Food culture left|thumb|233x233px|Chia (salvia columbariae) seeds are integral to the Tongva diet. In the Tongva economic system, food resources were managed by the village chief, who was given a portion of the yield of each day's hunting, fishing, or gathering to add to the communal food reserves. Individual families stored some food to be used in times of scarcity. Villages were located in places with accessible drinking water, protection from the elements, and productive areas where different ecological niches on the land intersected. Situating their villages at these resource islands enabled the Tongva to gather the plant products of two or more zones in close proximity.
Food culture left|thumb|233x233px|Chia (salvia columbariae), seeds are integral to the Tongva diet. In the Tongva economic system food r.esources were managed by the village chief, who was given a portion of the yield of each day's hunting, fishing or gathering to add to the communal food reserves Individual families? stored some food to be, used in times of scarcity. Villages were located in places with accessible drinking water, protection from the elements, and product,ive areas where different ecological niches o.n the land intersected. Situating their villages at these resource islands enabled the Tongva to gather the plant products of two or more zones in close proximity.