Which factor prevented farming before Europeans arrived?

• A. Predatory animals
• B. Lack of seeds
• C. Dense forests
• D. Cold climate

Answer: (D)

The main idea this question tests is how the environment dictates what kinds of food production are possible. In Alaska before Europeans arrived, the climate was the decisive barrier to farming. The Arctic and many subarctic areas have long, brutal winters, short and cool growing seasons, and soils that can stay frozen (permafrost) for much of the year. Crops that require a reliable, warm, lengthy growing period simply can’t mature or survive there, so large-scale agriculture isn’t practical. Instead, Alaska Native peoples developed thriving hunter‑gatherer and marine-based systems that fit the local environment and resources. In some milder coastal pockets, there might have been limited garden work, but the widespread farming seen elsewhere simply wasn’t feasible because of the cold climate. Predators, seeds, or forests aren’t the primary roadblocks here—the climate is.