Unit 5: Agriculture & Rural Land-Use Patterns/Processes

A collection of vocabulary flashcards covering key concepts and definitions from Unit 5: Agriculture & Rural Land-Use Patterns/Processes.

What is agriculture?

The intentional growing of plants or raising of animals for human use (food, wool, dyes, cotton, wood).

What is domestication?

Selectively breeding wild plants/animals for human purposes.

What percentage of Earth's land area is agricultural?

About 40%.

What percentage of the world works in agriculture?

About 25%.

Where are most agricultural workers located?

Economic periphery countries.

What is climate?

Long-term average weather over 30 years.

What is weather?

Day-to-day atmospheric conditions.

What does the Köppen Climate System classify?

Climate regions based on temperature and precipitation.

Characteristics of Tropical Wet climate?

Rain every day.

Characteristics of Tropical Wet & Dry climate?

Distinct dry season; often impacted by monsoons.

What is a monsoon?

Seasonal wind reversal causing heavy summer rains.

Characteristics of semiarid (steppe) climate?

10–20 in of rainfall annually.

Characteristics of arid climate?

Less than 10 in of rainfall annually.

Humid Subtropical characteristics?

Hot summers, mild winters.

Marine West Coast characteristics?

Moderate temps, long summers, cool winters.

Mediterranean climate characteristics?

Mild wet winters, dry summers.

Humid Continental climate characteristics?

4 seasons, moderate precipitation.

Subarctic climate characteristics?

Frigid temps most of the year.

List environmental impacts of agriculture.

Pesticides, fertilizers, soil erosion, salinization, deforestation, desertification, water depletion, greenhouse gases.

What is shifting cultivation?

Slash-and-burn farming with periodic movement for new soil.

Why do farmers burn fields in shifting cultivation?

Ash enriches soil.

Where is shifting cultivation practiced?

Tropics near equator; economic periphery.

Define subsistence agriculture.

Farming for personal survival.

Define commercial agriculture.

Farming for profit and sale.

Define intensive agriculture.

Small area, high labor/inputs.

Define extensive agriculture.

Large area, low labor/inputs.

What is market gardening (truck farming)?

Small-scale fruits/vegetables; commercial and intensive.

What is plantation agriculture?

Large-scale monocropping of cash crops; intensive; in developing countries.

List common plantation crops.

Cotton, coffee, sugarcane.

What is mixed crop/livestock farming?

Crops feed livestock; manure fertilizes crops.

What is nomadic herding?

Seasonal movement of livestock; subsistence; arid regions.

What is ranching?

Raising animals on large land areas for commercial sale.

Why are ranches decreasing?

Increase in feedlots.

Core-region grain crops?

Wheat, rye, barley.

Why is rice often intensive?

Labor-intensive cultivation.

Examples of tropical specialty crops?

Pineapples, bananas, rubber, coffee.

Mediterranean crops?

Olives, grapes, lemons.

Define domestication.

Selective breeding to produce new species for human use.

What occurred in the First Agricultural Revolution?

Early domestication of plants/animals and seed crop cultivation. Major Hearths

SW Asia (Fertile Crescent) crops/animals?

Wheat, barley, oats; sheep, goats, cattle; grapes, olives.

Indus River Valley crops/animals?

Wheat, peas, rice; cattle, camels, buffalo.

China/Southeast Asia crops/animals?

Rice, soybeans, sugarcane; pigs; bananas.

Africa crops?

Okra, millet, coffee, yams.

Americas crops/animals?

Maize, potatoes, tomatoes; llamas, alpacas, turkeys.

What is free-range livestock?

Animals roam freely.

What is transhumance?

Seasonal movement between highlands and lowlands.

What is pastoral nomadism?

Entire community moves with livestock.

Crops from Americas → Old World?

Maize, potatoes, tomatoes.

Crops from Europe → Americas?

Wheat, grapes.

Animals Europe → Americas?

Cows, pigs, sheep, horses.

Diseases Europe → Americas?

Smallpox, measles, etc.

What changed in the 2nd Agricultural Revolution?

Mechanization; shift to surplus farming.

What happened to labor?

Farmers displaced → factory work (Industrial Rev).

Define monocropping.

Growing one crop repeatedly on the same land.

Purpose of Von Thünen model?

Predict agricultural land use around markets.

What is bid-rent theory?

Land cost decreases with distance from market; intensive near city, extensive farther.

Malthus’s main idea?

Population grows exponentially; food grows linearly → famine.

Neo-Malthusians believe?

Technology increases carrying capacity.

What is the Green Revolution?

Hybrid seeds + chemical fertilizers + pesticides.

Benefits of the Green Revolution?

Increased food production and population.

Negatives of the Green Revolution?

Environmental harm, farmer debt, women excluded, reliance on corporations.

What is the technological treadmill?

Farmers must continually buy new tech, causing debt.

What determines where agriculture occurs?

Climate, culture, religion, topography, economic level, demand, history.

What is agribusiness?

Large-scale agricultural production using monocropping and machinery.

What are subsidies?

Government payments to support farming.

What is comparative advantage?

Countries specializing in efficient production.

Dispersed settlement?

Homes spread out.

Clustered settlement?

Homes grouped closely.

Nucleated settlement?

Cluster around a central node.

Linear settlement?

Buildings in a line along roads/rivers.

Township and range system?

Rectangular grid of land.

Metes-and-bounds system?

Land defined by natural features.

Long-lot system?

Long narrow lots along rivers/roads.

What is urban farming?

Growing food in city gardens.

What is CSA (Community Supported Agriculture)?

Consumers pre-pay farmers for guaranteed produce.

What are farmers’ markets?

Farmers selling directly to consumers.

What is organic farming?

Uses natural ecological processes and no synthetic chemicals.

What does “made with organic ingredients” mean?

At least 70% organic.

What is a value-added crop?

Crop changed into a new form (jam, cheese).

What is fair trade?

Ensures good prices and sustainable farming.

What is the local food movement?

Buying food locally for freshness and reduced shipping.

What are locavores?

People who try to eat mostly local foods.

What is a food desert?

Area with limited access to fresh, healthy food.

What is food security?

Reliable access to safe, nutritious food.

What is food insecurity?

Long-term inadequate diet for many people.

What is food safety?

Preventing contamination that causes illness.