Machu Picchu's terraces grew crops on steep mountains

History
Machu Picchu's terraces grew crops on steep mountains

Inca engineers at Machu Picchu transformed steep Andean mountainsides into terraced farmlands, enabling vertical crop cultivation that sustained a thriving civilization and offers insights into sustainable farming.

The ancient Inca city of Machu Picchu, high in the Peruvian Andes, boasts an ingenious system of stone terraces. These "andenes" allowed farmers to cultivate crops like potatoes and maize vertically on otherwise unusable steep slopes, feeding the city's 500-1,000 residents.

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