Subsistence Farming
mixed crop and livestock farming
-most land is devoted to crops -use of crop rotation -most profits are derived from the livestock -more time requited for raising animals
dairy farming
-regional distribution -milkshed- ring around the city milk can be supplied without spoiling
layer 3
-ring of trees to provide building materials and firewood (forestry) -located close for easy transportation
corporate factory farms (agriculture in MDCs)
-suitcase farmers- crop based farms where farmer lives outside community except during planting and harvesting season -less likely to maintain sensitive land management -mega-farms -monoculture (single crop)- crops for sale off site -chemical fertilizers and hormones
Pastoral Nomaism
-the breeding and herding of domesticated animals for subsistence -arid and semi-arid areas of North America, Middle east, Central Asia
grain farming
-the largest commercial producer of grain is the US -winter- wheat belt -spring-wheat belt
layer 1
-the urban center/ market -at the heart of the model is the city, where the people live and work -primarily where agricultural products are brought to be sold
green revolution
-third agriculture revolution -1960 to now -dramatically increase crop yields -GMO/GMC -internal combustion engine (tractor) -pesticides -fertilizers
rectangular survey system
-township and range -"checker boards" are very common in the heartland of the US
shifting cultivation
-vegetation slashed and than burned. soil remains fertile for 2-3 years. Then people move on -tropical rainforest, Amazon, Central and West Africa, Southeast Asia
intensive subsistence agriculture
-wet rice dominant-> human labor -southeast Asia, East India, Southeast China
crop rotation
The practice of rotating use of different fields from crop to crop each year, to avoid exhausting the soil.
transhumance
The seasoned migration of livestock between mountains and low land pastures.
layer 4
grains and field crops -large scale farms that allow for grain production and large herds of animals
Metes and bounds
long lots system -the farmlands all have access to the water
double cropping
Harvesting twice a year from the same field.
quaternary economic activity
service sector industries concerned with the collection, processing, and manipulation of information and capital (finance, administration, insurance, legal services)
Von Thunen's Model of Agricultural Land Use
(1826) -predicts the location of farming/ agricultural activity -5 layers
layer 5
-extensive ranching and grazing -large open areas where animals can freely roam -transportation a non-factor since animals are self-transporting and can walk to market or easily be moved
food production in MDCs
-food more likely to be processed and have added preservatives -bigger variety and less seasonal
truck farms
-growing one of more vegetable crops on a large scale for shipment to distant markets
layer 2
-horticulture and dairy farming -the growing of fruits, vegetables and flowers -dairy farming is done close enough to transport milk to market without spoiling
mediterranean agriculture
-hot dry summers, cool wet winters -California, Italy, Chile, Argentina, South Africa -based on horticulture
agricultural practices in MDCs
-mixed crops and livestock farming -dairy farming -grain farming -livestock ranching
agribusiness
Commercial agriculture characterized by integration of different steps in the food-processing industry, usually through ownership by large corporations.
feedlot
an area or building where livestock are fed and fattened up.
tertiary economic activity
economic activity associated with the provision for services (transportation, banking, retailing, education, routine, office-based jobs)
primary economic activity
economic activity concerned with the direct extraction of natural resources from the environment; such as mining, fishing, lumbering, and especially agriculture
secondary economic activity
economic activity involving the processing of raw materials and their transformation into finished industrial products; the manufacturing sector
subsistence farming
farmers who only harvest enough to survive (direct consumption)
livestock ranching
practiced in marginal environments -low potential for cultivation of crops -soil quality and unpredictable weather
cadastral system
property broken up into smaller units
desertification
the gradual transformation of habitable land into desert