APES "Food" Review; Miller 7920

animal manure

Dung and urine of animals used as a form of organic fertilizer.

aquaculture

Raising marine and freshwater fish in ponds and underwater cages

aquaponics

The combination of fish farming and growing plants without soil.

desertification

Degradation of land, especially in semiarid areas, primarily because of human actions like excessive crop planting, animal grazing, and tree cutting.

green revolution 2

Focuses on the production of genetically modified organisms (GMOS) to increase crop productivity or create new varieties of crops

clear cutting

The process of cutting down all the trees in an area at once

commercial inorganic fertilizer

mixture of inorganic plant nutrients such as nitrates, phosphates applied to soil

compost

a composition of largely decaying matter used as fertilizer

fisheries

Concentrations of particular aquatic species suitable for commercial harvesting in a given ocean area or inland body of water.

GMO's

Organisms created by combining natural or synthetic genes using the techniques of molecular biology.

green manure

Freshly cut or still-growing green vegetation that is plowed into the soil to increase the organic matter and humus available to support crop growth.

green revolution 1

Agricultural "revolution" that increased production through improved seeds, fertilizers, and irrigation.

hydroponics

Form of agriculture in which farmers grow plants by exposing their roots to a nutrient-rich water solution instead of soil.

industrialized agriculture

Using large inputs of energy from fossil fuels (especially oil and natural gas), water, fertilizer, and pesticides to produce large quantities of crops and livestock for domestic and foreign sale.

integrated pest management (IPM)

-manages pest damage by most economic means and least hazardous, helps protect crop yields, allows production rates to increase. to suppress pests: Biocontrol, Chemicals, when necessary, Population monitoring, Habitat alteration, Crop rotation and transgenic crops, Alternative tillage methods, Mechanical pest removal

intercropping

Growing two or more different crops at the same time on a plot. For example, a carbohydrate-rich grain that depletes soil nitrogen and a protein-rich legume that adds nitrogen to the soil may be intercropped.

monoculture

farming strategy in which large fields are planted with a single crop, year after year

organic fertilizer

organic material such as animal manure, green manure, and compost applied to cropland as a source of plant nutrients

organic agriculture

The use of crop rotation, natural fertilizers such as manure, and biological pest control, as opposed to artificial fertilizers,pesticides, hormones, antibiotics, additives, and genetically modified organisms, to promote healthy vigorous crops.

pest

insects, rodents, etc. that cause damage to crops

pesticides

Any one of various substances used to kill harmful insects (insecticide), fungi (fungicide), vermin, or other living organisms that destroy or inhibit plant growth, carry disease, or are otherwise harmful.

plantation agriculture

Production system based on a large estate organized to produce a cash crop; often trees. Many plantations were established within the tropics.

polyculture

Complex form of intercropping in which a large number of different plants maturing at different times are planted together.

salinization

Process that occurs when soils in arid areas are brought under cultivation through irrigation. In arid climates, water evaporates quickly off the ground surface, leaving salty residues that render the soil infertile.

selective cutting

cutting down only some trees in a forest and leaving a mix of tree sizes and species behind

slash-and-burn agriculture

System of cultivation that usually exists in tropical areas where vegetation is cut close to the ground and then ignited. The fire introduces nutrients into the soil, thereby making it productive for a relatively short period of time.

soil

A mixture of mineral particles and organic material that covers the land, and in which terrestrial plants grow.

soil conservation

a method to maintain the fertility of the soil by protecting the soil from erosion and nutrient loss

soil erosion

the wearing away and removal of rock and soil particles from exposed surfaces by agents such as moving water, wind, or ice

strip cropping

alternating crops in strips, helps anchor soil

terracing

creating flat platforms in the hillside that provide a level planting surface, which reduces soil runoff from the slope.

traditional intensive agriculture

farmers increase their inputs of human and draft-animal labor, fertilizer, and water to obtain higher crop yields

traditional subsistence agriculture

when each family in a community grows crops for themselves and rely on animal and human labor to plant and harvest crops.

waterlogging

saturation of soil with irrigation water or excessive precipitation so that the water table rises close to the surface

windbreaks

Belts of trees along field edges to reduce wind erosion

perennial

food crop that lasts from year to year

Aquifer

a body of permeable rock that can contain or transmit groundwater.