Islamic agriculture

Figure 1a-b: Two views from Kitab al-filaha of Ibn al-Awwâm: (a) manuscript page (Source) and front cover of the edition and Spanish translation by Joseph Antonio Banqueri (Madrid: Imprenta Real, 1802). (Source). The Kitab al-Filahah al-Andalusiyah (The Book of Andalusian Agriculture) by Abu Zakariya Yahya ibn Muhammad ibn al-Awwam al-Ishbili (d. 1185) consists of 35 chapters dealing with agronomy, cattle and poultry raising, and beekeeping. It deals with 585 plants; explains the cultivation of more than 50 fruit trees; and includes many valuable observations on soils, manures, plant grafting, and plant diseases.