AP Human Geography: Agriculture Vocabulary

Sawah

A field deliberately flooded for growing rice

Ranching

A form of commercial agriculture in which livestock graze over an extensive area

Pastoral Nomadism

A form of subsistence agriculture based on herding domesticated animals

Intensive Subsistence 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

Cereal Grain

A grass with starchy grains, which are used in many different foods

Reaper

A machine that cuts grain standing in a field

Combine

A machine that harvests, threshes, and cleans grain crops

Von Thunen Model

A model developed by J.H. Von Thunen displaying different rings of agriculture surrounding a city based on transportation

Swidden

A patch of land clearing for planting through slash-and-burn agriculture

Ridge Tillage

A system of planting crops on ridge tops, in order to reduce farm production costs and promote greater soil conservation

Agribusiness

A term referring to every business involved in commercial farming in one - farms, factories, suppliers, ad agencies, processing, etc.

Crop

A yield of a plant that is grown in abundance to be harvested as food, fodder, fuel, or commercial sale

Plantation Agriculture

Agriculture performed on a large farm in tropical and subtropical climates that specializes in the production of one or two crops for sale, usually to a more developed country

Mediterranean Agriculture

Agriculture practiced in areas with a Mediterranean climate; mostly horticulture

Primary Economic Activity

Any economic activity pertaining to the collecting, harvesting, and obtaining of raw materials

Quaternary Economic Activity

Any economic activity pertaining to the collection, processing, and manipuation of information, capital, and culture - finance, government, insurance, legal services, etc.

Secondary Economic Activity

Any economic activity pertaining to the manufacturing of useful products through processing, transforming, and assembling raw materials

Tertiary Economic Activity

Any economic activity pertaining to the provision of services - transportation, banking, retailing, education, etc.

Truck Farming

Commercial gardening and fruit farming, so titled because the name came from a Middle English word meaning "bartering"

Luxury Crops

Crops like tobacco that are grown for profit but not necessarily needed by a population

Sustainable Agriculture

Farming methods that preserve longterm productivity of land and minimize pollution, typically by rotating soil-restoring crops with cash crops and reducing inputs of fertilizer and pesticides

Pasture

Grass or other plants grown for feeding grazing animals, as well as land used for grazing

Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs)

Organisms whose genetic material has been modified for increased agricultural output

Organic Agriculture

Plants grown without green technology

Wet Rice

Rice planted on dry land in a nursery, then moved to a deliberately flooded field to promote growth

Milkshed

The area surrounding a city from which milk is supplied

Slash-and-Burn Agriculture

The clearing of vegetation and then burning of any remaining plants to make an arable plot of land

Second Agricultural Revolution

The development of improved sanitation, storage, and fertilization techniques, allowing for greater food output; coincided with the Industrial Revolution in England and a higher population growth rate

Desertification

The extreme deterioration of land in arid/semiarid regions due to loss of vegetation and soil moisture

Commercial Agriculture

The farming of products for sale off the farm

Horticulture

The growing of fruits, vegetables, and flowers

Double Cropping

The growing of two crops per year to double agricultural output

Prime Agricultural Land

The most productive farmland

Shifting Cultivation

The moving of farm fields after several years in search of more productive soil after depleting the previous one

Crop Rotation

The planting of different crops each year to replenish the soil's nutrients that were lost to a previous crop

Animal Domestication

The process of taming an animal species to be accustomed to humans and human contact

Subsistence Agriculture

The providing of food for direct consumption by the farmer and farmer's family

Agriculture

The raising of animals or the growing of crops on tended land to obtain food for primary consumption by a farmer's family or for sale off the farm

Livestock Ranching

The raising of livestock over an expanse of land for food products from the domesticated animals

Green Revolution

The rapid diffusion of new agricultural technology, especially high-yield seeds and fertilizers; also known as the Third Agricultural Revolution

Vegetative Planting

The removing of part of a plant and putting it in the ground to grow a new plant

Transhumance

The seasonal migration of livestock between mountains and lowland pastures

Grain

The seed of a cereal grass

First Agricultural Revolution

The slow change from non-agriculturally-based societies to more agriculturally-based societies through the understanding of seeds, watering, and plant care

Seed Agriculture

The taking of seeds from existing plants and planting of them to produce new ones

Winter Wheat

Wheat planted in the fall and harvested in the early summer

Spring Wheat

Wheat planted in the spring and harvested in the late summer