North America's Forgotten Crops: The Eastern Agricultural Complex 🌾
Discover the ancient domestication of early North American crops from the Eastern Agricultural Complex, dating back 4,000 years.

Ancient Americas
149.3K views • Oct 16, 2025

About this video
Four thousand years ago in Eastern North America, a phenomenon was starting. A suite of plants were being domesticated into the first crops of North America. Seven plants, most of them long forgotten, would form the Eastern Agricultural Complex and become the genesis of agriculture in North America. In this episode, we'll explore the rise and fall of the Eastern Agricultural Complex.
Chapters:
Introduction: 0:00
Disclaimers and Sources: 3:19
Archaic Period: 6:42
Eastern Agricultural Complex Crops: 11:39
Crop Domestication in the Eastern Woodlands: 19:26
Woodland Period: 26:46
The arrival of maize and the Mississippian Period: 34:42
The decline of the Eastern Agricultural Complex: 40:42
Conclusion: 45:17
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/ancientamericas
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AncientAmericas
Sources and Bibliography: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1qgp-mY6VozWtsYr4YHcEBCLLgJtFawlQAj3A4savwG0/edit?usp=sharing
Chapters:
Introduction: 0:00
Disclaimers and Sources: 3:19
Archaic Period: 6:42
Eastern Agricultural Complex Crops: 11:39
Crop Domestication in the Eastern Woodlands: 19:26
Woodland Period: 26:46
The arrival of maize and the Mississippian Period: 34:42
The decline of the Eastern Agricultural Complex: 40:42
Conclusion: 45:17
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/ancientamericas
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AncientAmericas
Sources and Bibliography: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1qgp-mY6VozWtsYr4YHcEBCLLgJtFawlQAj3A4savwG0/edit?usp=sharing
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Video Information
Views
149.3K
Likes
6.8K
Duration
47:37
Published
Oct 16, 2025
User Reviews
4.7
(29)