apes agriculture

What is organic farming?

A farming method used to produce crops without the use of synthetic chemicals and pesticides; contain plant and animal based matter such as manures, leaves, and compost

What are advantages and disadvantages of organic agriculture?

Advantages: No GMOs, more nutritional flavor supports pollination, healthier soil, pesticides/herbicides are organic, conserves biodiversity

Disadvantages: expensive, no subsidies for organic farming, pesticides/herbicides are still used

What are pesticides?

Chemicals intended to kill insects and other organisms that damage crops

What are advantages and disadvantages of pesticides?

Advantages: Eradication of pests, protects against diseases, readily available, relatively inexpensive

Disadvantages: Can contain toxic chemicals that are harmful to humans and other organisms, ingestion of pesticides can lead to health problems, have to constantly reapply

What is hydroponics?

growing plants without soil

What crop is used as the example for hydroponics?

Lettuce

What are advantages and disadvantages of hydroponics?

Advantages: Controlled environment, high yields, no need to maintain soil healthy, no pesticides, reduced nutrient leaching, water used can be reduced, can grow year-round/anywhere

Disadvantages: Expensive, threatened by power outages because they rely on electricity, risk of waterborne diseases

What is Integrated Pest Management (IPM) ?

Uses a combination of biological, cultural, and chemical methods to control pests

What are advantages and disadvantages of IPM?

Advantages: Ecologically friendly, uses natural ways to mitigate pests, reduces need for pesticides, good cost vs value margin, specifically tailored to you

Disadvantages: Very involved and requires a lot of money, time consuming, aesthetically will not be "picture perfect"

What is industrial agriculture?

a form of modern farming that refers to the industrialized production of livestock, poultry, fish, and crops

What crop is used as an example of industrial agriculture?

Wheat

What are advantages and disadvantages of industrial agriculture?

Advantages: Speeds up rate of wheat farming

Disadvantages: High pesticide runoff rates

What is genetic engineering?

the deliberate modification of the characteristics of an organism by manipulating its genetic material.

What is the crop example for genetic engineering?

Rice

What are advantages and disadvantages of genetic engineering?

Advantages: More sustainable production, modified to be resistant to insects and disease, tolerant to extreme conditions, higher crop yield, utilizes less resources

Disadvantages: Not well regulated, can lead to bacteria/insects that are resistant, not always clearly labeled, public wariness

What is wild caught fishing?

The practice of catching fish in the wild rather than farming them

What is the example for wild caught fishing?

Salmon

What are some advantages and disadvantages of wild caught fishing?

Advantages: Does not contain antibiotics/pesticides, tend to be higher in Omega-3s, relatively healthier

Disadvantages: Not very sustainable with current overfishing, practical, habitats are being wiped out, rise of mercury and toxic metals, chance of bycatch

What are inorganic fertilizers?

mined or synthetically manufactured mineral supplements

What are advantages and disadvantages for inorganic fertilizers?

Advantages: inexpensive, exact amounts of nutrients, readily available nutrients, high crop yield, easy to apply

Disadvantages: use of nonrenewable resources, does not sustain soil/promote healthy soil, over-fertilization can lead to ecosystem disruption (eutrophication), toxic chemical buildup

What is meat production?

The production and farming of livestock and the different aspects of disease that it can involve

What are advantages and disadvantages of meat production?

Advantages: Smaller investment

Disadvantages: Responsible for 14.5% of gas emissions, use of antibiotics and growth hormones

What is aquaculture?

the rearing of aquatic animals or the cultivation of aquatic plants for food.

What are some advantages and disadvantages of aquaculture?

Advantages: Reduced environmental impact, prevents overfishing of natural habitats, can meet growing seafood demand, cheaper $

Disadvantages: More prone to disease due to overcrowding, regulations between states/regions vary, less sustainable, use of antibiotics

Industrialized agriculture

high-input; uses large amounts of fossil fuel energy, water, commercial fertilizers, and pesticides to produce single crops or livestock for sale

Croplands

produces mostly grains

Rangeland

produces meat (grazing livestock)

Ocean fisheries

produces about 7% of the world's food

Monoculture

single crop

Traditional Subsistence agriculture

For YOU. Mostly human labor and draft animals produce only enough crops or livestock for a farm family's survival

Traditional Intensive agriculture

Farmers increase their inputs of human and draft-animal labor, fertilizer, and water to obtain higher crop yields. Produce enough food to feed their families and sell for income

Slash and Burn agriculture

Another name for shifting cultivation, so named because fields are cleared by slashing the vegetation and burning the debris to redistribute nutrients to the soil

Green Revolution

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

First Green Revolution

(1) developing and planting monocultures of selectively bred or genetically engineered high-yield varieties of key crops such as rice, wheat, and corn with emphasis on shifting more of plant growth to seeds. (2) lavishing fertilizer, pesticides, and water on crops to produce high yields. (3) often increasing the intensity and frequency of cropping

Second Green Revolution

when fast-growing dwarf varieties of rice and wheat, specially bred for tropical and subtropical climates, were introduced into several developing countries. GMOs were introduced

Intercropping (strip cropping)

Practice of planting bands of different crops across a hillside; Two or more different crops are grown at the same time on a plot

Agroforestry (alley cropping)

Crops and trees are planted together

Polyculture

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

Minimum-tillage

Tillers break up and loosen the soil as little as possible over the top soil, previous crop resides and covers vegetation

Terracing

Carving small, flat plots of land from hillsides to use for farming; reduces steep slopes and retains water for crops

Contour Farming

Plowing and planting across the changing slope of land, rather than in straight lines, to help retain water and reduce soil erosion.

Strip Cropping

planting alternating strips of a row crop and another crop that completely covers the soil

Alley Cropping (Agroforestry)

Several crops are planted together in strips or alleys between trees and shrubs that can provide fruit or fuelwood

Windbreaks/Shelterbelts

Line of trees/shrubs planted to protect an area

Sustainable Agriculture Practices

the production of food, fiber, or other plant or animal products using farming techniques that protect the environment, public health, human communities, and animal welfare

Feedlots

Places where livestock are concentrated in a very small area and raised on hormones and hearty grains that prepare them for slaughter at a much more rapid rate than grazing

Convential-tillage

farmers plow land and break up smooth soil to make planting surface