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5.1

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 as a result of 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.

tropical wet and dry climate: a climate located along the equator that has a dry season with little to no rain, usually in the winter; is often subject to monsoons.

monsoon: seasonal reversal of winds with a general onshore movement in summer and a general offshore movement in winter; onshore winds bring monsoon rains.

monsoon rains: long periods of heavy rains every day at the end of a short dry season.

arid climate: a climate that receives less than 10 inches (25 centimeters) of rain annually.

semiarid (steppe) climate: a climate that receives about 10 to 20 inches (25 to 50 centimeters) of rain annually that can support farming.

moderate climate: a climate with an average year-round temperature of 75 degrees fahrenheit (24 degrees celsius); found north and south of the equator on the edges of tropical climates.

humid subtropical climate: a climate with long, hot summers and short, mild winters with variable precipitation; found on east coasts of continents.

marine west coast climate: a climate found along western coasts of continents closer to the poles; characterized by moderate temperatures during long summers and cool winters.

mediterranean climate: a climate with winter precipitation, unusually mild winters, and clear skies with abundant sunshine; found along the mediterranean sea and a few coastal regions.

continental climate: a climate that has a large range of temperatures and moderate precipitation; found in the interior of continents, north of the moderate climate zones.

humid continental climate: a climate with a wide range of temperatures, moderate precipitation, and four distinct seasons; experiences warm to hot summers, moderate to abundant rainfall (20–50 inches [50–150 centimeters] annually), and cold winters with precipitation falling as snow.

humid cold climate: a climate with frigid temperatures nearly year-round; found in northern reaches of the continental climate zone and often described as subarctic.

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.

commercial agriculture: farming oriented exclusively toward the production of agricultural commodities for sale in the market.

market gardening: a small-scale farming system in which a farmer plants one to a few acres that produce a diverse mixture of vegetables and fruits, mostly for sale in local and regional markets.

truck farm: a scaled-up version of market gardening, with more acreage, less crop diversity, and a stronger orientation toward more distant markets.

plantation: large landholding devoted to capital-intensive, specialized production of a single tropical or subtropical crop for the global marketplace.

mixed crop/livestock agriculture: a diversified system of agriculture based on the cultivation of cereal grains and root crops (such as potatoes and yams) and the rearing of herd livestock.

cereal grains: seeds that come from a wide variety of grasses cultivated around the world, including wheat, barley, sorghum, millet, oats, and maize (corn).

millet: a fast-growing cereal plant that is widely grown in warm regions with poor soil.

root crops: vegetables that form below ground and must be dug at maturity, such as cassava, potatoes, and yams.

cash crop: a crop raised to be sold for profit rather than to feed the farm family and the livestock; common cash crops are cotton, flax, hemp, coffee, and tobacco.

peasants: small-scale farmers who own their fields, rely chiefly on family labor, and produce both for their own subsistence and for sale in the market.

paddy rice farming: a system of wet rice cultivation on small level fields bordered by impermeable dikes; the fields (paddies) are flooded with 4–6 inches (10–15 centimeters) of water for about three-quarters of the growing season.

grain farming: a highly mechanized commercial farming system that specializes in the production of cereal grains; requires large farms and widespread use of machinery, synthetic fertilizer, pesticides, and genetically engineered seeds.

livestock fattening: an intensive system of animal feeding utilizing fenced enclosures to fatten livestock, mostly cattle and hogs, for slaughter and processing for the market.

feedlot: a fenced enclosure used for intensive livestock feeding that serves to limit livestock movement and associated weight loss.

dairying: a farming system that specializes in the breeding, rearing, and utilization of livestock (primarily cows) to produce milk and its various by-products, such as yogurt, butter, and cheese.

extensive agriculture: crop cultivation and livestock rearing systems that require little hired labor or monetary investment to successfully raise crops and animals.

shifting cultivation: the cultivation of a plot of land until it becomes less productive, typically over a period of about three to five years; when productivity drops, the farmer shifts to a new plot of land that has been prepared by slash-and-burn agriculture.

slash-and-burn (swidden) agriculture: agriculture that involves cutting small plots in forests or woodlands, burning the cuttings to clear the ground and release nutrients, and planting in the ash of the cleared plot.

intercropping: the farming practice of planting multiple crops together in the same clearing.

nomadic herding (nomadic pastoralism or pastoralism): a system of breeding and rearing herd livestock, such as cattle, sheep, or goats, by following the seasonal movement of rainfall to areas of open pasturelands.

tundra: the vast, flat, treeless arctic region of europe, asia, and north america in which the subsoil is permanently frozen.

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

5.2

rural area:

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

rural settlement:

Small group of people living outside of an urban area

agricultural landscape:

The visible imprint of agricultural practices

suitcase farm:

In U.S. commercial grain agriculture regions, a farm on which no one lives; planting and harvesting are done by hired migratory crews

silo:

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

settlement patterns:

The ways in which people organize themselves on the land

clustered settlement or farm village:

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

farmstead:

Center of farm operations, which includes the farmhouse, barns, shed, livestock pens, and family garden

dispersed settlement or isolated settlement pattern:

A settlement pattern in which families live relatively distant from one another

linear settlement pattern:

A settlement pattern in which buildings are arranged in a line, often along a road or river; limited to areas where legal systems dictated that property lines must be rectangular

survey methods:

The methods used by surveyors to lay out property lines

cadastral survey:

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

metes and bounds:

Survey system that uses natural features such as trees, boulders, and streams to delineate property boundaries

township and range:

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

long-lot survey system:

A unit-block surveying system whose basic unit is a rectangle that is typically 10 times longer than it is wide