The impact of early farming on vegetation and driftsand patterns in Drenthe, NL and South Jutland, DK

This study is focused on the first appearance of farming practicing in North-Western Europe. Hitherto it has been generally accepted that the Neolithic agricultural revolution started around 6ka BP. Reports of the development of heathland two millennia earlier however, give us reason to believe agriculture was present long before 6ka BP (Doorenbosch, 2013; Trondman et al., 2015; Sevink et al., 2013). To find out whether this is true, 33 possible pingos were drilled throughout Drenthe and Friesland, in the area surrounding the Aekingerzand. Of these 29 were found to be too sandy to drill through. Of the remaining 4 only 2 were acceptable, the Groote Veen and the Blauwe Gat, a partially excavated peat bog and an excavated lake respectively. Furthermore a sediment sample from the Aekingerzand was taken, containing a peat bog covered by driftsand. Two sites in South Jutland, Denmark were also drilled. A partially excavated lake near Rødding and an untouched peat bog near Padborg. The resulting records were then taken to the lab and analyzed for their lithology, pollen composition and LOI (Loss On Ignition) curve. It was found that the Groote Veen record was disturbed and that the Mikkelborg site (near Rødding) did not contain any interesting signs of driftsand activity. The relevant cores taken from the Blauwe Gat were found to be slightly younger than the core taken at the Padborg site from their pollen assemblage. The pollen assemblage for the Padborg site showed a decrease in arboreal pollen together with a rise in upland herbs and no significant increase in heathland for about 5ka BP. As this coincided with decreases in the LOI it was concluded that farmers of the Funnel Beaker culture might have had an establishment near the site back then, but only for a short period of time. The pollen diagram does show a fine example of ecosystem succession after disturbance. The Blauwe Gat showed a decrease in arboreal pollen as well, starting from about 9ka BP. This decrease however did coincide with a big increase in heathland vegetation, although the LOI did not decrease by a large amount. Therefore it was concluded that early farming must have taken place from 9-7ka BP, with small fields for agriculture, resulting in minimal driftsand activity and heathland formation, and a large amount of heathland maintained by livestock grazing. The findings of the Blauwe Gat record are not corroborated by archeological evidence, as the consensus is that the LBK (Linear Band Keramik) culture was the earliest agricultural active culture in the Netherlands, introducing agriculture and animal husbandry in Limburg at about 7ka BP. The earliest signs of agriculture in Drenthe stem from the TRB (Trechterbeker) culture at about 5.8ka BP. This leaves a gap of about 3000 years of unexplained farming activity in Drenthe, inferred from the vegetation patterns, which requires follow-up research