APHG Vocab unit 5

Agribusiness

Commercial agriculture characterized by the integration of different steps in the food-processing industry, usually through ownership by large corporations.

Agriculture

The deliberate effort to modify a portion of Earth's surface through the cultivation of crops and the raising of livestock for sustenance or economic gain.

Commercial agriculture

Agriculture undertaken primarily to generate products for sale off the farm.

Commodity chain

The sequence of production and distribution processes used to produce a good and deliver it to consumers.

Community supported agricultures

A system in which consumers directly support local farms by purchasing a share of the farm's harvest in advance.

Crop rotation

The practice of rotating use of different fields from crop to crop each year to avoid exhausting the soil.

Desertification

The process by which fertile land becomes desert, typically as a result of drought, deforestation, or inappropriate agriculture. It leads to the degradation of land and loss of productivity.

Double cropping

Harvesting twice a year from the same field.

Extensive Agriculture

An agricultural system that uses large areas of land with relatively low amounts of labor and capital per unit of land.

Feedlot

A confined area where livestock are fattened up with grains or feed before being slaughtered for market.

First Agricultural Revolution

The time period when humans first domesticated plants and animals and no longer relied entirely on hunting and gathering.

Genetically modified organism (GMO)

A living organism that possesses a novel combination of genetic material obtained through the use of modern biotechnology.

Green revolution

Rapid diffusion of new agricultural technology, especially new high-yield seeds and fertilizers.

Horticulture

Growing of fruits, vegetables, flowers, and tree crops.

intensive agriculture

Any agricultural system that uses a high level of labor, capital, or technology to maximize yield from a small area of land.

Livestock ranching

The commercial grazing of livestock over an extensive area of land.

Mediterranean Agriculture

A form of commercial agriculture practiced in regions with a Mediterranean climate—characterized by hot, dry summers and mild, wet winters—specializing in crops and livestock suited to those conditions.

Milkshed

The area surrounding a city from which milk is supplied.

Monoculture

The practice of growing the same single crop year after year.

Organic Farming

Farming that depends on the use of naturally occurring substances while prohibiting or strictly limiting synthetic substances, such as herbicides, pesticides, and growth hormones.

Paddy

The Malay word for wet rice, increasingly used to describe a flooded field.

Pastoral nomadism

A form of subsistence agriculture based on herding domesticated animals.

Pasture

Land used for grazing animals such as cattle, sheep, or goats.

Plantation

A large farm in tropical and subtropical climates that specializes in the production of one or two crops for sale, usually to a more developed country.

Prime agricultural land

The most fertile and productive farmland, usually flat or gently sloping, with favorable climate and soil conditions, ideal for growing crops.

Second agricultural revolution

An increase in agricultural productivity through improvement of crop rotation and breeding of livestock, beginning in the United Kingdom in the seventeenth century.

Seed agriculture

The reproduction of plants through annual planting of seeds rather than from roots or cuttings.

Shifting cultivation

A form of subsistence agriculture in which people shift activity from one field to another; each field is used for crops for a relatively few years and left fallow for a relatively long period.

Slash-and-burn agriculture

A type of subsistence agriculture in which farmers clear a plot of land by cutting and burning vegetation, then use the cleared land to plant crops for a few years before moving on to a new area.

Spring wheat

Wheat that is planted in the spring and harvested in late summer or early fall.

Subsistence agriculture

Agriculture designed primarily to provide food for direct consumption by the farmer and the farmer's family.

Sustainable agriculture

Farming methods that meet current food needs without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs, by preserving environmental quality, minimizing resource depletion, and maintaining economic viability.

Terracing

The agricultural practice of carving flat platforms, or steps, into steep slopes to create arable land, reduce soil erosion, and retain water.

Township

A square unit of land, typically 6 miles by 6 miles, used in the U.S. Public Land Survey System (PLSS) to organize and divide land for settlement and farming.

Transhumance

The seasonal movement of livestock between different grazing grounds, usually between lowland pastures in the winter and highland pastures in the summer.

Truck farming/Market Gardening

The commercial production of fruits, vegetables, and flowers, often sold directly to local markets or consumers.

Vegetative planting

The reproduction of plants by directly using parts of the plant—such as roots, stems, or leaves—rather than seeds.