“He Did No More Attempt a Battle with the Lamanites in That Year”

"The first and probably prime determinant for scheduling wars was the need to provide food according to a natural cycle that allowed few exceptions. We learn quickly that the middle of the Nephite calendar year was the growing season and that the primary harvest became available toward the end of the year. Since no army could operate effectively without a reasonably secure supply of food, this meant that wars had to await the completion of the agricultural year. This fundamental principle is clearly expressed in "Alma 53:7Alma 53:7, which says regarding Moroni and his forces: 'He did no more attempt a battle with the Lamanites in that year, but he did employ his men in preparing for war . . . and also delivering their women and their children from famine and affliction, and providing food for their armies.'" (Stephen D. Ricks and William J. Hamblin, eds., Warfare in the Book of Mormon, p. 446)