30 Ontario Archaeology No. 81/82, 2006 The role of migration and diffusion in the intro- duction of cultigens and origins of Iroquoian soci- ety is an active area of study and debate within Ontario archaeology (Crawford et al. 1998:125). Based upon ethnographic and archaeological sources, maize (Zea mays), beans (Phaseolus vul- garis), cucurbit (Cucurbita pepo), sunflower (Helianthus annuus var. macrocarpa), and tobacco (Nicotiana rustica), none of which are native to Ontario (Crawford et al. 1998:125), are known to have been grown before contact in southern Ontario (Fecteau 1985:iv). Archaeological evidence for maize is rare on sites in Ontario between A.D. 600 and 1000 (Fecteau 1985:130). During the second half of the early agricultural stage, from A.D. 800 to 1000, maize is found both on Glen Meyer and Pickering sites (Fecteau 1985:126). The earliest diagnostic kernels recovered from Glen Meyer sites have been clearly identified as Eastern Eight-Row corn (Crawford et al. 1997:117). However, Eastern Eight-Row corn is found archaeologically in large quantities only after A.D. 1000 on these sites (Williamson 1990; Crawford et al. 1997:115). After the period A.D. 1000-1300, maize (Zea mays) is consistently present on Early Iroquoian sites (Fecteau 1985:131). Some archaeologists argue, however, that the practice of horticulture was limited in scope during this period (Williamson 1990:313). Despite the fact that maize has been recovered from every excavated early Pickering village site “it is not really until the fourteenth century, or in post-Early Iroquoian times, that intensive use of cultigens is evident” in the archaeological record (Williamson 1990:306). Between A.D. 1000 to A.D. 1300, other culti- gens are also present on sites in varying quantities (Fecteau 1985:138). The last stage of the agricul- tural period, A.D. 1300 to A.D. 1650, is charac- terized by a substantial increase in the number of sites yielding preserved cultigens (Fecteau 1985:139). During the Uren and Middleport stages (ca. A.D. 1300 to 1400) the permanent set- tlement patterns begun during the Glen Meyer and Pickering stages continue with a marked increase in the number of sites in which preserved maize is recovered and which are also located on sandy upland areas near a source of water (Fecteau 1985:146-7). The Richardson Site Excavation and Re-analysis The Richardson site (BbGl-4), excavated nearly 30 years ago and containing substantial quanti- ties of corn in the absence of other cultigens, was The Richardson Site Revisited: Examination of Plant Remains and Dates from a Late Pickering Site Charlene Murphy The Richardson site has proven difficult to place culturally and temporally within the Early Ontario Iroquoian tradition. In revisiting this problem, a sub-sample of unanalyzed water-screened material from the 1976 investigation was selected from features within House 1 and Midden 1 for examination and the recovered floral material was counted and identified. My results confirm those of Robert Pearce, who orig- inally excavated the site, that maize was the only cultigen present. I conclude, however, that the site was most likely occupied only during the winter months and not, as previously thought, on a year-round basis. To clarify the temporal placement of the Richardson site two radiocarbon assays were performed. When cal- ibrated and combined with the previous radiocarbon dates from the site, at least two occupations are sug- gested. Early Ontario Iroquoian people were using the natural resources of the site area at about A.D. 1100. Radiocarbon dates and the archaeological evidence also support a main occupation date of the Richardson site at A.D. 1300-1400. oa 81 part 04 7/30/08 9:12 PM Page 30