Agriculture : Chapter 8 Flashcards
Swidden cultivation
type of agriculture characterized by land rotation in which temporary clearings are used for several years and then abandoned to be replaced by new clearings;
also known as slash and burn agriculture
shifting cultivation
based on growing crops in different fields on a rotating basis;
example is Maya in Yucatan growing maize by rotating fields on a seven year cycle
paddy rice farming
the cultivation of rice on a paddy, or small flooded field enclosed by mud dikes, practiced in the humid areas of the Far East;
typically only 3 acres and is adequate to support a family because irrigated rice provides a very large output of food per unit of land
market gardening
farming devoted to specialized fruit, vegetable, or vine crops for sale rather than consumption
suitcase farming
in American commercial grain agriculture, a farm on which no one lives;
planting and harvesting are done by hired migratory crews
dairying
specialized production of dairy goods;
dairy belts near large urban areas usually produce milk and those further away produce utter, cheese, or processed milk
domesticated plant
plant deliberately planted and tended by humans that is genetically distinct from its wild ancestors as a result of selective breeding
Carl Sauer
defined cultural landscape as an area fashioned from nature by a cultural group;
combination of cultural features such as language and religion, economic features such as agriculture and industry, and physical features such as climate and vegetation
indigenous technical knowledge
highly localized knowledge about environmental conditions and sustainable land-use practices
green revolution
recent introduction of high-yield hybrid crops and chemical fertilizers and pesticides into traditional Asian agricultural systems, most notably paddy rice farming, with attendant increases in production and ecological damage
von Thunen
developed the core-periphery model to explain the distribution and intensity of agriculture based on distance to the market;
perishable foods are closest to the market;
land closest to the market is taxed more heavily and requires greater intensity
market gardens and feedlots are closest, followed by dairying, livestock fattening, grain farming, livestock ranching
cool chain
the refrigeration and transport technologies that allow for the distribution of perishables
monoculture
raising of only one crop on a huge tract of land in agribusiness
intensive culture
system of agriculture using large amounts of labor and capital for each unit of land;
results in significantly higher crop yields;
extensive culture
system of agriculture that uses small amount of labor and capital for each unit of land;
requires large amounts of land
desertification
process wherein human actions unintentionally turn productive lands into deserts through agricultural and pastoral misuse, destroying vegetation and soil to the point where they cannot regenerate
organic agriculture
form of farming that relies on manuring, mulching, and biological pest control and rejects the use of synthetic fertilizers, insecticides, herbicides, and genetically modified crops
long-lot survey
landholding pattern in which long, narrow blocks of land stretch back from a road, river, or canal;
occur widely in the hills and marshes of central and western Europe, parts of Brazil, and French-settled Quebec
metes and boundary survey
landholding pattern with irregular shapes resulting from natural features such as trees, boulders, and streams
First Agricultural Revolution
transition from hunter-gatherer to the use of seed agriculture and farm and draft animals;
emerged simultaneously in about nine different culture hearths around the world
Second Agricultural Revolution
dramatic increase in crop production and distribution efficiency in the 17th century;
initiated with the horse-drawn hoe and seed drill in England and surplus of crops allowing movement of people to the city
Third Agricultural Revolution
also known as the Green Revolution;
began in the mid-1970s with hybrid higher-yielding seeds and new fertilizers
mechanization
process of using agricultural machinery to mechanize the work of agriculture;
results in greatly increased productivity
chemical farming
use of pesticides and herbicides for agriculture;
opposite of organic farming
agriculture
cultivation of domesticated crops and the raising of domesticated animals
intercropping or interillage
the practice of growing two more different types of crops in the same field at the same time;
allows taller, stronger crops to shelter lower, weaker ones
crop rotation
changing up which crops are planted;
better for soil, some crops add certain nutrients, others deplete
subsistence agriculture
farming to supply the minimum food and materials necessary to survive
adaptive strategy
unique way in which each culture uses its particular physical environment
double cropping
harvesting twice a year from the same parcel of land
peasant
farmer belonging to a folk culture and practicing a traditional system of agriculture
plantation agriculture
system of monoculture for producing export crops requiring relatively large amounts of land and capital
livestock fattening
commercial type of agriculture that produces fattened cattle and hogs for meat
sedentary cultivation
farming in fixed and permanent fields
ranching
commercial raising of herd livestock on a large landholding
