AGRICULTURE AND RURAL LAND USE
DEVELOPMENT AND DIFFUSION
• NEOLITHIC REVOLUTION – w,w,w,w
• SECOND AG REVOLUTION – w,w,w,w
• THIRD AG REVOLUTION – w,w,w,w
AG PRODUCTION HEARTHS
• Upper SE Asian Mainlands, Lower SE Asian Mainland, Eastern India, SWA, East African Highlands, Meso-America
• North-Central China, Mediterranean Basin, Western Sudan, Andean Highlands, Eastern South America
AG PRODUCTION VARIANCES
• Nigerian women spread seeds
•Slash and burn in Peru
•Center pivot irrigation in Oregon
AG SYSTEMS in CLIMATE ZONES
AGRICULTURAL EVOLUTION
• Hunting & Gathering
• Shifting Cultivation
(slash-and-burn)
• Pastoral Nomadism
AGRICULTURAL EVOLUTION
• Subsistence Ag
• Commercial Ag
• Mixed Crop & Livestock
AGRICULTURAL EVOLUTION
• Dairy Farming
• Grain Farming
• Livestock Ranching
AGRICULTURAL EVOLUTION
• Mediterranean Ag
Commercial Gardening/Fruit Farming
• Plantation Farming
AGRICULTURAL FLOWS
• Columbian Exchange• NAFTA
von THUNEN MODEL
• Originator of spatial models
• Focused on maximizing the profit from his ag lands
von THUNEN MODEL
von THUNEN MODEL
• “Isolated state” – no trade connections
• Possessed only one market
• Located centrally in the state
• Uniform soil, climate, level of terrain
• All farmers lived equal distance from market and had equal access to it
• Farmers sought maximum profits
von THUNEN MODEL
von THUNEN MODEL
von THUNEN MODEL
von THUNEN MODEL
THIRD AG REVOLUTION
• The complex of seed and management improvements adapted to the needs of intensive agriculture that have brought larger harvests from a given area of farmland
• 1965-1995, world cereal production rose 90%, mostly due to increased crop yields rather than expanding cropland
THIRD AG REVOLUTION
• 1965-1983 average yields• Rice 52%; Wheat 66%;
THIRD AG REVOLUTION
• Advancements in PINGS (Mali) has helped delay famine and extended life expectancies
• PEDS haven’t slowed down – always pushing to find new technologies
THIRD AG REVOLUTION
• HIGH INPUT – HIGH YIELD CROPS
• New variations of seeds/plants
• Irrigation
• Mechanization
• Fertilization
• Use of pesticides
• More food
THIRD AG REVOLUTION
• Irrigation has destroyed large tracts of land
• Ground water depletion• Conflict between agricultural societies and
urban sprawl
CHARACTERISTICS OF THE THIRD AG REVOLUTION
• Blending of primary, secondary, tertiary, and quaternary sectors
CHARACTERISTICS OF THE THIRD AG REVOLUTION
• Increased mechanization
•Development of biotechnology
HOPES & FEARS ABOUT THE FUTURE
• Will we be able to produce enough food for the world’s people? At what cost – economic and environmental?