The Inca also used their engineering know-how to help them farm in the Andes. Farming on a mountainside is challenging. The incline makes every task—plowing, planting, and harvesting— very difficult. In heavy downpours, water runs downhill and washes out crops.

The Inca had to find a way to grow crops on the slopes of the Andes. Their solution was to cut terraces into the sides of the mountains. The terraces created level fields that could be planted and harvested just like valley fields. The Inca also built irrigation systems. This allowed them to bring water to the terraced fields.