There is macrobotanical evidence for the cultivation of emmer wheat, barley and flax from Hallhole Farm; for emmer wheat, bread wheat and barley from Claish; and for barley (including naked barley) from Carsie Mains (Bishop et al 2010). However, this list is not exhaustive. Bread wheat is a rare find from Neolithic sites in Scotland, being found only in Early Neolithic contexts (Bishop et al 2009). It is thought that its use declined as the farmers adapted their agricultural regime to the environments of Scotland.
With developer-funded work and the increase in collection and processing of bulk soil samples, there has been an increase overall in the amount of carbonised plant remains recovered from a range of Neolithic sites throughout Scotland. These include most notably the rich assemblages of carbonised plant remains recovered from a number of Neolithic timber long houses, including Lockerbie (Kirby 2011), uncovered in the Scottish Borders; Claish Farm (Barclay et al 2002), from Stirlingshire; and Balbridie (Fairweather and Ralston 1993) and Crathes (Murray et al 2009), both from Aberdeenshire. These have greatly increased our understanding of the types of crops cultivated in Scotland during this period, including a hint that flax was likely cultivated on a small scale.
Recovery of large rich macroplant assemblages from Neolithic sites in Scotland is, however, still rare. Perth and Kinross is no exception, with Neolithic plant assemblages recovered from the region consisting principally of small amounts of charred cereals grains recovered from posthole and pit fills. Emmer wheat, barley and bread wheat have all been identified in small amounts, along with occasional cereal chaff fragments and some arable weed seeds (for example Miller and Ramsay 2004b – Carsie Mains and Robertson 2020 – Bertha Park). The carbonised macroplant remains indicated the presence of these cultivars but have generally not so far been recovered in sufficiently large enough quantities to reconstruct different agricultural practices at different sites or within the region.
One exception from the region is the notable Early Neolithic pit uncovered at Inchture (Rees 2004). In this instance the plant assemblages recovered from this site have provided tangible evidence for early farming activity and cereal production in the region.
At Inchture a large and rich assemblage of charred cereal grains was recovered from a pit; the assemblage is dominated by emmer wheat with lesser quantities of naked barley and some charred fragments of emmer chaff (spiklets and glume bases). The archaeological record suggests that the cereals and chaff remains had been apparently dumped into the pit. The grains were found together with fragments of burnt daub, which Miller and Ramsay (2004a) suggested could indicate that the grains were discarded remains from a cereal drying kiln or grain storage pit. Naked barley is frequently recorded on Neolithic sites throughout Britain and van der Veen (1992) suggests that this may be due in part to slightly better climatic conditions during this period.
The transition between the Mesolithic and Neolithic periods is an important period with regard to subsistence, with the shift from hunting and gathering economy to the adoption of agriculture. There is no doubt that cultivated cereals and collected wild foods contributed to the diet of Neolithic people in Britain. What is less certain is the relative importance of these two dietary components and the extent to which this can be determined from the archaeobotanical record (Jones 2000). Bishop et al (2010) note that the nature of Neolithic subsistence strategies has been debated in Britain. However, there is yet little consensus, some have favoured the idea of settled agriculture as the main subsistence, with cereals being widely consumed and forming the basis of the domestic economy. In contrast, others have argued for communities living in temporary settlements, focusing on the use of wild resources, and that cereals were ‘special’ foods consumed rarely and in ‘ritual contexts’ (Jones and Rowley-Conwy 2007).
To gain a better understanding of the cultivation and use of cereal grains and other plant remains throughout the Neolithic period, both in the region and across Scotland, there is a necessity for carbonised plant remains to be recovered from variety of Neolithic sites. Given the general low levels of carbonised plant remains recovered from Neolithic sites in the region, it is considered that there is an overall need for greater sampling, with larger soil samples being retained from sites, especially where settlement sites are uncovered.
Research Priorities
Sampling of well-preserved settlement remains and deposits for macroplant remains should be a priority. Sites where both Mesolithic and Neolithic remains survive should be targeted and widely sampled (see Upper late Palaeolithic and Mesolithic priorities for further information).
Recovery of dated macroplant remains from the period is key to both the understanding of the onset of crop cultivation in the region, and the spread of crops and use of gathered resources throughout this period and within the region.