Deck 2 Flashcards
Agraniarism
A social or political movement designed to bring about land reforms or to improve the economic status of the farmer
Agroecology
the study of purely ecological phenomena within the crop field, such as predator/prey relations, or crop/weed competition
Alternative Farming
Alternative has also come to imply the use of environmentally-friendly farming practices in general, and the benefits of farm diversification
Best Management Practice (BPM’s)
established soil conservation practices that also provide water quality benefits
Biodiversity
the sum total of all the plants, animals, fungi and microorganisms in the world, or in a particular area; all of their individual variation; and all the interactions between them
Biointensive Gardening/ Mini-farming
a production system that makes it possible for one person to grow all of his or her family’s food using truly sustainable methods that maintain the fertility of the soil without relying on nonrenewable resources like petrochemicals or imported organic matter
Biological Farming
a system of crop production in which the producer tries to minimize the use of ‘chemicals’ for control of crop pests
Carbon Sequestration
the process through which agricultural and forestry practices remove carbon dioxide (CO2) from the atmosphere
Carrying Capacity
the theoretical equilibrium population size at which a particular population in a particular environment will stabilize when its supply of resources remains constant. It can also be considered to be the maximum sustainable population size;
Community Supported Agriculture
a community of individuals who pledge support to a farm operation so that the farmland becomes, either legally or spiritually, the community’s farm, with the growers and consumers providing mutual support and sharing the risks and benefits of food production
Conservation Buffer Strips
areas or strips of land maintained in permanent vegetation, designed to intercept pollutants and erosion
Conservation Tillage
areas or strips of land maintained in permanent vegetation, designed to intercept pollutants and erosion
Ecological Footprint (EF)
areas or strips of land maintained in permanent vegetation, designed to intercept pollutants and erosion
Eco-label
A seal or logo indicating that a product has met a set of environmental or social standards
Good Agricultural Practices (GAP)
applying available knowledge to addressing environmental, economic and social sustainability dimensions for on-farm production and post-production processes, resulting in safe and quality food and non-food agricultural products
Holistic Management
a proven, whole farm/whole system approach to resource management that incorporates financial planning, land planning, grazing planning and biological monitoring
Integrated food and farming systems
integrated and resource-efficient crop and livestock systems that maintain productivity, that are profitable, and that protect the environment and the personal health of farmers and their families
Integrated Pest Management (IPM)
an ecologically based approach to pest (animal and weed) control that utilizes a multi-disciplinary knowledge of crop/pest relationships, establishment of acceptable economic thresholds for pest populations and constant field monitoring for potential problems
Controlled Grazing Systems
livestock and grass management practices that focus on increased levels of manager involvement, increased forage quality, increased meat protection per unit area, and more uniform forage utilization
Life Cycle Assessment (LCA)
A quantification of the level of energy and raw materials used as well as the solid, liquid and gaseous wastes produced at every stage of a product’s life or process
Community Food System
a collaborative effort to integrate agricultural production with food distribution to enhance the economic, environmental, and social well-being of a particular place
Low input Agrigculture
the management and use of internal production inputs (i.e. on-farm resources)… and to minimize the use of production inputs (i.e. off-farm resources), such as purchased fertilizers and pesticides, wherever and whenever feasible and practicable, to lower production costs, to avoid pollution of surface and groundwater, to reduce pesticide residues in food, to reduce a farmer’s overall risk, and to increase both short- and long-term farm profitability
Natural Farming
no tillage, no fertilizer, no pesticides, no weeding, no pruning, and remarkably little labor
Nature Farming
The theory of Nature Farming rests on a belief in the universal life-giving powers that the elements of fire, water, and earth confer on the soil… The planet’s soil, created over a span of eons, has acquired life-sustaining properties, in accordance with the principle of the indivisibility of the spiritual and the physical realms, which in turn provide the life-force that enables plants to grow.
Nutrient Management
managing the amount, source, placement, form, and timing of the application of nutrients and soil amendments to ensure adequate soil fertility for plant production and to minimize the potential for environmental degradation, particularly water quality impairment.
Organic Farming
Organic farming is a production system which avoids or largely excludes the use of synthetically compounded fertilizers, pesticides, growth regulators, and livestock feed additives. To the maximum extent feasible, organic farming systems rely upon crop rotations, crop residues, animal manures, legumes, green manures, off-farm organic wastes, mechanical cultivation, mineral-bearing rocks, and aspects of biological pest control to maintain soil productivity and tilth, to supply plant nutrients, and to control insects, weeds and other pests
Permaculture
The goal of permaculture is to produce an efficient, low-maintenance integration of plants, animals, people and structure… applied at the scale of a home garden, all the way through to a large farm
Precision Farming
management strategy that employs detailed, site-specific information to precisely manage production inputs
Sustainable Development
meet the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs
Whole Farm Planning
provides farmers with the management tools they need to manage biologically complex farming systems in a profitable manner. As a management system, it draws on cutting-edge management theory used by other businesses, industries and even cities
