Ledgers and landscapes: Indicators of rural landscape change in southern New Zealand, 1878–1919 |
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Authors: | Peter Holland Sherry Olson |
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Affiliation: | 1. Department of Geography, University of Otago, P O Box 56, Dunedin, New Zealand;2. Department of Geography, McGill University, 805 Sherbrooke Street West, Montréal, Québec, Canada |
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Abstract: | Our objective was to develop and calibrate numerical measures to represent the timing and magnitude of landscape change between 1878, and 1919 using information in a stock and station agency's ledgers. Relative expenditures on fencing materials peaked in the 1880s, were lowest in the early 1900s, and rose to one‐fifth of annual expenditures from 1914 onwards. In contrast, relative expenditures on soil preparation, cropping and harvesting grew steadily after 1879, peaked in 1900, and declined from then until 1919. This research found that periods of intensive landscape investment between 1878 and 1919 were separated by longer intervals of landscape maintenance. |
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Keywords: | European colonists landscape investment landscape maintenance landscape making stock and station agents |
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