agriculture

Question 1

what are the natural inputs to the agricultural system

Answer 1

• temperature
• growing season
• soil type
• wind
• precipitation

Question 2

what are the human inputs to the agricultural system

Answer 2

• farm size
• local diet
• machinery
• money available
• knowledge and skill of farmer

Question 3

what are the processes in the agricultural system

Answer 3

• ploughing
• weeding
• harvesting
• breeding
• feeding

Question 4

what are the natural changes in an agricultural system

Answer 4

• drought
• fire
• soil erosion

Question 5

what is the 1 human changes in an agricultural system

Answer 5

-poorly stored crops

Question 6

what are the outputs in a agricultural system

Answer 6

• crops
• animals
• products
• pollution
• soil erosion
• waste products

Question 7

what 5 physical factors can influence agriculture

Answer 7

• temperature
• precipitation
• wind
• soil quality
• relief

Question 8

how does temperature affect agriculture

Answer 8

• decides the length of growing season

- in the UK, a growing season needs to exceed 3 months

Question 9

how does precipitation affect agriculture

Answer 9

• determines water supply
• the affectiveness of the mean rainfall depends on temperature and rates of evapotranspiration
• season distribution is more important than annual

Question 10

how does wind affect agriculture

Answer 10

• restricts cultivation of grain crops

- wind can be beneficial, certain winds can melt snow in North America which increases the growing season

Question 11

how does soil quality affect agriculture

Answer 11

• it is determined by factors such as depth, texture, structure
• in the UK, potatoes fail if the soil acidity is less than 4

Question 12

How does relief affect agriculture

Answer 12

• altitude and angle of slope
• in the UK, the upper limit of hay and potatoes are 300m , slopes of more than 11 degrees fail and aren’t safe for ploughing

Question 13

what is arable farming

Answer 13

farming of cereal and root crops on flat land for example slash and burn in Latin America

Question 14

what is pastoral farming

Answer 14

livestock rearing and subsidence for example herding sheep and cattle in West Africa

Question 15

what is mixed farming

Answer 15

the production of both arable crops and livestock which is most common in the UK

Question 16

what is intensive farming

Answer 16

it can be labour and capital, from a small farm for example fruit, flowers and veg in the UK

Question 17

what is extensive farming

Answer 17

large scale farming, with high labour and a high capital input for example quality seeds or animals in Canada

Question 18

what is commercial farming

Answer 18

specialising in single crops and the income provides a livelihood for the workers, for example cattle ranching in South America

Question 19

what is subsitence farming

Answer 19

the direct production of suffiencent food to feed the family for example slash and burn in Latin America

Question 20

what is sedentary farming

Answer 20

in one place a settled farmers rotates fields for example in Africa

Question 21

what is a positive and negative of arable farming

Answer 21

+ large amount of the land is ploughed in a short time

-can lead to the depletion of soil humus

Question 22

what is a positive and negative of pastoral farming

Answer 22

+ can be dry land where crops cant grow

- overgrazing and erosion

Question 23

what is a positive and negative of mixed farming

Answer 23

+ it enhances productivity of the farmer

- farmer needs to be knowledgable

Question 24

what is a positive and negative of intensive farming

Answer 24

+ easily supervised and monitored land

- various fertilisers produce pollution

Question 25

what is a positive and negative of extensive farming

Answer 25

+ greater efficiency of labour means lower product prices

- a large area of land is required

Question 26

what is a positive and negative of commercial farming

Answer 26

+ high production

- destruction of natural rainforests

Question 27

what is a positive and negative of subsitence farming

Answer 27

+ cheaper

- rain fed

Question 28

what is a positive and negative of sedentary farming

Answer 28

+ can manage soil nutrients and make sure it is good

- could be a disruptive event

Question 29

what is nomandic farming

Answer 29

when livestock are herded in order for fresh pastures to graze for example in Asia

Question 30

what is a positive and negative of nomandic farming

Answer 30

+ the availability to move crops when food is bad or the supply runs out
- foreign disease can ruin the crops

Question 31

what is GM farming

Answer 31

genetically modified involving DNA for example in Colarado

Question 32

what is a positive and negative of GM farming

Answer 32

+better for the environment as less chemicals

- expensive and can cause harm

Question 33

what is organic farming

Answer 33

it relies on natural forms of farming like crop rotation for example in the UK

Question 34

what is a positive and negative of organic farming

Answer 34

+ it is long term and saves energy to protect environement

- high production means farmers need for workers

Question 35

what is agribusiness

Answer 35

it involves the large corporate organisation of farming, often farmers are run for profit maximisation

Question 36

what is agricultural productivity measured in

Answer 36

yields, how many kg of grain measured per hectre

Question 37

what is the most common measurement of agricultural productivity

Answer 37

total factor productivity (TFP)

Question 38

what is TFP

Answer 38

the ratio of agricultural outputs to inputs for example grass crops to land

Question 39

what is the key measurement of TFP

Answer 39

economic performance

Question 40

what does TFP represent

Answer 40

how effiecently the agricultural industry uses the resources that are avaliable

Question 41

what does TFP improve with

Answer 41

1. higher yielding, disease resistant crops and drought/flood tolerant crops
2. more efficient and timely cultivation and harvesting practices