APHG Unit 5
Carrying capacity
Largest number of individuals of a population that an environment can support
Green Revolution
Rapid diffusion of new agricultural technology, especially new high-yield seeds and fertilizers.
Slash and Burn
A farming method involving the cutting of trees, then burning them to provide ash-enriched soil for the planting of crops
Monoculture
A farming strategy in which large fields are planted with a single crop, year after year
Ranching
A form of commercial agriculture in which livestock graze over an extensive area.
Arid Climate
extremely dry climate (Ex: Desert, antarctica)
Bid-Rent Theory
geographical economic theory that refers to how the price and demand on real estate changes as the distance towards the Central Business District (CBD) increases.
Temperate Climate
hot summers and the cold winters (Mild/ moderate climate) (Ex: Chicago)
Mediterranean Climate
hot, dry summers and cool, wet winters (Ex: California)
The Green Revolution had...
positive and negative consequences for both human populations and the environment
High-Yield Seeds
seeds that have been engineered to be stronger and more productive. They will produce more crops peer seed, need less water, and can survive in warmer climates
Export commodity
the export of just a few agricultural or mining commodities to another country for sale
Agricultural production regions are defined by...
the extent to which they reflect subsistence or commercial practices (monocropping or monoculture)
Nomadic herding
the raising of livestock for food by moving herds from place to place to find pasture and water
Irrigation
The process of supplying water to areas of land to make them suitable for growing crops.
Value-added specialty crops
"value added" goods have some other product in them or item attached to them to make them unique and able to sell at higher price.
CSA
(Community Supported Agriculture) production and marketing model whereby consumers buy shares of a farm's harvest in advance. Consumers become CSA members by paying an agreed amount at the beginning of the growing season, either in one lump sum or in installments.
Long lot
A farm or other property consisting of a long, narrow strip of land extending back from a river or road.
Commodity chain
A chain of activities from the manufacturing to the distribution of a product
intensive agriculture
A form of subsistence agriculture in which farmers must expend a relatively large amount of effort to produce the maximum feasible yield from a parcel of land.
Shifting Cultivation
A form of subsistence agriculture in which people shift activity from one field to another; each field is used for crops for relatively few years and left fallow for a relatively long period.
Biotechnology
A form of technology that uses living organisms, usually genes, to modify products, to make or modify plants and animals, or to develop other microorganisms for specific purposes.
Fertile Crescent
A geographical area of fertile land in the Middle East stretching in a broad semicircle from the Nile to the Tigris and Euphrates
Metes and bounds
A method of land description which involves identifying distances and directions and makes use of both the physical boundaries and measurements of the land.
Township and range
A rectangular land division scheme designed by Thomas Jefferson to disperse settlers evenly across farmlands of the U.S. interior.
Industrial Revolution
A series of improvements in industrial technology that transformed the process of manufacturing goods.
Salinization
Accumulation of salts in soil that can eventually make the soil unable to support plant growth.
Pollution
Addition of more waste than a resource can accommodate.
Subsistence agriculture
Agriculture designed primarily to provide food for direct consumption by the farmer and the farmer's family
Commercial Agriculture
Agriculture undertaken primarily to generate products for sale off the farm.
Fair Trade
Alternative to international trade that emphasizes small businesses and worker owned and democratically run cooperatives and requires employers to pay workers fair wages, permit union organizing, and comply with minimum environmental and safety standards.
Food Desert
An area in a developed country where healthy food is difficult to obtain
River valleys
Centers of early civilization because they contained rich soils from annual floods.
Draining Wetlands
Clearing natural swamp areas to create fields
Rural settlement patterns are classified as...
Clustered, dispersed or linear
Mixed crop/ Livestock farming
Commercial farming characterized by integration of crops and livestock; most of the crops are fed to animals rather than consumed directly by humans.
First agricultural revolution
Dating back 10,000 years, the First Agricultural Revolution achieved plant domestication and animal domestication
Desertification
Degradation of land, especially in semiarid areas, primarily because of human actions like excessive crop planting, animal grazing, and tree cutting.
Early hearths of domestication of plants and animals arose in the...
Fertile Crescent and several other regions of the world (including the Indus River Valley, Southeast Asia, and Central America)
Mechanization
In agriculture, the replacement of human labor with technology or machines.
GMOs
Organisms that have been geneticly altered to improve their usefulnes
Local Food Movement
Produced within a fairly limited distance from where it is consumed
Plantation Agriculture
Production system based on a large estate owned by an individual, family, or corporation and organized to produce a cash crop. Almost all plantations were established within the tropics; in recent decades, many have been divided into smaller holdings or reorganized as cooperatives
Conservation
Protecting and preserving natural resources and the environment
Aquaculture
Raising marine and freshwater fish in ponds and underwater cages
Extensive agriculture
System of crop cultivation using small amounts of labor and capital in relation to area of land being farmed
Columbian Exchange
The exchange of plants, animals, diseases, and technologies between the Americas and the rest of the world following Columbus's voyages.
Sustainability
The ability to keep in existence or maintain. A sustainable ecosystem is one that can be maintained
Milkshed
The area surrounding a city from which milk is supplied.
Climate
The average weather conditions in an area over a long period of time
Urban Farming
The growing of fruits, herbs, and vegetables and raising animals in towns and cities, a process that is accompanied by many other activities such as processing and distributing food, collecting and reusing food waste.
Deforestation
The removal of trees faster than forests can replace themselves.
Market gardening
The small scale production of fruits, vegetables, and flowers as cash crops sold directly to local consumers. Distinguishable by the large diversity of crops grown on a small area of land, during a single growing season. Labor is done manually.
Von Thunen's Model
Von Thünen's model helps explain the relationship between the cost of land and the cost to transport the crop to market.
Food insecurity
a condition in which people do not have adequate access to food
Terrace Farming
a farming system that is in the form of steps going up a mountain
Food and other agricultural products are part of...
a global supply chain
Technology has increased economies of scale in the...
agricultural sector and the carrying capacity of the land.
Agricultural practices—including slash and burn, terraces, irrigation, deforestation, draining wetlands, shifting cultivation, and pastoral nomadism—...
alter the landscape
Large-scale commercial agricultural operations...
are replacing small family farms
New technology and increased food production in the second agricultural revolution led to...
better diets, longer life expectancies, and more people available for work in factories
Societal effects of agricultural practices include...
changing diets, role of women in agricultural production, and economic purpose.
Intensive and extensive farming practices are...
determined in part by land costs (bid-rent theory)
Specific agricultural practices shape...
different rural land-use patterns
The location of food-processing facilities and markets, economies of scale, distribution systems, and government policies all have...
economic effects on food-production practices
The Green Revolution was characterized in agriculture by the use of...
high-yield seeds, increased use of chemicals, and mechanized farming
Challenges of feeding a global population include...
lack of food access, as in cases of food insecurity and food deserts; problems with distribution systems; adverse weather; and land use lost to suburbanization
Intensive farming practices include...
market gardening, plantation agriculture, and mixed crop/livestock systems
Rural survey methods include...
metes and bounds, township and range, long lot.
Patterns of food production and consumption are influenced by...
movements relating to individual food choice, such as urban farming, community-supported agriculture (CSA), organic farming, value-added specialty crops, fair trade, local-food movements, and dietary shifts
Some countries have become highly dependent on...
one or more export commodities
The main elements of global food distribution networks are affected by...
political relationships, infrastructure, and patterns of world trade
Environmental effects of agricultural land use include...
pollution, land cover change, desertification, soil salinization, and conservation efforts
Complex commodity chains link...
production and consumption of agricultural products
Von Thünen's model helps to explain rural land use by emphasizing the importance of transportation costs associated with distance from the market; however...
regions of specialty farming do not always conform to von Thünen's concentric rings
Extensive farming practices include...
shifting cultivation, nomadic herding, and ranching
Agricultural innovations such as biotechnology, genetically modified organisms, and aquaculture have been accompanied by debates over...
sustainability, soil and water usage, reductions in biodiversity, and extensive fertilizer and pesticide use
Supply chain
the connected chain of all of the business entities, both internal and external to the company, that perform or support the logistics function
Patterns of diffusion, such as the Columbian Exchange and the agricultural revolutions, resulted in...
the global spread of various plants and animals
Agricultural practices are influenced by...
the physical environment and climatic conditions, such as the Mediterranean climate and tropical climates
The role of females in food production, distribution, and consumption varies in many places depending on...
the type of production involved
Organic Farming
the use of natural substances rather than chemical fertilizers and pesticides to enrich the soil and grow crops
Biodiversity
the variety of life in the world or in a particular habitat or ecosystem.
Second Agricultural Revolution
tools and equipment were modified, methods of soil preparation, fertilization, crop care, and harvesting improved the general organization of agriculture made more efficient
Tropical Climate
tropical wet climates (Ex: Hawaii)