CULTURAL AND HISTORICAL GEOGRAPHY OF SOUTHWEST GUATEMALA—McBRYDE 19 
planted for a year; thereafter beans are planted every 
second or third year, until the bean yield declines 
notably, which may begin after the second rotation. 
The field may then be abandoned for 4 or 5 years, 
and beans planted again, followed by maize. 
Such repeated plantings, even with rotation, inter- 
spersed by short periods of rest, result in the ex- 
tremely high proportion of cleared land that is so 
characteristic of the Highland landscape. The state- 
ment sometimes made, however, that the forest is 
never permitted to return (Kempton and Popenoe, 
1937, p. 213), is widely refuted by observations 
Average planting date 
In much of the Highlands, there are monthly weed- 
ings for the first 3 months of growth. 
Where newly cleared brush or woodland, felled by 
ax and machete (pl. 31, >) is to be disposed of, it is 
usually burned after a period of drying, a month or 
less before planting. In wooded areas, there are 
often a few large trees left standing in the milpa 
(pl. 10, 9). 
The time of planting and length of vegetative period 
are chiefly a matter of elevation (map 9). The fol- 
lowing tabulation summarizes my observations in this 
regard: 
Average major harvest period 
Elevation 
Meters Feet 
WES 00=2;250) oic's s.disie.vieie AOZIR7- 32. is.2 cho. Seeks 
2,290°2,500) nv e ee acces 7382-83202 | cine. cies 
ZS00=2,750) Si. cyeche cies 8202-91022 oo Servers 
Apr. 15-May 15 (wet season) ............. 
Mar: 15-30: (dry Season)! oie sesees eae sere 
Bebs 15=s0n (dry season); aoncccees sews as eco 
December—January. 
November—December. 
January-February. 
around Solola, Totonicapan, and other areas, where 
furrows are clearly visible under pine forests. It is 
nevertheless true that some areas, as in the Quezal- 
tenango-Totonicapan Valley, are largely deforested, 
and have been so since before the Conquest. Here 
there is little burning, and the roza is virtually re- 
stricted to weed cutting; for, even where there is a 
bit of brush or forest, it is conserved for firewood. 
Planting.—Preparing the field and planting maize 
is usually men’s work, as seems to have been the case 
since ancient times. Neither Oviedo nor Médel refers 
to planting by women. In part this division of labor 
is probably due to the heavy work involved, especially 
in felling trees and hoeing, but it seems to have also 
a symbolic significance, with the man regarded as the 
logical sower of the seed. Of the early writers which 
I have consulted, only Torquemada (1723, vol. 1, p. 
328) refers to planting by women, which undoubtedly 
was exceptional. That women today plant other 
crops than maize, and aid in the harvest, will be 
brought out later. 
The various steps in the preparation of a milpa (not 
new land) were outlined and named by Santiago 
Atitlan Indian informants as follows (lands near the 
village, elevations not over 1,700 m.): 
In September, October, and November the corn- 
stalks are gathered for fuel, temporary fences, and a 
number of other uses. The leaves (the only fertilizer 
used) are cut and dug under. Weeds are cleared 2 
weeks before planting. Any burning of stumps, roots, 
and brush is done 1 week before planting, which takes 
place usually during the first 2 weeks of February. 
Highland planting at elevations below about 2,250 
m. (7,382 ft.) is, for the most part, begun after the 
first two or three heavy rains (sometimes called 
sembradores for this reason, especially in the Low- 
lands). Above that, colder conditions make it neces- 
sary because of the long growing period (nearly a full 
year) to plant as soon as possible following the month 
of frost hazard (January). Low temperatures, cloudi- 
ness, and fog retard the evaporation of moisture from 
the soil at these levels, compensating somewhat for 
the lack of rain. 
Planting before the rains is to be found at San 
Bartolomé Aguascalientes (2,500 m. or 8,202 ft.) and 
Santiago Atitlan (1,660—1,700 m. or 5,446-5,577 ft.), 
an exception to the general rule at this level. In both 
these regions, planting is begun during the first 
half of February and harvesting from the middle of 
August to December. For this early planting before 
the rains, the soil is said to be hoed deeper (as in dry- 
season planting in general), for better moisture con- 
ditions, than in plantings after rains, and hoed early, 
right after the previous harvest (Santiago Atitlan). 
In both of the above-mentioned localities, there is an- 
other planting in May with the rains, apparently a 
short-growing season variety, for it is harvested 
along with the earlier planted maize, beginning in 
August and September. 
Fertilizers.—Throughout the Highlands above 
about 1,500 m. (4,921 ft.), fertilizing of the land is 
common and widespread, for climatic and soil condi- 
tions are less favorable there than in the Lowlands, 
where it is seldom practiced. The fertilizer consists in 
