Growing in agriculture as humans took time, and much of it was by accident. Click the link to find out more.
As humans, we could look at farming and agriculture as something that was invented. One day, we were moving around in small groups, spearing antelopes and gathering berries, and then we decided to stay put for a while. But the transition to a more stationary way of life didn’t happen over night. In truth, it took thousands of years and much of it was accidental.
Agriculture started almost accidentally with people who remained mostly hunter gatherers, according to Jay Stock, a professor of biological anthropology at Western University in Ontario. Over time, it transitioned to a more laborious process that required workers to stick closer to home. Stock says that it took years for these domesticated plants to transform into large scale agriculture. He also notes that not everyone made the transition. Around 20,000 years ago, some hunter gatherers became more sedentary without ever necessarily moving into agriculture. Rather, they would just stay in one place for longer periods of time.