AGRICULTURAL PRACTICES Quiz

PDF page 200: Agriculture is a science, a business, and an art (Figures 10.4 and 10.5). Spatially, agriculture is the world’s most widely distributed industry. It occupies more area than all other industries combined, changing the surface of the Earth more than any other. Farming, with its multiple methods, has significantly transformed the landscape (small or large fields, terraces, polders, livestock grazing), being an important reflection of the two-way relationship between people and their environments. The world’s agricultural societies today are very diverse and complex, with agricultural practices ranging from the most rudimentary, such as using the ox-pulled plow, to the most complex, such as using machines, tractors, satellite navigation, and genetic engineering methods. Customarily, scholars divide agricultural societies into categories such as subsistence, intermediate, and developed, words that express the same ideas as primitive, traditional, and modern, respectively. For the purpose of simplification, farming practices described in this chapter are classified into two categories, subsistence and commercial, with fundamental differences between their practice in developed and developing countries.

PDF page 200: Agriculture is a science, a business, and an art (Figures 10.4 and 10.5). Spatially, agriculture is the world’s most widely distributed industry. It occupies more area than all other industries combined, changing the surface of the Earth more than any other. Farming, with its multiple methods, has significantly transformed the landscape (small or large fields, terraces, polders, livestock grazing), being an important reflection of the two-way relationship between people and their environments. The world’s agricultural societies today are very diverse and complex, with agricultural practices ranging from the most rudimentary, such as using the ox-pulled plow, to the most complex, such as using machines, tractors, satellite navigation, and genetic engineering methods. Customarily, scholars divide agricultural societies into categories such as subsistence, intermediate, and developed, words that express the same ideas as primitive, traditional, and modern, respectively. For the purpose of simplification, farming practices described in this chapter are classified into two categories, subsistence and commercial, with fundamental differences between their practice in developed and developing countries.

PDF page 200: Subsistence agriculture replaced hunting and gathering in many parts of the globe. The term subsistence, when it relates to farming, refers to growing food only to sustain the farmers themselves and their families, consuming most of what they produce, without entering into the cash economy of the country. The farm size is small, 2-5 acres (1-2 hectares), but the agriculture is less mechanized; therefore, the percentage of workers engaged directly in farming is very high, reaching 50 percent or more in some developing countries (Figure 10.6). Climate regions play an important role in determining agricultural regions. Farming activities range

PDF page 201: Shifting Cultivation Shifting cultivation, also known as slash-and-burn agriculture, is a form of subsistence agriculture that involves a kind of natural rotation system. Shifting cultivation is a way of life for 150-200 million people, globally distributed in the tropicalareas,especiallyintherainforests of South America, Central and West Africa, and Southeast Asia. The practices involve removing dense vegetation, burning the debris, clearing the area, known as swidden, and preparing it for cultivation (Figures 10.7). Shifting cultivation can successfully support only low population densities and, as a result of rapid depletion of soil fertility, the fields are actively cultivated usually for three years. As a result, the infertile Figure 10.7 | Slash-and-Burn Farming in Thailand

PDF page 201: Shifting Cultivation Shifting cultivation, also known as slash-and-burn agriculture, is a form of subsistence agriculture that involves a kind of natural rotation system. Shifting cultivation is a way of life for 150-200 million people, globally distributed in the tropicalareas,especiallyintherainforests of South America, Central and West Africa, and Southeast Asia. The practices involve removing dense vegetation, burning the debris, clearing the area, known as swidden, and preparing it for cultivation (Figures 10.7). Shifting cultivation can successfully support only low population densities and, as a result of rapid depletion of soil fertility, the fields are actively cultivated usually for three years. As a result, the infertile Figure 10.7 | Slash-and-Burn Farming in Thailand

PDF page 201: Shifting Cultivation Shifting cultivation, also known as slash-and-burn agriculture, is a form of subsistence agriculture that involves a kind of natural rotation system. Shifting cultivation is a way of life for 150-200 million people, globally distributed in the tropicalareas,especiallyintherainforests of South America, Central and West Africa, and Southeast Asia. The practices involve removing dense vegetation, burning the debris, clearing the area, known as swidden, and preparing it for cultivation (Figures 10.7). Shifting cultivation can successfully support only low population densities and, as a result of rapid depletion of soil fertility, the fields are actively cultivated usually for three years. As a result, the infertile Figure 10.7 | Slash-and-Burn Farming in Thailand

PDF page 202: Pastoralism Involving the breeding and herding of animals, pastoralism is another extensive form of subsistence agriculture. It is adapted to cold and/or dry climates of savannas (grasslands), deserts, steppes, high plateaus, and Arctic zones where planting crops is impracticable. Specifically, the practice is characteristic in Africa [north, central (Sahel) and south], the Middle East, central and southwest Asia, the Mediterranean basin, and Scandinavia. The species of animals vary with the region of the world including especially sheep, goats, cattle, reindeer, and camels. Pastoralism is a successful strategy to support a population on less productive land, and adapts well to the environment. Three categories of pastoralism can be individualized: sedentary, nomadic, and transhumance. Sedentary pastoralism refers to those farmers who live in their villages and their herd animals in nearby pastures. A number of men usually are hired by the villagers in order to take care of their animals. Equally important is the practice in which the hired men gather the animals (cattle especially) in the morning, feed them during the day in the nearby pasture, and then return them to the village early in the evening. This is the typical pattern for many traditional European pastoralists. Nomadic pastoralism is a traditional form of subsistence agriculture in which the pastoralists travel with their herds over long distances and with no fixed pattern. This is a continuous movement of groups of herds and people such as the Bedouins of Saudi Arabia, the Bakhtiaris of Iran, the Berbers of North Africa, the Maasai of East Africa, the Zulus of South Africa, the Mongols of Central Asia, and other groups. The settlement landscape of pastoral nomads reflects their need for mobility and flexibility. Usually, they live in a type of tent (known as yurt in Central Asia) and move their herds to any available pasture (Figure 10.8). Although there are approximately 10-15 million nomadic pastoralists in the world, they occupy about 20 percent of Earth’s land area. Today, their life is in decline, the victim of more constricting political borders, competing land uses, selective overgrazing, and government resettlement programs. Transhumance is a seasonal vertical movement by herding the livestock (cows, sheep, goats, and horses) to cooler, greener high-country pastures in the summer and then returning them to lowland settings for fall and winter grazing.

PDF page 202: Pastoralism Involving the breeding and herding of animals, pastoralism is another extensive form of subsistence agriculture. It is adapted to cold and/or dry climates of savannas (grasslands), deserts, steppes, high plateaus, and Arctic zones where planting crops is impracticable. Specifically, the practice is characteristic in Africa [north, central (Sahel) and south], the Middle East, central and southwest Asia, the Mediterranean basin, and Scandinavia. The species of animals vary with the region of the world including especially sheep, goats, cattle, reindeer, and camels. Pastoralism is a successful strategy to support a population on less productive land, and adapts well to the environment. Three categories of pastoralism can be individualized: sedentary, nomadic, and transhumance. Sedentary pastoralism refers to those farmers who live in their villages and their herd animals in nearby pastures. A number of men usually are hired by the villagers in order to take care of their animals. Equally important is the practice in which the hired men gather the animals (cattle especially) in the morning, feed them during the day in the nearby pasture, and then return them to the village early in the evening. This is the typical pattern for many traditional European pastoralists. Nomadic pastoralism is a traditional form of subsistence agriculture in which the pastoralists travel with their herds over long distances and with no fixed pattern. This is a continuous movement of groups of herds and people such as the Bedouins of Saudi Arabia, the Bakhtiaris of Iran, the Berbers of North Africa, the Maasai of East Africa, the Zulus of South Africa, the Mongols of Central Asia, and other groups. The settlement landscape of pastoral nomads reflects their need for mobility and flexibility. Usually, they live in a type of tent (known as yurt in Central Asia) and move their herds to any available pasture (Figure 10.8). Although there are approximately 10-15 million nomadic pastoralists in the world, they occupy about 20 percent of Earth’s land area. Today, their life is in decline, the victim of more constricting political borders, competing land uses, selective overgrazing, and government resettlement programs. Transhumance is a seasonal vertical movement by herding the livestock (cows, sheep, goats, and horses) to cooler, greener high-country pastures in the summer and then returning them to lowland settings for fall and winter grazing.

PDF page 202: Pastoralism Involving the breeding and herding of animals, pastoralism is another extensive form of subsistence agriculture. It is adapted to cold and/or dry climates of savannas (grasslands), deserts, steppes, high plateaus, and Arctic zones where planting crops is impracticable. Specifically, the practice is characteristic in Africa [north, central (Sahel) and south], the Middle East, central and southwest Asia, the Mediterranean basin, and Scandinavia. The species of animals vary with the region of the world including especially sheep, goats, cattle, reindeer, and camels. Pastoralism is a successful strategy to support a population on less productive land, and adapts well to the environment. Three categories of pastoralism can be individualized: sedentary, nomadic, and transhumance. Sedentary pastoralism refers to those farmers who live in their villages and their herd animals in nearby pastures. A number of men usually are hired by the villagers in order to take care of their animals. Equally important is the practice in which the hired men gather the animals (cattle especially) in the morning, feed them during the day in the nearby pasture, and then return them to the village early in the evening. This is the typical pattern for many traditional European pastoralists. Nomadic pastoralism is a traditional form of subsistence agriculture in which the pastoralists travel with their herds over long distances and with no fixed pattern. This is a continuous movement of groups of herds and people such as the Bedouins of Saudi Arabia, the Bakhtiaris of Iran, the Berbers of North Africa, the Maasai of East Africa, the Zulus of South Africa, the Mongols of Central Asia, and other groups. The settlement landscape of pastoral nomads reflects their need for mobility and flexibility. Usually, they live in a type of tent (known as yurt in Central Asia) and move their herds to any available pasture (Figure 10.8). Although there are approximately 10-15 million nomadic pastoralists in the world, they occupy about 20 percent of Earth’s land area. Today, their life is in decline, the victim of more constricting political borders, competing land uses, selective overgrazing, and government resettlement programs. Transhumance is a seasonal vertical movement by herding the livestock (cows, sheep, goats, and horses) to cooler, greener high-country pastures in the summer and then returning them to lowland settings for fall and winter grazing.

PDF page 204: Intensive Subsistence Agriculture Intensive subsistence agriculture, characteristic of densely populated regions especially in southern, southeastern, and eastern Asia, involves the effective and efficient use of small parcels of land in order to maximize crop yield per acre. The practice requires intensive human labor, with most of the work being done by hand and/or with animals. The landscape of intensive subsistence agriculture is significantly transformed, including hillside terraces and raised fields, adding the irrigation systems and fertilizers (Figures 10.11 and 10.12). As a result, intensive subsistence agriculture is able to support large rural populations. Rice is the dominant crop in the humid areas of southern, southeastern, and eastern Asia. In the drier areas, other crops are cultivated such as grains (wheat, corn, barley, millet, sorghum, and oats), as well as peanuts, soybeans, tubers, and vegetables. In both situations, the land is intensively used, and the milder climate of those regions allows double cropping (the fields are planted and harvested two times per year).

PDF page 204: Intensive Subsistence Agriculture Intensive subsistence agriculture, characteristic of densely populated regions especially in southern, southeastern, and eastern Asia, involves the effective and efficient use of small parcels of land in order to maximize crop yield per acre. The practice requires intensive human labor, with most of the work being done by hand and/or with animals. The landscape of intensive subsistence agriculture is significantly transformed, including hillside terraces and raised fields, adding the irrigation systems and fertilizers (Figures 10.11 and 10.12). As a result, intensive subsistence agriculture is able to support large rural populations. Rice is the dominant crop in the humid areas of southern, southeastern, and eastern Asia. In the drier areas, other crops are cultivated such as grains (wheat, corn, barley, millet, sorghum, and oats), as well as peanuts, soybeans, tubers, and vegetables. In both situations, the land is intensively used, and the milder climate of those regions allows double cropping (the fields are planted and harvested two times per year).

PDF page 204: In recent decades, as the result of the introduction of higher-yielding grain varieties such as wheat, corn, and rice, known as Green Revolution, tens of millions of subsistence farmers have been lifted above the survival level. The spread of these new varieties throughout the farmlands of South, Southeast, and East Asia, and Mexico greatly improved the supply of food in these areas. Equally important was the use of fertilizers, pesticides, irrigation, and new machines. Today, China and India are self-sufficient in basic foods, while Thailand and Vietnam are two of the top rice exporters in the world. Although hunger and famine still persist in some regions of the world, especially in Africa, many people accept that they would be much worse without using these innovations.