No Corn

What if corn had never been developed (or evolved, depending on what you believe) from teosinte? Would this lead to the greater use of other staple crops, such as amaranthe and wild rice, by Amerindian civilisations?

Perhaps this would mean a retardation of the development of Central American civilisations, and would certainly mean differences to their culture. Perhaps their populations would spike due to later introduction of Andean crops. In North America, agriculture patterns are likely to be very different.

Today, there would be no vast use of corn and its byproducts, what other crop would be used in its place?
 
What if corn had never been developed (or evolved, depending on what you believe) from teosinte? Would this lead to the greater use of other staple crops, such as amaranthe and wild rice, by Amerindian civilisations?

Perhaps this would mean a retardation of the development of Central American civilisations, and would certainly mean differences to their culture. Perhaps their populations would spike due to later introduction of Andean crops. In North America, agriculture patterns are likely to be very different.

Today, there would be no vast use of corn and its byproducts, what other crop would be used in its place?
I doubt that you'd get civilization arising in North American (Mexico included) for a very long time.

Once you have a culture that had domesticated plants, it's easy for them to say 'Hey, we did this with X, let's try it with Y'. Maize production is really old, and was probably the first domesticated crop in the Americas. MOreover, it is tremendously productive.

IIRC, studies of the Mississippian moundbuilders seemed to indicate that they were poorly nourished due to excessive reliance on a single food source.

I could imagine cassava and potato allowing civilization in South America, and the cassava in tropical/wet north america, but that wouldn't work, I don't believe in much of North America. Possibly squashes could be used instead.

OTL, sunflowers were cultivated, but AFAIK, only long after maize. I don't believe that 'wild rice' (Zizania spp.) were ever cultivated by natives (wild stands harvested, certainly, but planted and tended, I don't believe so).

Corn was a major part of the diet of the Andean civilizations, too, I believe, so its lack would have a major impact there, too.

Edit: Gahhh Beans!! the third member of the three sisters. Still, corn and beans together are a much more balanced diet than either by itself.
 
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I think the scope and scale of the civilisations would be much more limited in OTL, but I still see some settlements in Central America.

The fact that the Amerindians didn't plant or tend wild rice in OTL may have been exacerbated by the presence of maize, so I don't think its unreasonable for them to have farmed it in OTL (as wild rice was in ancient China). This may lead to cultures similar to the Ojibwe in other areas, though it might also lead to a rice paddy culture. It certainly wouldn't be a replacement for maize, but it is still a hearty grain with high protein levels.
 
I see potatos, sweet and regular, making up most of the diet.

Sweet potatos are better than corn too, the Okinawans traditionaly have a diet high in sweet potatos, and are healthier than their Mainland Japan counter parts.

as for replacing corn byproducts, i assume you mean corn syrup and ethnol. in that case, sugar cane, or sugar beets could be used. I read somewhere that Sugar cane is actually better for making ethnol than corn is.
 
I'm resurrecting this as I've been wondering about the longer-term effects.

Beans, amaranth, breadnuts and other crops are all fine and good, but they are unlikely to take the place of maize. Without maize, I would suggest a severe retardation of Mesoamerican development. The cultures of the region by 1492 would probably still be in the equivalent of the OTL Archaic Age, with some horticulture, loom weaving and pottery. No large empires, no large urban centres, no largescale construction or trade networks. By extension, it is unlikely that there will be anything in the American Southwest at all. Sorry, Pueblos.

North American cultures are interesting, as prior to the arrival of maize a variety of local crops were cultivated: squash, goosefoot, mayflower and others. These were largely displanted by the coming of maize, but without that invasion it is likely that the North American agricultural package would continue to be maintained. This package was in broad terms less productive than maize, but was more sustainable in the environment and better in a nutritional sense. This would mean the expansion of Mound-building civilization would be short-tailed, but also the rapid decline of that culture (which over-reliance on maize can partially be blamed) may also be avoided. So, in the Eastern Woodlands and Mississippi we could see a culture that is less impressive than the Moundbuilders of OTL, but more enduring.

Except for butterflies, South America would probably remain the least affected. They wouldn't get corn, but potatoes and other South American crops would allow for the development of civilization here. They might be relatively behind the Inca of OTL, but only by a little.

What I'm wondering about is what would happen when the Spanish enter this situation. There would be no empires like the Aztec or Tarascan empires to simply conquer. Like the OTL Maya highlands (which took about 170 years to conquer), there would be no political centre. The populations would be comparatively much lower. There would be less infrastructure such as trade routes and roads to exploit. Much of the riches of the Mesoamerican cultures of OTL would remain in the ground.

There would be much less of an initial impetus to invade and conquer these lands, as the immediate wealth and glory would simply not be there. Gallivanting around the Mexican highlands fighting tribes that flee and attack by night, finding very little of worth, wouldn't seem very profitable. So there could be a retardant effect on the Spanish expansion into the Americas. This could also delay the discovery of the Inca (though that discovery would likely cause renewed appetite for conquest).

The effects of European diseases would probably be more devastating to Mesoamerica from a demographic point of view. When the regions are colonised, they are far more likely to require imported labour. Long term, this would mean a far more Afro-European population in the region.

What about the delay in gold and silver imports back to Spain? Mexican gold would be discovered later, but perhaps much later. Peruvian gold and silver may be exploited first, due to accessability and labour. This might have a positive effect on the Spanish economy, preventing or delaying the huge inflation of OTL.

Thoughts?
 
Well, the various Mississippian crops will see much wider use much. These were cultivated independently from corn and other Mesoamerican crops so I think we will see them spread southwards in this TL. Squash was probably cultivated before Maize, and its unclear when beans were domesticated, but we will probably see them in this TL. Mississippian crops will probably take up the slack, but they're not as good which will definitely set back the development of North American civilization. After that the main effect is that there will be significantly less people in this world, as corn is one of the best crops, so alternate earth will never support quite as many people.
 
Corn led to a population expansion in Africa in the 16th century and onwards. Without corn, there wouldn't be the same expansion. With less of a labour pool of natives to draw from in Mexico, there would be more demand for slave imports. So we would have comparatively reduced supply and comparatively reduced demand. What would be the effect on the transatlantic slave trade? Perhaps exploitation of different sources, such as Eastern Africa or the Philippines?
 
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