Tending the Wild : Native American Knowledge and the Management of California's Natural Resources

A complex look at California Native ecological practices as a model for environmental sustainability and conservation. John Muir was an early proponent of a view we still hold today—that much of California was pristine, untouched wilderness before the arrival of Europeans. But as this groundbreaking book demonstrates, what Muir was really seeing when he admired the grand vistas of Yosemite and the gold and purple flowers carpeting the Central Valley were the fertile gardens of the Sierra Miwok and Valley Yokuts Indians, modified and made productive by centuries of harvesting, tilling, sowing, pruning, and burning. Marvelously detailed and beautifully written, Tending the Wild is an unparalleled examination of Native American knowledge and uses of California's natural resources that reshapes our understanding of native cultures and shows how we might begin to use their knowledge in our own conservation efforts. M. Kat Anderson presents a wealth of information on native land management practices gleaned in part from interviews and correspondence with Native Americans who recall what their grandparents told them about how and when areas were burned, which plants were eaten and which were used for basketry, and how plants were tended. The complex picture that emerges from this and other historical source material dispels the hunter-gatherer stereotype long perpetuated in anthropological and historical literature. We come to see California's indigenous people as active agents of environmental change and stewardship. Tending the Wild persuasively argues that this traditional ecological knowledge is essential if we are to successfully meet the challenge of living sustainably. A complex look at California Native ecological practices as a model for environmental sustainability and conservation. 

John Muir was an early proponent of a view we still hold today—that much of California was pristine, untouched wilderness before the arrival of Europeans. But as this groundbreaking book demonstrates, what Muir was really seeing when he admired the grand vistas of Yosemite and the gold and purple flowers carpeting the Central Valley were the fertile gardens of the Sierra Miwok and Valley Yokuts Indians, modified and made productive by centuries of harvesting, tilling, sowing, pruning, and burning. Marvelously detailed and beautifully written, Tending the Wild is an unparalleled examination of Native American knowledge and uses of California's natural resources that reshapes our understanding of native cultures and shows how we might begin to use their knowledge in our own conservation efforts.

M. Kat Anderson presents a wealth of information on native land management practices gleaned in part from interviews and correspondence with Native Americans who recall what their grandparents told them about how and when areas were burned, which plants were eaten and which were used for basketry, and how plants were tended. The complex picture that emerges from this and other historical source material dispels the hunter-gatherer stereotype long perpetuated in anthropological and historical literature. We come to see California's indigenous people as active agents of environmental change and stewardship. Tending the Wild persuasively argues that this traditional ecological knowledge is essential if we are to successfully meet the challenge of living sustainably.

John Muir was an early proponent of a view we still hold today—that much of California was pristine, untouched wilderness before the arrival of Europeans. But as this groundbreaking book demonstrates, what Muir was really seeing when he admired the grand vistas of Yosemite and the gold and purple flowers carpeting the Central Valley were the fertile gardens of the Sierra Miwok and Valley Yokuts
Indians, modified and made productive by centuries of harvesting, tilling, sowing, pruning, and burning. Marvelously detailed and beautifully written, Tending the Wild is an unparalleled examination of Native American knowledge and uses of California's natural resources that reshapes our understanding of native cultures and shows how we might begin to use their knowledge in our own conservation efforts.
M. Kat Anderson presents a wealth of information on native land management practices gleaned in part from interviews and correspondence with Native Americans who recall what their grandparents told them about how and when areas were burned, which plants were eaten and which were used for basketry, and how plants were tended. The complex picture that emerges from this and other historical source material dispels the hunter-gatherer stereotype long perpetuated in anthropological and historical literature. We come to see California's indigenous people as active agents of environmental change and stewardship. Tending the Wild persuasively argues that this traditional ecological knowledge is essential if we are to successfully meet the challenge of living sustainably.

Tending The Wild Is An Examination Of The Extensive Knowledge Native Americans Brought To Bear In Managing California's Natural Resources And The Imprint This Management Left On The State's Landscape. M. Kat Anderson Presents A Wealth Of Information Gleaned From Biological Research And Historical Literature, As Well As Interviews With California Indians Who Describe The Old Ways Of Relating To Nature They Learned From Their Parents And Grandparents And Still Practice Today. The Complex Picture That Emerges Dispels The Stereotype Of Native Americans As Hunter-gatherers, A Stereotype Long Perpetuated In Anthropological And Historical Literature.--jacket. Pt. I. California At Contact -- 1. The Wildlife, Plants, And People -- 2. Gathering, Hunting, And Fishing -- 3. The Collision Of Worlds -- Pt. Ii. Indigenous Land Management And Its Ecological Basis -- 4. Methods Of Caring For The Land -- 5. Landscapes Of Stewardship -- 6. Basketry : Cultivating Forbs, Sedges, Grasses, And Tules -- 7. From Arrows To Weirs : Cultivating Shrubs And Trees -- 8. California's Cornucopia : A Calculated Abundance -- 9. Plant Foods Aboveground : Seeds, Grains, Leaves, And Fruits -- 10. Plant Foods Belowground : Bulbs, Corms, Rhizomes, Taproots, And Tubers -- Pt. Iii. Rekindling The Old Ways -- 11. Contemporary California Indian Harvesting And Management Practices -- 12. Restoring Landscapes With Native Knowledge -- Coda : Indigenous Wisdom In The Modern World. M. Kat Anderson. Includes Bibliographical References (p. 411-470) And Index. List of Illustrations List of Tables Preface and Acknowledgments Introduction PART I. CALIFORNIA AT CONTACT 1. Wildlife, Plants, and People 2. Gathering, Hunting, and Fishing 3. The Collision of Worlds PART II. INDIGENOUS LAND MANAGEMENT AND ITS ECOLOGICAL BASIS 4. Methods of Caring for the Land 5. Landscapes of Stewardship 6. Basketry: Cultivating Herbs, Sedges, Grasses, and Tules 7. From Arrows to Weirs: Cultivating Shrubs and Trees 8. California's Cornucopia: A Calculated Abundance 9. Plant Foods Aboveground: Seeds, Grains, Leaves, and Fleshy Fruits 10. Plant Foods Belowground: Bulbs, Corms, Rhizomes, Tubers, and Taproots PART III. REKINDLING THE OLD WAYS 11. Contemporary California Indian Harvesting and Management Practices 12. Restoring Landscapes with Native Knowledge Coda: Indigenous Wisdom in the Modern World Notes Bibliography Index John Muir was an early proponent of a view we still hold today - that much of California was pristine, untouched wilderness before the arrival of Europeans. But as this groundbreaking book demonstrates, what Muir was really seeing when he admired the grand vistas of Yosemite and the gold and purple flowers capeting the Central Valley were the fertile gardens of the Sierra Miwok and Valley Yokuts Indians, modified and made productive by centuries of harvesting, tilling, sowing, pruning, and burning Marvelously detailed and beautifully written, Tending the Wild is an unparalleled examination of John Muir was an early proponent of a view that much of California was pristine, untouched wilderness before the arrival of Europeans. This book aims to demonstrate that what Muir was really seeing were the fertile gardens of the Sierra Miwok and Valley Yokuts Indians, modified and made productive by centuries of harvesting, tilling, and sowing. No country in the world was as well supplied by Nature, with food for man, as California, when first discovered by the Spaniards.