In Alma 22:28 we read that "the more idle part of the Lamanites lived in the wilderness, and dwelt in tents." According to Joseph Allen, this scripture is probably describing the Lamanites who lived west of Guatemala City in the highlands. So what might be meant by the term "idle" Lamanites? Perhaps a view of present-day highland Guatemala Indians might provide a window into the times of the Book of Mormon.
From one perspective, in the highlands of Guatemala, "idleness," as we understand the word, may be appropriate during the dry season and prior to the spring burning of the fields and planting of the crops. There may even be reasons for being idle during the rainy seasons as all that needs to be done, with the exception of keeping the weeds hoed, is to watch the crops grow. Indeed, the story is told about the typical Veracruz, Mexico farmer whose daily work consisted of waking up and picking the new fruit from his trees.
However from another perspective, although the rainy season from May to October is conducive for breaks in the agriculture working schedule, it might be unfair to confuse the term "idle" with the term "lazy." It would be quite a challenge for anyone to last just one day with the Guatemala farmer who, for $2.00 a day, leaves his home at daybreak and walks up those steep mountain slopes with his heavy, wide-bladed hoe and machetes to work twelve hours. [Joseph L. Allen, "Eating Breakfast With the Lamanites," in The Book of Mormon Archaeological Digest, Vol. II, Issue I, 1999, p. 4]