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The impact of the Little Ice Age on winter wheat yields in the Carpathian Basin in the first half of the 19th century
Lajos Rácz
Sažetak
The main focus of this study is to understand how weather and climate changes of the Little Ice Age in the first half of the 19th century affected the yields of winter wheat, the most important food crop in Hungary at that time and the country’s main export item. In the Carpathian Basin, the impacts of the Little Ice Age were regionally specific. The research is based on a detailed analysis of the interactions between climate change and the phenological cycle of wheat in different regions. The study area is the territory of the Carpathian Basin, which includes Transdanubia, the Highlands, Transylvania, and the Great Hungarian Plain. Agriculture had a crucial role in traditional societies to allow subsistence, generate marketable surplus and contribute to political stability. Results highlight the vulnerability of agriculture to climatic and environmental changes. The presentation of risks posed by weather to winter-wheat farming in the Carpathian Basin revealed that cold and wet weather in October, cold March weather, and unfavourable conditions in May (dry, late frost, hail) and summer months (June: dry-hot, wet; July and August: wet) were the most decisive factors resulting in poor wheat harvests. Macroregional analyses shows that in the first half of the 19th century, wheat farming was riskier in the mountainous fringes of the Danube Basin, the Highlands, and Transylvania than in the Great Hungarian Plain. Three periods of countrywide wheat production crises were identified in the Carpathian Basin, with the most severe crisis occurring from 1811 to 1816, attributed to the Tambora volcano eruption in 1815. The interval from mid-1820s to early 1830s was the second period when wheat yields were predominately low. The wheat production crisis of 1845 and 1846 was particularly notable due to the accumulation of successive years of poor harvests. The temporal proximity of this food crisis to the 1848 revolution is emphasized. In conclusion, the Little Ice Age had significant impacts on agriculture in the Carpathian Basin. Still, various weather factors influenced the macroregional and countrywide wheat production crises. Understanding the historical climate and weather patterns can provide insights into the vulnerability of agricultural systems.
Ključne riječi
Hrčak ID:
320196
URI
Datum izdavanja:
18.8.2024.
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