Agriculture Review

Origins of Agriculture

• Agriculture involves modifying Earth's surface through cultivation of plants and rearing animals for sustenance or economic gain.

• Vegetative Planting: Reproduction of plants by direct cloning from existing plants.

  • Examples: Southeast Asia, West Africa, NW South America.

• Seed Agriculture: Reproduction of plants through annual planting of seeds resulting from sexual fertilization.

  • Examples: Western India, Northern China, Ethiopia, Southern Mexico, Northern Peru.

• Carl Sauer believed vegetative planting was the earliest form of plant cultivation.

Types of Farming

• Subsistence Farming: Production of food primarily for the farmer's family consumption.

• Commercial Farming: Production of food primarily for sale off the farm.

• Percentage of Farmers in Labor Force:

  • More than half globally, less than one-tenth in some regions.

• Use of Machinery:

  • Small farms rely on people or animals, while large farms use machinery.

• Farm Size:

  • Small farms vs. large farms, with US farms averaging 444 acres.

• Relationship to Other Businesses:

  • Isolated vs. closely tied to other businesses, integrated into agribusiness.

Events in the History of Agriculture

• First Agricultural Revolution: Transition from hunting and gathering to plant and animal domestication.

• Second Agricultural Revolution: Increase in agricultural production linked to new practices like crop rotation.

• Columbian Exchange: Transfer of plants, animals, and ideas between the Americas and the Old World.

• Third Agricultural Revolution (Green Revolution): Increased agricultural production through new technologies.

• Fourth Agricultural Revolution: Focus on engineering, digital agriculture, and organic farming.

Agriculture Types in LDCs

• Shifting Cultivation: Clearing land for planting, common in humid, low-latitude regions.

• Pastoral Nomadism: Based on herding animals, declining due to technology.

• Intensive Subsistence: Farmers maximize yield from land, common in high-density areas.

• Plantation: Large farms specializing in one or two crops, found in tropics and subtropics.

Agriculture Types in MDCs

• Mixed Crop & Livestock: Integration of crops and livestock, common in regions like the Corn Belt.

• Dairy Farming: Important near urban areas, requires constant attention.

• Grain Farming: Primarily for human consumption, important for US and Canada's economic strength.

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• Livestock Farming and Ranching

  • Commercial grazing of livestock over extensive areas

  • Found in semi-arid or arid lands with sparse vegetation

• Mediterranean Agriculture

  • Crops grown for human consumption in Mediterranean lands

  • Includes horticulture, tree crops, fruits, vegetables, and flowers

  • Regions like Southern Europe, North Africa, Western Asia, California, Chile, South Africa, and Australia

• Commercial Gardening & Fruit Farming

  • Truck farming involves bartering or exchanging commodities

  • Predominant in the US Southeast with long growing seasons and humid climates

  • Utilizes migrant workers and experimentation to keep prices low

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• Von Thunen Model

  • Explains crop selection based on transportation costs to market

  • Considers yield value per hectare and transportation costs

• Rings in the Model

  • First Ring: garden and dairy products for quick market reach

  • Second Ring: wood lots due to weight importance

  • Third Ring: grains and field crops

  • Outside Ring: animal grazing requiring ample space

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• Assumptions of the Model

  • Isolation of the market with no external trade

  • Uniform flat land with consistent fertility

  • Transportation via horses and carts

• Factors not considered

  • Human factors, improved transportation, technology, regional markets, and corporations

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• Food Crisis and Climate Change

  • Ester Boserup's theory on population change driving agricultural intensity

  • Impact of climate change on agriculture and vice versa

  • Extreme weather events disrupting land, crops, and growing seasons

  • Agriculture's contribution to carbon dioxide emissions and deforestation

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• Modern Agriculture

  • Industrial agriculture with benefits like cheap food and convenience

  • Drawbacks include environmental and social costs, health risks, and pollution

  • Agribusiness integration and sustainable agriculture practices

• Challenges for Farmers

  • Subsistence and commercial farmers facing the need to produce more food sustainably

  • Issues like urban expansion, desertification, and market power consolidation

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• Famine & Malnutrition

  • Hunger and malnutrition definitions

  • Food desert vs. food oasis

  • Strategies to increase food supply through land expansion, higher production methods, new food sources, and imports

• Women in Agriculture

  • Empowering women for better family health and food security

  • Women's critical role in agriculture, income generation, and nutrition