permaculture

["Lawrence F. London, Jr." <lfl@intrex.net>]

What is a Chinampa?

Here is an example of a useful and educational project based on an ancient 
growing practice:

http://www.ibiblio.org/spittman/clb.html

It was labor and space intensive, making garden space out of marshes.

And the chinampa system is described here:

Full article at:

http://geography.berkeley.edu/programcourses/coursepagesfa2004/geog148/Term%20Papers/Sanaz%20Memarsadeghi/whatis.htm

When Hernando Cortes and his men entered the Basin of Mexico in 1519, they
found the natives employing a unique agricultural system.  This method of
farming, which still persists today, consists of land reclamation through
the construction of chinampas in marshy areas and shallow lakes.   As the
farmers or chinamperos dig out canals in the lakebed, they pile the mud
which they are scooping out atop sedges and reeds.  These constructed
mounds, which are surrounded by water on at least three sides, are
chinampas and serve as the garden plots in which the people grow their
crops.  Homes are also constructed atop the chinampas. Each chinampa, or
“floating garden” as they have been erroneously described, is between
fifteen and thirty feet wide and 300 feet long and is no more than a few
feet above the water level (Coe 1964).  Posts or woven vines and branches
hold the sides of the chinampa plots in place.  Chinamperos also plant
willow trees (Salix) on chinampa edges to prevent erosion.  The word
chinampa is derived from the Nahuatl words chinamitl which means “‘an
enclosed bed surrounded by cane or stakes’” and pan which translates to
“‘on or above the surface’” (Moriarty 1969).