group, depending on the size of the garden.
Slowly over the years the water has been drained away and swampy areas were replaced by solid ground. What I find incredible is that Mexico City is built directly on top of what was once a lake. Now the lake has almost completely gone and only a couple of tell tale signs of this expansive agricultural system remain. Xochimilco, a major tourist attraction in Mexico still has farmed chinampas, and Cuemanco – a federal ecological reserve.
Xochimilco is a major tourist attraction in Mexico today.
Hello!
I’m a south korea’s elementray school teacher. i am planning to take a multimedia about aquapomics(chinampas). So i want to use your pictures about chinampas. The source of the picture will be cited of course. Please let me know if this is possible.
Thank you!
Hello!
i am writing a small article about urban agriculture in Mexico city and would like to use one of your images of the chinampas.The source of the picture will be cited of course. Please let me know if this is possible.
Thank you!
So nice you take the time to post this wonderful note. I am from Mexico, very proud of my culture.
We must continue learning from the great legacy our ancestors left us.
Many thanks
Ivan
Thanks Ivan. We were truly honoured to have the exhibition here at Te Papa and as the curator I learnt a great deal.
Many thanks for your comment.
Hi
We aré making a documentary video about ancient mexican culture and your images about the chinampas are beautiful,
So we will want to know if we can use a couple of them to ilustrate some concepts?
Thank you
Hi, i am a student from birmingham university and will be focussing my thesis on aquaponics.. could you suggest any reading which will allow me to understand how aquaponics has developed over the centuries?.
thankyou
Hi, sound likes a very interesting thesis however this wasn’t my focus in the research of the Aztec exhibition. You may find the ‘Florentine Codex. Book 11. Earthly Things’ by Fray Bernardino de Sahagun of interest. Book 11 includes information on the Aztec’s knowledge around plants.
Good luck with your research.
May I use these wonderful photographs of the dioramas for non-commercial teaching purposes (e.g., lectures, seminars)? I will attribute the photographer and the museum.
Hi Noreen, Yes that’s absolutely wonderful that you would like to use these images for teaching. It’s great to know our work can continue to be of use. You may also be interested to know that Te Mahi, a company based in Wellington, was the maker of the model.
Thanks,
Lynette
Hi I am 10 yrs old and I am studying about the Aztecs in History.Nothing is Impossible with the Aztecs cause they made it work…thank you for the info and pics it is going to help me
Hi Nathan, So great to get your comment and really brilliant to know the blog and images are of use. You are so right – the Aztecs were really amazing innovators.
Lynette
These gardens still exist and are active. Gardens of the World had an episode which was still on YouTube when I posted this: