Final answer:
The horticultural mode of subsistence refers to a type of plant cultivation that is less intensive than agriculture, and it includes the use of simple tools rather than technologies like plows or irrigation systems. It can be practiced in various environments and often coexists with other subsistence strategies such as hunting and gathering.
Step-by-step explanation:
The horticultural mode of subsistence is one of the four main modes by which humans interact with their environments to meet their basic needs of food, clothing, shelter, and health. Whereas intensive agriculture involves the use of plows, draft animals, and irrigation to farm repeatedly the same plots, horticulture is a form of plant cultivation that is considered more extensive and does not typically include these intensive farming methodologies. Horticulture can be practiced in a variety of environments, including tropical forests and dry lands, where practitioners often use slash-and-burn techniques to clear fields for cultivation.
Horticultural societies typically have settled populations, and they grow a variety of crops using relatively simple tools and without the heavy reliance on the more technologically advanced methods associated with intensive agriculture. Such societies may incorporate other subsistence strategies, such as gathering or hunting, to supplement their diets and means of living, demonstrating the flexibility and adaptability inherent to this mode of subsistence.