EMPIRES children: THE PEOPLE OF TZINTZUNTZAN FOSTER 



59 



(1) Tierra migajon ("friable earth"). These first 

 fev/ meters of rich black soil which are adjacent to the 

 lake are the best in the village. Rain is of little im- 

 portance because of the natural moisture of the earth, 

 and all crops grow well and mature rapidly. 



(2) De pan llevar. This is the next strip of lake- 

 shore soil. It is similar in consistency to the migajon 

 but because it is farther from the lake it has some- 

 what less natural moisture. Most lakeshore milpas 

 consist of both migajon and de pan llevar. 



(3) Tierra Colorado arenosa ("red sandy soil"). 

 This is the sediment brought down by erosion and 

 deposited near the lakeshore where large gullies have 

 been cut. It is good land for maize, wheat and beans. 



(4) Colorada charanda ("red charanda^) . This 

 is the best of all hillside soils. It is found principally 

 above the ydcatas in the ancient barrio of San Pablo. 

 It is superior even to the lakeshores for beans, and 

 is very good for maize, peas, and broadbeans. In 

 years of adequate rainfall wheat also does well. 



(5) Tierra amarilla cascajosa ("yellow gravel 

 soil"). Soil of this type, found principally on the 

 slopes of Tariaqueri, is very good for beans and broad- 

 beans, but maize and other crops do poorly. 



(6) Cascajo ("gravel"). This earth is found on 

 both sides of the highway south of Tzintzuntzan, on 

 the lower slopes of Tariaqueri and Yahuaro. Its prop- 

 erties are similar to those of number five, but it is 

 less fertile. 



(7) Tierra colorada cascajosa ("red gravel soil"). 

 This is land higher up on the slopes of Tariaqueri 

 and Yahuaro. It produces peas and beans in small 

 quantities, less of broadbeans, and almost no maize. 



(8) Tierra pedregosa ("stony soil"). These 

 patches of stony soil in many places surrounding 

 Tzintzuntzan produce nothing but a few beans. 



(9) Tierra amarilla topura ("yellow topura 

 earth"). This soil, found on the slopes of Tariaqueri, 

 is may fria, very cold, and although some maize will 

 grow it is slow in maturing. 



(10) Tierra colorada gramosa ("red grassy 

 earth"). Some of the flat town fields are rich and 

 productive, but rapid growth of grama grass chokes 

 out a part of each harvest. 



Most milpas have distinctive names by which 

 they are known to all members of the commun- 

 ity, and by which they are identified in the tax 

 records. Often a tree, either still standing or 

 now only a memory gives its name. El Capulin, 

 El Zapote, Los Nogales, and El Naranjal ("the 

 capulin," "the zapote," "the walnuts," "the 

 orange grove"). Other natural features may 

 lend their names, as La Zarzamora ("the black- 

 berry"), Piedras Grandes ("large stones"). La 

 Cueva ("the cave"), El Puerto ("the pass"). 

 Other names are acquired in different manners: 

 En Casa del China, so called because a man 

 known as the "chinaman" had once had a house 



on this land; Los Cislos, after the surname of 

 a family that had once lived on the land; El 

 Triangula, because of the triangular form of 

 the field; Los Tepalcates, because of numerous 

 potsherds on the ground ; El Puente, near an old 

 bridge; Pulicho, the site from which pottery 

 earth of the same name comes, and so forth. 



The basic agricultural cycle consists of alter- 

 nate sowing of wheat and maize. Beginning in 

 August wheat lands are prepared so that plant- 

 ing can begin immediately when the rains 

 slacken in mid-September. Wheat is harvested 

 throughout April and the first part of May, 

 terminating in time to permit the complicated 

 plowing for maize which is planted with the 

 first rains in late May or early June. Most 

 maize is not harvested until November or De- 

 cember, too late for sowing wheat. Hence, the 

 stalks are allowed to stand as animal forage 

 until the following August when the land is 

 again prepared for wheat. Thus, land is under 

 cultivation for only 15 or 16 of each 24 months. 

 Lakeshore milpas, however, are too valuable to 

 be utilized only two-thirds of the time. Maize 

 planted on these plots is harvested while still 

 slightly soft in October and left to harden in 

 the sun. The land is quickly plowed and by 

 early November has been sown with wheat. This 

 later sowing is possible because of the greater 

 moisture content of tlie soil as compared to 

 other lands. Thus, except for the month of 

 Mav lakeshore milpas are almost continuously 

 under cultivation. 



THE PLOW 



Most soil is prepared with a wooden plow. 

 A couple of men own steel plows, sometimes 

 borrowed by other farmers, hut these are gene- 

 rally unpopular and are used primarily when 

 heavy grass roots do nat yield to the wooden 

 plows. A poor man with a tiny corn patch in 

 his yard may plant a few stalks with a dig- 

 ging stick, but this technique is relatively unim- 

 portant. 



It is perhaps not generally recognized that in 

 Mexico a variety of types of wooden plows is 

 found. Some have no steel share, others have 

 an iron point, and still others have a steel share 

 that approaches a steel plow in efficiency. As a 

 base for later comparative studies I give a 



