Agriculture

Agricultural Hearths – 1st Agricultural Revolution

Carl Sauer’s beliefs on domestication Domestication probably did not develop in response to hunger Starving people must spend every waking hour searching for food Started by people who had enough food to remain settled in one place Did not occur in grasslands or river floodplains because of thick sod and periodic flooding Must have started in regions where many different kinds of wild plants grew Started in hilly district areas, where climates change with differing sun exposure and altitude Vegetative Planting 1st (transplanting part of actual plant) then Seed Planting

Diffusion along Trade Routes Techniques as well as foods

Subsistence Agriculture Commercial Agriculture Found in LDC’s Commercial Agriculture Found in MDC’s Distinguishing features Purpose of farming % of farmers in the labor force Use of machinery Farm size Relationship of farming to other businesses Rubenstein p. 330-333

Percent of Labor Force engaged in Agriculture Rub. Map 331

Agricultural Regions By Derwent Whittlesey, 1936 11 main agricultural regions 5 in LDC’s 6 in MDC’s Plus 1 where ag is nonexistent

LDC: Shifting Cultivation Characterized by Slash and burn agriculture Using field for only a few years Cleared land called Swidden or ladang, milpa, chena or kaingin Crops SE Asia: rice S America: maize & cassava Africa: millet & sorghum

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LDC: Pastoral Nomadism A form of subsistence agricultural Located in semiarid lands of: N. Africa, Middle East, Central Asia Only 15 million people are pastoral nomads but use 20% of Earth’s land area Transhumance

LDC: Intensive Subsistence Agriculture w/wet rice Intensive: farmers more work more intensively to subsist Areas of high population density resulting in less land available/farmer Some are wet rice areas Some have double cropping

LDC: Intensive Subsistence Agriculture wet rice not dominant Areas with low precipitation Crops: wheat, barley, legumes, etc. Crop rotation Common in Communist China

LDC: Plantation Farming A large farm that specializes in one or two crops: cotton, sugarcane, coffee, rubber & tobacco Usually in subtropics Usually in areas of low population density – must import workers

MDC: Mixed Crop & Livestock Most common form of commercial ag in US Most crops are fed to animals rather than for human consumption – corn or soybeans common Uses crop rotation Rub. Map 343

MDC: Dairy Farming Once only in MDC’s, now more common in S & E Asia – India is the #1 producer Must be close to market – milkshed Improved transportation and refrigeration have increased milkshed radius Rub. Map p. 344

MDC: Grain Farming Crops grown primarily for human consumption Grains are: wheat, corn, oats, barley, rice, millet, etc. Stores easily & transported a long distance N. Am prairies – world’s “breadbasket” Rub. Map 346

MDC: Livestock Ranching Commercial grazing of livestock over an extensive area Range wars caused by enclosures Introduction of new cattle breeds Non-US ranching: Spain, Portugal, Argentina, southern Brazil & Uruguay Rub. Map 348

MDC: Mediterranean Ag. S. Europe, N. Africa, w. Asia, California, central Chile, & sw. Australia All of the above borders seas, most on west coast off continents Mostly horticulture: fruits, vegetables, and flowers & commercial tree crops Most of world’s olives & grapes produced in Med. areas

MDC: Commercial Gardening Predominant in se US Aka “truck farming” (truck was a Middle English word for bartering) Highly efficient large-scale operations New England has specialty farming – limited but increased demand among affluent, ex: asparugus, strawberries, etc.

2nd Agricultural Rev. 1750-1900 – with the Industrial Rev. Increased productivity More food with less farmers Esther Boserup - agric. output depends on the pop. - Anti-Malthusian 5 stages of intensification of farmland 1. forest fallow, 2. bush fallow 3. short fallow 4. annual cropping 5. multicropping

Green (3rd) Revolution Invention and quick diffusion of agricultural techniques during 1960’s-80’s Main techniques Genetic Engineering Higher-yield seeds – Norman Borlaug Drought/disease resistance Quicker growing season (double-cropping) Expanded use of fertilizers Need tractors, irrigation pumps & other machinery to take full advantage