De voedingsgewassen in Vlaanderen in de XVIIIe en XIXe eeuw (1700-1846).

Foodplants In Flanders During The 18th And 19th Centuries: One can follow the development of the production of foodplants in Flanders during the 19th century by using the numerous agricultural censuses. They are especially useful for knowing the distribution of given crop over the whole area or for the global quantity produced of a given kind. The situation is not as good for the 18th century : we have to rely on a single assesment made once a year, but we can check on those general indications by the study of the "staten van goed". These registers of all the real estate transactions contain a wealth of information about the crops and production. The general trend during the 18th century shows a diminishing production of the summer cereals (buckwheat, beans, peas). Afther the 18th century, their use as foodplants diminished as they were more and more used as fodderplants. Wheat and rye were the basic cereals for bread. There was no fundamental change as regards the areas of their production between 1700 and 1850. Maslin was much less important except that in the southern part of East Flanders it constituted an important part (up to 30 %) of the cereal used for bread. This was the situation of the 18th century, but even far into the 19th, there was but a small decline. Indeed, there was an extension to the north of the area where it was harvested. As for the potatoproduction, there was a fast and spectacular growth throughout the 18th century. At the end of that century the potato had reached the proportion of the foodplant production that it held about 1850.