Unit 5

Key concepts in agriculture include the primary economy (timber, fisheries, mineral/energy resources) and types of agriculture classified by labor/area concentration: intensive (high labor, small land) and extensive (low labor, large land).

Different farming types range from hunting/gathering to transhumance, pastoralism, nomadic herding, ranching, and domestication, which led to permanent settlements and crop variety (multi-cropping) as opposed to monoculture.

Term: Domestication
Definition: The action or fact of domesticating animals or plants; taming
Term: Transhumance
Definition: The seasonal migration of livestock between mountains and lowland pastures.
Term: Pastoralism
Definition: A type of animal husbandry where livestock are moved seasonally to find fresh pastures.
Term: Nomadic Herding (No man left behind herding)
Definition: The practice of moving herds of animals from place to place in search of pasture and water.

Term: Mixed Farming
Definition: Growing crops and raising livestock on the same farm.

Flashcard #2
Term: Subsistence Agriculture
Definition: Farming primarily to provide food for the farmer's family, with little surplus for sale.

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Term: Extensive Subsistence Agriculture
Definition: Using large areas of land with minimal labor input per area.

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Term: Intensive Subsistence Agriculture
Definition: Using small areas of land with high labor input per area.

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Term: Cash-Cropping
Definition: Growing crops for sale rather than for personal consumption.

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Term: Collectivization
Definition: A system where agricultural land is removed from private ownership and organized into large, state-run collective farms.

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Term: Crop Rotation
Definition: The practice of planting different crops sequentially on the same plot of land to improve soil health and manage pests.

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Term: Multi-Cropping
Definition: Growing two or more crops on the same field in a year.

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Term: Irrigation
Definition: The artificial application of water to land to assist in the production of crops.

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Term: Conservation Agriculture
Definition: A farming system that promotes minimum soil disturbance (no-tillage), crop rotation, and inter-planting to maintain soil health and sustainable yields.

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Term: No-Tillage
Definition: A farming practice that avoids disturbing the soil through tillage, reducing erosion and conserving soil moisture.

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Term: Inter-Planting
Definition: Planting different crops in close proximity to each other.

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Term: Shifting Cultivation
Definition: An agricultural system in which plots of land are cultivated temporarily, then abandoned and allowed to revert to their natural vegetation while the cultivator moves on to another plot.

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Term: Extensive Pastoralism
Definition: Relying on large areas of land for grazing livestock.

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Term: Desertification
Definition: The process by which fertile land becomes desert, typically as a result of drought, deforestation, or inappropriate agriculture.

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Term: Soil Salination
Definition: The increase in salt concentration in the soil, often due to irrigation in arid regions.

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Term: Green Revolution
Definition: A period of agricultural innovation from the 1940s to the 1960s that increased crop yields, particularly in developing countries, through the use of high-yielding crop varieties, fertilizers, and pesticides.

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Term: Industrial Agriculture
Definition: Intensive farming practices involving mechanization, synthetic fertilizers, pesticides, and irrigation.

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Term: Genetic Engineering
Definition: Modifying the genetic material of plants to enhance traits such as yield, pest resistance, or nutritional content.

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Term: Corporate Agriculture
Definition: Large-scale, industrialized farming operations often owned by corporations.

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Term: Specialized Agriculture
Definition: Focusing on the production of specific crops or livestock to meet particular market demands, often leading to increased efficiency and higher quality products.

• Sustainable Agriculture: Farming practices that prioritize environmental health, economic profitability, and social and economic equity for future generations.

• Organic Farming: A method of agriculture that avoids the use of synthetic fertilizers, pesticides, and genetically modified organisms, focusing instead on natural processes and biodiversity.

Permaculture: A holistic design approach that integrates agriculture, ecology, and sustainable living to create self-sufficient ecosystems.

Other agricultural practices include mixed farming, subsistence agriculture (extensive and intensive), and cash-cropping. Communism impacted agriculture through collectivization, leading to limited surplus/variety.

Human ecology involves interactions with nature, the food web, and the food chain. Farming practices include crop rotation, multi-cropping, irrigation, and conservation agriculture (no-tillage, crop rotation, inter-planting) aimed at sustainable yield.

Non-food crops have industrial uses. Shifting cultivation and extensive pastoralism can lead to desertification and soil salination.

Agricultural practices are influenced by cultural/religious factors, family history, and available resources. Agricultural revolutions include vegetative/seed planting, tech changes, the Green Revolution, and industrialization/biotechnology.

Agricultural production regions feature industrial agriculture, genetic engineering, corporate agriculture, and specialized agriculture. Mediterranean agriculture focuses on crops like citrus and olives. Plantation agriculture involves specialized crops for export. Dairy production includes milksheds and UHT pasteurization. Women play an essential role in agriculture.