Re: VMs: Re: VMS: Chinese theory, pushed against the wall...

["Dana Scott" <dscott520@xxxxxxx>]

I find it interesting (though I haven't really thought about it much) that 
my (subconscious?) impression has been that the plants in the VMs were 
primarily harvested "in the wild" versus having been planted by farmers for 
a controlled harvest. There might, no doubt, be exceptions (opium?) in the 
VMs. A medicinal garden and/or one for scientific research, associated with 
a university perhaps, was the primary type of garden that I have considered. 
I have not seen evidence for commercial plantations in the VMs, nor have I 
thought of the VMs author as having been a farmer.


Regards,
Dana Scott


----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Koontz John E" <John.Koontz@xxxxxxxxxxxx>
To: "Voynich List" <vms-list@xxxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Sunday, October 17, 2004 4:33 PM
Subject: Re: VMs: Re: VMS: Chinese theory, pushed against the wall...


> On Sat, 16 Oct 2004, Pamela Richards wrote:
> > Okay, I'll bite.  In what part of the world do they plant crops in
> > February/March (Pisces)?
>
> Fairly asked, because I spoke without thinking, but it seemed to me likely
> that life cycles in terms of the calendar year would be more likely to
> apply to plants than humans.
>
> The answer is, lots of places, though I admit I don't know schedules for
> Europe, the Mediterranean or any part of China, and, of course, I am not
> really a farmer.  Most of the things I plant are perennial flowers and the
> occasional annual vegetable, and those are usually planted (in Colorado -
> USDA Zone 5, arid, unreliable snow cover) in May through early June and
> then again in late August to October.  Cold hardy vegatables are planted
> about 6 weeks before the last fost, which would be mid-April here, though
> optimists are often out earlier (and often right).  I have the impression
> that the low end of the temperature ranges in northern Great Britain are
> similar to those in Colorado, though the climate is quite a bit different
> and it probably doesn't get as hot in the Summer (high 90s-100 F).
> (Sorry for the non-Americans - I'm C-impaired, like most Americans.)  So,
> by extension, I suspect there are parts of Europe where March, at least,
> is a very reasonable time to plant grain and other agricultural plants.
> But which and where - that's the question!  Of course, I'd expect the
> author(s) of the VMs to be more interested in either cultivated or wild
> herbs!
>
> It looks like corn (maize) is planted commercially in Colorado in mid May
> or so, and winter wheat is planted in the Fall.  It comes up but remains
> dormant until March, when it gets serious.  It's harvested in the Spring.
> Spring sown wheat doesn't do well in this climate.
>
> Autumn-planted early bulbs start coming up in Eastern Colorado in late
> January and peak in April.  The climate here is a lot like Central Asia
> and agrees well with most of the Central Asian, Mediterranean, or South
> African bulbs.  I've seen some very homey looking pictures of Mongolia -
> not the Gobi Desert parts, though parts of High Plains Eastern Colorado
> verge on desert and Western Colorado is even more convincing as you get
> out of the mountains into the Basin.
>
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