AgricultureAP Human Geography

Food We Have To Eat…….

• How does food appear in your home?

• What do farmers actually do?

• Why can I get oranges/grapes/watermelons all year long?

• Is organic better?

• Can’t we feed the whole world?

• Why can I only buy tomatoes grown in Canada at the store?

What is Agriculture?

Agriculture is:

• The process of domesticating plants or animals for specific characteristics

• A majority of agricultural activities are used for feeding the population

The beginning of agriculture

• We used to Hunt and Gather

The First Agricultural Revolution

• 10,000 + years ago

• Domesticated plants & animals

• Right by our house –

• Became easier to feed ourselves

Second Agricultural Revolution

• Before the Industrial Revolution….

• Can grow food to feed others, not just you

• New techniques:

– Plow

– Crop rotation

– Seed drill

Third Agricultural Revolution

• 20th Century

• More mechanization

• Irrigation techniques

• Scientific help –

Green Revolution – (part of the 3rd Ag. Rev)

• Dramatic increase in grain production 1950-1985

• Latin America then Asia

• High yield seeds

• Chemical fertilizers

• Irrigation dependent

Agricultural Hearth Mapping Activity

Side One

• Hearth =

• Use colors or symbols

• Crops – top map

• Animal – bottom map

Side Two

• Today

• Where the hearth was

• Where we find it today

Due by 2/14

Types of AgricultureWays to farm

Agriculture Block

• Type of farming

• Quick research & design

• Use color

• Make easy to read

• Want to know:

• What it is

• How it works

• Where you find it in the world today

• Types of crops grown (if applicable)

• Symbol or drawing

Taking notes on types of farming

• 15-16 types • How Ms. Smith might set this up:

– 16 squares

–2 lines for each kind

– If I’ve taken notes on KI 3 – I’d just add to that

Other ways to help us think about types of farming

Intensity

• Quantity of Food produced

• Or How much food your land is growing

–A lot = high intensity

–Not as much = low intensity

Technology• Amount of energy that

goes into producing food

–Hand tools = less energy

– Tractors = more energy

–Genetically engineered seed = even more energy

• More tech = more food

Market Orientation

• Who is the food for?

– Subsistence = consumption for the farmer

– Commercial = for the market

Subsistence = low

Commercial = high

What Grows WhereOr why Ms. Smith is not a fan of Canadian produced tomatoes…

Climate map

Climate – major groups

• Tropical Climates

• Semi-Arid/Arid

• Polar/Subarctic

• Humid Subtropical – warmer winters/rain

• Humid Continental – cold winters

• Marine West Coast – that’s us

• Mediterranean

Tropical Climates

• US – Hawaii, Tip of Florida

• World – near the equator – Brazil, DRC, most of SE Asia, Indonesia -Between the Tropic of Cancer and Capricorn

• Good for growing – almost anything, unless is doesn’t like warm temps and rain

• Papaya, Coconut, Banana, Corn, Rice, Sweet Potato, Sugar Cane, Cocoa, Coffee

Semi-Arid/Arid

• Deserts and Dryer areas

• US – Intermountain West –

• World – above and below tropical climates – Mexico, Namibia, Sahara Desert – Pakistan, interior of China, Australia

• Doesn’t grow much without irrigation –usually nomadic pasturing – Cattle Ranching

Polar/Subarctic

• Cold –

• Doesn’t have a long enough growing season for almost anything

• In US – Alaska

• World – northern half of Canada, Siberia, Finland, Norway, Sweden

Humid Subtropical

• US – the South

• World - southern Brazil, Argentina, most of Japan, China coast, East coast of Australia

• Some tropical crops – Rice, Sugarcane, corn, some citrus fruits – Think Florida Oranges

Humid Continental

• US – the “North & Midwest-ish

• World – Poland – Southern Russia, North Korea

• Should be able to grow most things

• Big crops – Wheat, corn, Oats – Staple grains (except rice)

Marine West Coast

• US – Us!

• World – Vancouver CAN, Most of Europe, New Zealand, some of Chile

• Deciduous Fruit Trees –Apples, potatoes, Barley, Oats

Mediterranean

• US – California

• World – Southern Europe –Italy, Spain, Greece, Turkey, Israel

• Perfect for “Mediterranean” type foods – Olives, Citrus, Tomatoes, along with nuts, pears, peaches

Technology can make exceptions of where things will grow – like tomatoes in Canadian Greenhouses

Von Thunen ModelHow commercial agriculture arranges itself

•When you start to have commercial agriculture, a land use pattern begins to emerge based on perishability of products and cost of transportation

Johann Heinrich von Thunen & His model

Based on farming in Germany in the 1800’s

At the center is the city/town/market

1. Market gardening & dairying

most expensive landperishables like garden vegetables & milkwhy? Spoil

2. Forest – why? For fires and buildingwood is heavy

3. field crops, grains – take more land to grow

4. Ranching/ Livestock

need space

Assumptions of the model

• Land/terrain is flat

• Soil/environment was the same everywhere

• No barriers to transportation to market

• Costs govern land use

• The greater the distance from market – the higher the transportation cost

Modified by river

Is it of any use today?

Von Thunen & You

• Does the Von ThunenModel exist in Washington State?

• Do not use marker/ things that go through the paper

• Decide on a color for each ring

• Using the County statistic sheet

• Color county based on #1 crop value and what ring of the Von Thunen model it would belong in

• Answer questions

• Due by …..

Imprint of Agriculture on the cultural landscape

• Pattern of land ownership can be seen in the landscape

• Those patterns can help you deduce when the area was settled, what is most likely grown there.

Rectangular Survey System or Township & Range

Metes and Bounds –

Long-lot Survey

Irrigation