AP Human Geography Unit 5 quizlet

No Tillage

A farming practice that leaves all of the soil undisturbed and the entire residue of the previous year's harvest left untouched on the fields Example: Practcing no tillage helps to fertilize the soil.

Sawah

A flooded field for growing rice Example: Many Sawahs are found in Indonesia.

Ranching

A form of commercial agriculture in which livestock graze over an extensive area Example: Many wealthy ranchers were in Northern Mexico.

Dairy Farm

A form of commercial agriculture that specialized in the production of milk and other dairy products Example: Rasing cows to milk and produce cheese.

Pastoral Nomadism

A form of subsistence agriculture based on herding domesticated animals Example: Pastoral Nomadism is found in Northern Eurasia.

Intensive Subsistence Agriculture

A form of subsistence agriculture characteristics of Asia's major population concentrations in which farmers must expend a relatively large amount of effort to produce the maximum feasible yield from a parcel of land Example: Families in LDCs must undergo intensive subsistence agricultural practices in order to provide for themselves.

Shifting Cultivation

A form of subsistence agriculture in which people shift activity from one field to another' each field is used for crops for a relatively few years and left fallow for relatively long period Example: Shifting Cultivation is often found in Southeast Asia.

Slash-and-Burn Agriculture

Another name for shifting cultivation, so named because fields are cleared by slashing the vegetation and burning the debris Example: Slash-and-Burn Agriculture is a method of Shifting Cultiviation.

Crop

Any plant gathered from a field as a harvest during a particular season Example: Growing cucumbers for your families consumption during the summer.

Aquaculture

The cultivation of seafood under controlled conditions Example: Catching swordfish to sell at the seafood market.

Agriculture

The deliberate effort to modify a portion of earth's surface through the cultivation of crops and the raising of livestock for sustenance of economic gain Example: Growing grass to cut for sod.

Prime Agriculture Land

The most productive farmland Example: The Fertile Cresent was one of the most productive area to grow in Europe.

Crop Rotation

The practice of rotating use of different fields from crop to crop each year to avoid exhausting soil. Example: Planting cotton in the field one season then tobacco the next season.

Agricultural Revolution

The time when human beings first domesticated plants and animals and no longer relied entirely on hunting and gathering Example: Some Native American Tribes began growing corn.

Cereal Grain

A grass that yields grain for food Example: Growing wheat to consume.

Plantation

A large farm in tropical and subtropical climates that specialized in the production of one or two crops for sale, usually to a more developed country Example: Many Rice Plantations were in the Southeastern United States

Genetically Modified Organism

A living organism that possesses a novel combination of genetic matireiel obtained through the use of modern biotechnology Example: Genetically Modifying Corn so it requires less water.

Swidden

A patch of land cleared for plating through slashing and burning Example: It is often used in the Amazon Rainforest.

Ridge Tillage

A system of planting crops on ridge tops in order to reduce farm production costs and promote greater soil conservation Example: Ridge Tillage reduces erosion

Subsistence Agriculture

Agriculture designed primarily to provide food for direct consumption by the farmer and the farmer's family Example: Many people practice Subsistence Agriculture in Less Developed Countries.

Commercial Agriculture

Agriculture undertaken primarily to generate products for sale off the farm Example: Growing cotton to sell.

Overfishing

Capturing fish faster than they can reproduce Example: The british overfishing of cod in Icelandic Waters.

Agribusiness

Commercial agriculture characterized by the integration of different steps in the food-processing industry, usually through ownership by large corporations Example: Growing corn to sell for ethanol is an example of agribusiness.

Mixed Crop and 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 Example: Raising cows and growing oats to use for hay.

Truck Farming

Commercial gardening and fruit farming, so named for the Middle English word truck, meaning "barter" or "exchange of commodities" Example: Truck farming sellers often sell at farmers markets and flea markets.

Desertification

Degradation of land, especially in semiarid areas, primarily because of human actions such as excessive crop planting, animal grazing, and tree cutting. Also known as semiarid land degradation. Example: In Africa using the resources in the perimeter of the Sahara, causing the Sahara to grow.

Undernourishment

Dietary energy consumption that is continuously below the minimum requirement for maintaining a healthy life and carrying out light physical activity Example: Undernourishment is very common in Less Developed Countries.

Double Cropping

Harvesting twice a year from the same field Example: Growing wheat and lentils in the same field then harvesting both.

Grain

Seed of a cereal grass Example: Barley is a grain of a cereal grass.

Food Security

Physical, Social, and Economic access at all times to safe and nutritious food sufficient to meet dietary needs and food preferences for an active and healthy life Example: In Kenya, most people do not have food security.

Green Revolution

Rapid diffusion of new agricultural technology, especially new high-yield seeds and fertilizers Example: Two villages sharing their crop technology and improving their yields.

Wet Rice

Rice planted on dry land in a nursery and then moved to deliberately flooded field to promote growth Example: Wet rice is grown in most of Asia.

Paddy

The Malay word for wet rice, increasingly used to describe a flooded field Example: There are many Paddies in Vietnam.

Dietary Energy Consumption

The amount of food that an individual consumes, measured in kilocalories. Example: A man needs 2500 calories a day to stay healthy.

Milkshed

The area surrounding a city from which milk is supplied Example: Many towns in Wisconsin are milksheds.

Fishing

The capture of wild fish and other seafood living in waters Example: Catching flounder for your families consumption.

Horticulture

The growing of fruits, vegetables and flowers Example: Growing apples and grapes.

Transhumance

The seasonal migration of livestock between mountains and lowland pastures Example: Transhumance is a type of nomadism.