environment and population

• farms are open systems
• inputs on a farm include physical , cultural , economic and behavioural influences
• as an area develops more economically , physical factors become less important and human inputs increase in influence
• outputs of farm are products they sell or waste products
• intensive farming is small scale and can be either:

  • capital intensive
  • labour intensive
• capital intensive farming features:

  • money invested in soil improvement , machinery , buildings , pest control
  • few people employed , output high per hectare and per worker
• commercial farming- outputs sold
• monoculture - high intensities of one crop
• physical inputs of an agricultural system:

  • temperature
  • rain
  • soils
  • weather
  • location (relief)
• cultural inputs of an agricultural region:

  • tenure (right to use land)
  • farm size
  • inheritance
• economic inputs of an agricultural system:

  • markets
  • government
  • buildings
  • machinery
• behavioural inputs of an agricultural system:

  • age
  • knowledge
  • experience
• processes in an agricultural system:

  • tending crops
  • tending livestock
  • collecting produce
  • planting seeds
  • harvesting
  • breeding
• processes in an agricultural system is farming methods that turn inputs into outputs
• as an area develops more , the physical inputs of an agricultural system matter less , human factors matter more
• useful outputs of an agricultural system:

  • food crops
  • livestock produce
  • other crops - cotton ,silk
  • excess products
• wasteful outputs of an agricultural system:

  • waste products
  • uneaten food
  • losses in crops and livestock from natural disasters e.g flooding and droughts
• extensive farming is large scale over a large area
• types of extensive farming:

  • labour force low , high capital input
  • low labour force , rely on land to provide them for sufficient crops
• commercial farming - outputs sold
• monoculture - high intensities of one crop
• subsistence farming - outputs for consumption for farmers
• soil - black or brown material that has a mixture of organic remains , holds gases and water within its pores
• characterists of latosol :

  • short nutrient cycle
  • low hummus
  • heavy leeching
  • red colour
• physical environmental factors influencing agriculture:

  • temperature
  • precipitation
  • wind
  • soil quality
  • relief variables
• temperature dictates length of growing seasons for crops

  • in temperature climates e.g Uk , growing season exceeds three month (above 6 degrees)