Agriculture Flashcards
Why is soil important for agriculture? (3)
Primary production of grains, vegetables and fruit
Production of grass/cereal for animal food
Fibre production- plant fibre (cotton, hemp, linen)
What has affected food production?
Increasing population
How has the increasing population affected farming?
The demand for food production is greater and therefore there is more pressure on the land to produce more food
What can be used to produce more food? (3)
Synthetic fertilisers
Herbicides
Pesticides
What are herbicides used for?
Getting rid of unwanted plants (weeds)
What are pesticides used for?
Getting rid of pests (unwanted insects)
Negative effects of using herbicides
It can contaminate the soil and water
Negative affects of pesticides
Soil contamination and loss of biodiversity
What farming requires the most water?
Meat farming
Name six bad agricultural practices.
Deep ploughing Overgrazing Bare soil after harvest Monoculture Deforestation Draining of peatlands
What is monoculture?
An area of land that grows a single crop
Negative affects of monoculture (4)
Eliminates biological controls and there’s a lack of diversity.
Spread of pests and diseases which means they must be treated with more chemicals.
Organisms are evolving resistance to pesticides and herbicides.
Soil degradation and lack of natural protection by plants from soil erosion.
Why is bare soil after harvest negative?
Increased win erosion which leads to a loss in nutrients and carbon.
Why is intensive use of chemicals negative? (2)
Overdose of synthetic fertilisers leads to nitrate (NO3) which leaches into the water increasing nitrous oxide (N2O) emissions.
Soil contamination.
Negative effects of deep ploughing. (3)
Subsoil compaction
Loss of natural soil structure
Surface soil rich with nutrients and microbial activity are turned downwards
