Geoponica facts for kids
The Geoponica is a special collection of twenty books about farming and agriculture. It was put together around the 10th century in a city called Constantinople (which is now Istanbul, Turkey). This collection was made for the Byzantine Empire's emperor, Constantine VII. The word Geoponica comes from Greek and means "things to do with farming." It's the only old Byzantine book about farming that we still have today.
During a time known as the Macedonian Renaissance, Emperor Constantine VII gathered many old writings. He made them into new collections, and the Geoponica was one of them. About 50 copies of this book, written between the 10th and 16th centuries, still exist. The Geoponica includes ideas from an earlier work by someone named Cassianus Bassus, which itself came from an even older book by Vindonius Anatolius.
What's Inside the Geoponica?
The Geoponica covers all sorts of information about farming and nature. It talks about many different topics, from how the stars affect farming to how to care for animals.
Here's a look at some of the interesting things you can find in the books:
- Book 1: About the weather and how the stars rise and set.
- Book 2: General farming tips and different types of grains.
- Book 3: What farming jobs to do each month of the year.
- Books 4–5: How to grow grapevines.
- Books 6–8: How to make wine.
- Book 9: How to grow olive trees and make olive oil.
- Books 10–12: All about gardening.
- Book 13: Animals and insects that can harm plants.
- Book 14: Pigeons and other birds.
- Book 15: How nature works together (sympathies and antipathies) and how to manage bees.
- Book 16: Horses, donkeys, and camels.
- Book 17: How to raise cattle.
- Book 18: How to raise sheep.
- Book 19: Dogs, hares, deer, pigs, and how to preserve meat.
- Book 20: All about fish and fishing.
