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Agriculture

The planting and harvesting of domesticated plants and the raising of domesticated animals for food.

Domesticated Plant

A plant that is deliberately planted, protected, cared for, and used by humans and is genetically distinct from its wild ancestors.

Domesticated Animal

An animal that depends on people for food and shelter and is different from its wild ancestors in looks and behavior due to close contact with humans.

Farmers

Individuals who practice agriculture by growing crops, raising animals, or some combination of the two.

Physical Geography

The study of earth’s physical characteristics and processes: how they work, how they affect humans, and how humans affect them.

Nutrients

Components of topsoil (such as nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium) necessary for plants to survive, grow, and reproduce.

Topography

The arrangement of shapes on earth’s surface.

Climate

The average pattern of weather over a 30-year period for a particular region.

Weather

The day-to-day atmospheric conditions that affect daily decisions.

Tropical Wet Climate

A climate located along the equator that experiences rain every day of the year.

Monsoon

Seasonal reversal of winds with a general onshore movement in summer and a general offshore movement in winter.

Arid Climate

A climate that receives less than 10 inches (25 centimeters) of rain annually.

Moderate Climate

A climate with an average year-round temperature of 75 degrees Fahrenheit (24 degrees Celsius).

Intensive Agriculture

Crop cultivation and livestock rearing systems that use high levels of labor and capital relative to the size of the landholding.

Subsistence Agriculture

Food production mainly for consumption by the farming family and local community, rather than principally for sale in the market.

Cash Crop

A crop raised to be sold for profit rather than to feed the farm family.

Paddy Rice Farming

A system of wet rice cultivation on small level fields bordered by impermeable dikes.

Shifting Cultivation

The cultivation of a plot of land until it becomes less productive, after which the farmer shifts to a new plot.

Livestock Ranching

The practice of using extensive tracts of land to rear herds of livestock to sell as meat, hides, or wool.

Rural Area

Area located outside of towns and cities; all the space, population, and housing not included in an urban area.

Clustered Settlement

A tightly bunched farm settlement that has anywhere from a few dozen to several hundred inhabitants.

Silo

Round or square tower-like structure that stores feed for the livestock on the farm.

Cadastral Survey

Systematic documentation of property ownership, shape, use, and boundaries.

Township and Range

Land survey system created by the U.S. Land Ordinance of 1785, dividing the country's territory into a grid of square-shaped townships with 6-mile sides.