Agriculture

Question 1

What is intensive farming?

Answer 1

Getting the maximum possible yield from the smallest inputs

Question 2

What is battery farming?

Answer 2

When animals are packed into a tiny area to save space and money for the farmer.

Question 3

What is biological control and give an example?

Answer 3

Biological control is when organisms are used to kill other pests such as ladybugs and which kill off greenfly.

Question 4

What do glasshouses do to increase yield?

Answer 4

Glasshouses reduce water loss, increase rate of photosynthesis, decrease competition from weeds, decrease predation, increased co2, increase last light and increase mineral content.

Question 5

What are the pros and cons of glasshouses?

Answer 5

Pros: crops are disease and pest free
24 hours of light
Hot
High levels of co2

Cons: expensive
Fragile
Significant resources

Question 6

How do fertilisers know nor’easter yield?

Answer 6

Nitrates become part of proteins in plants leading to more plant growth and increased yield.

Question 7

Types of fertiliser?

Answer 7

Organic

Inorganic

Question 8

What is a pest?

Answer 8

An organism that reduces yield

Question 9

What is bio accumulation?

Answer 9

Is where there is a build up of pesticides as they pass down food chain
E.g. Slug eats pellet, bird eats slug, bird is eaten by predator.
The effect of the pesticide is magnified down the food chain.

Question 10

What is a monoculture?

Answer 10

Only one crop is grown in an area which can lead to an easy spread of disease.

Question 11

Why do we fish farm?

Answer 11

It is sustainable and does not lead to over fishing.

Question 12

How do we control fish farms?

Answer 12

Oxygen pumps 
Water quality-filters
Diet
Predator nets
Checks for disease

Question 13

What is selective breeding?

Answer 13

When farmers breed fish, select the biggest and breed them leading to an increase in the size of the fish over time.

Question 14

Problems for fish farming?

Answer 14

Easy spread of disease
Antibiotics can enter food chain
Pesticides also
Pollution leading to eutrophication

Question 15

What is eutrophication?

Answer 15

When a water system cannot sustain any life due to lack of oxygen.

Question 16

How does eutrophication occur?

Answer 16

Excess in nitrates leads to an algal bloom. This leads to overcrowding and causes some plants to die. Oxygen levels fall as there is less photosynthesis. Bacteria and fungi feed on the dead plants. Oxygen decreases further until the water cannot sustain life.