Agricultural Landscapes I

1. Agricultural Landscapes I HO Pui-sing

2. Contents • Introduction • Agricultural Systems • Impacts of Urbanization and Industrialization on Agricultural Landscapes

3. Introduction • Importance of Agriculture • The Landscapes of Medium Human Impact Film 2 Film 1

4. Importance of Agriculture • Agriculture refers to the raising of crops and livestock by man to produce useful commodities. • It is a economic activity and the most basic of all. • Food supply, raw materials for industry • 2/3 people are engaged in various forms of agriculture all over the world. • It is a way of life. • Agricultural land occupies 33% of the earth’s land surface. (11% cropland, 22% pasture) • Farms products are very important elements in world trade. (many countries cannot produce enough food for their own needs)

5. Influence of the Environment • Physical factors set outer limits to farming (temperature, rainfall, landforms, soil types,growing season….) • Physical factors determine the outer boundaries for the production of particular crops or animals and the areas of optimum yields. (rice, wheat, sugar cane, dairying, …….)

6. Impacts on the Environment • Farmer is constantly modifying the natural environment. • Clear the forest, planting, plough land, sow crops, adding fertilizers….. New landscape • Use a unsuitable farming method in the environment and causes serious consequences • Over-cropping and over-grazing cause soil erosion • Using chemical fertilizers and pesticides gain enormous benefits and environment pollution (Eutrophication)

7. Impacts on the Environment cont’d • Man is increasingly trying various methods of overcoming the physical environment • Modified soil: terrace, wet lowlands drained, coastlands reclaimed, adding chemicals (fertilizers, pesticides, weedicides) • New varieties of plants and animals • Requirement: large input of capital and labour (extremely high cost) • Developed countries can lessen to some extent the influence of physical environment.

8. Agricultural systems • Human organized system • Ecological system • Economic system • Classification of World Agriculture • Physical components affecting agriculture • Cultural components affecting agriculture

9. Human organized system • Agriculture is a organized system is which man applies his skills to the natural environment for economic gain. • Inputs(organized natural and human inputs) • Natural elements • Landforms, climate, soil, …. • Human elements • Level of civilization, social organization, technological and management skills, political organization

10. Human organized system - cont’d • Outputs • Crops and animal products • Arable farming • Plant crops: rice, wheat, rubber,….. • Livestock farming • Animal products: meat, wool, milk,….. • (Herding, grazing, ranching, pastoralism) • Mixed farming • Bothplant and animal products • Eg. Australia’s wheat-sheep farming

11. Human organized system – cont’d • Man-land combinationsvary considerably from place to place and forms various agricultural systems • Commercial agricultural system • Human inputs > natural inputs • For food, manufacturing and urban • Developed countries • Subsistence agricultural system • Natural inputs > human inputs • For local tribal or village communities • Developing countries

12. Human organized system – cont’d • Dynamics • Man can alter the human inputs and natural inputs. • Human inputs: • cultural inputs, fertilizers, pesticides • His activities will modify the natural environment (natural inputs) • Conscious:irrigation, greenhouse,…. • Unconscious: climate changes

13. Ecological system • Farm is a manipulated ecosystem • For yields (desired products) • Provide the most favourable conditions for the plants and animals he wishes to produce.

14. Ecological system – cont’d

15. Ecological system – Energy Flow • Natural ecosystem • Only source of energy from the sun • Living plant tissues use up about 0.02% of the total energy input • Energy transfer: • Start from photosynthesis and passed along food chains, released in the form of heat to environment • Agricultural ecosystem • Energy sources: sun + various energy inputs • Subsistence farming system: animate energy • Commercial farming system: fossil fuel energy

16. Ecological system - Energy Flow • Energy from human environment greatly depend on the culture of societies • Developing countries • Simple hand tools (shifting cultivators) • Developed countries • Petrol oil for vehicles, tractors, combined-harvesters and chemicals

17. Ecological system – Energy Flow • Energy efficiency • Energy Yield Ratio=energy output / energy input

18. Ecological system – Nutrient Cycle • Natural • Nutrients circulatewithin the ecosystem. • Nutrients are replaced again and again within different parts of the ecosystem. • Agricultural system • Nutrients may be removed entirely by prolonged cropping without compensating fertilizer input. • Nutrients may be heavily subsidized by input of chemical fertilizers. • Nutrients can be unavailable or accumulate to toxic level.

19. Ecological system - Stability • Natural • Solar energy drive energy flow and nutrients cycle. • Complex ecological linkages with a great variety of plants and animal species.(biodiversity) • It is self-maintained and stable. • Agricultural system • Energy flow and nutrients cycle are drive by solar energy and human energy inputs • Fewer crops and animals or even monoculture • It is maintained by much human effort so it is unstable comparatively.

20. Economic system • Inputs as capital and human effort • Investment (inputs) • Form of money • Form of labour • Outputs as financial gain • Farmers need to make decision about how much they are going to invest and in what aspects they are going to invest.

21. Economic system – decision making • Key questions? • What to produce? • How much to produce? • How to produce? • How much to invest? • What to hire or lease? • How much to hire or lease? • Where and how to buy? • Where and how to sell?

22. Economic system – decision making • Differences in land use, cropping, use of biological inputs, total outputs and farming methods…etc. are the result of decision by farmers. • Agricultural patterns are the sum of total millions of individual decisions taken by farmers. • Decision making is a process which is influenced by • Behavioural elements • Chance elements • Perception level of the decision makers • Personal background (social, cultural, educational..) • Information and ability • Past experience • Perception of the environment will affect the decision they make. But the final goal is profit satisfaction.

23. Economic system – decision making • Decisions result in action which may result in land use patterns, wealth or poverty. • Wealth economic surplus innovation • Poverty stagnation

24. Papua New Guinea Subsistence economy Farmers Minimum investment (human and cultural inputs) For tribal or village consumption Localize Response to natural conditions Australia Commercial economy Entrepreneurs Heavy investment (human and cultural inputs) For sale (foodstuff, industry, urban) Globalize Response to markets Economic system – decision making

25. Economic system – decision making • We have general assumption that all farmers aim at maximizing their outputs. • In fact, they very often do not • Reasons: • They haven’t knowledge to make the best use of land • They haven’t enough information and ability to use info. • They cannot afford fertilizers or machinery • Social customs may work against improvement • Personal characteristics • Farmers are satisfiers • Farmers may be conservative and consider a low degree of risk • Farmers don’t want the extra work and they want to have more leisure time. • Others

26. Classification of World Agriculture • Arable farming: Growing crops • Pastoral farming: Rearing animals • Mixed farming: Growing crops and rearing animals • Commercial farming: For sale and exchange • Subsistence farming: For farmer’s own family • Cash-cropping: Growing cash-crops • Large-scale farming: Undertake on large farms • Small-scale farming: undertake on small farms • Intensive and Extensive farming: • Refer to the amount of combinedlabour and capital inputs per unit of area farmland

27. Intensive Farming High volume of inputsper hectare (both natural and human) High man-land ratio High density of rural population Small farmland or land is very expensive Farmland close to market Large output per hectare Eg. SE Asia, China, Japan Netherlands, New Zealand Extensive Farming Low volume of inputs per hectare (both natural and human) Low man-land ratio Low density of rural population Farmland is plentiful or land is cheap Remote to markets Small output per hectare Eg. N. American and Australia Classification of World Agriculture

28. Physical components affecting agriculture • Physical environment affects the location and intensity of farming system • It may limit the range of farming systems that can be carried out at a given site. • Physical components • Climate: • Precipitation, snow, temperature, frost, wind, light and cloud cover • Relief: • Soil

29. Climate - precipitation • Annual total rainfall: It determines types of crops • >2000mm (rice, rubber..) • 400~800mm (wheat) • Seasonal distribution: It determines types of crops • Rice (heavy rain for quick growth, but dry season for harvesting) • Excess watersoil erosion • Heavy rain or floodwash away young seedlings • Waterlogged soildamages plant roots • Deficient rain or drought seasons need irrigation and other forms of water supply

30. Climate - temperature • It determines various type of crops from equatorial (eg. Rice and rubber) to cool temperate regions (eg. Sugar beet) • Germination and ripening of seeds require at least 5.7oC • Different crops need differentaccumulated temperature (Wheat needs a threshold temperature 5oC for 1300 days) • Each type of crop has its own hot and cold limit • Frost is especially damaging for vegetables and fruit • Frost free days (growing days between last spring frost and the first winter frost • Different crops need different frost free days • Spring wheat: 90 days • Corn: 150 days • Cotton: 200 days • Rubber: hot climate for all year

31. Climate – snow and light • Snow: • Light snow cover can protects the soil from erosion by wind and rain. • It has insulating effects for some crops (winter wheat) • Spring thaw gives moisture to soil • Light: • Different crops need different amount of light for photosynthesis • Sunlight is particularly significant for fruit ripening • Low humidity enable drying of fruit • Some tropical crops (coffee) require high temperature but cannot grow under direct strong sunlight. Then cover crops (banana) are planted to give shade.

32. Climate - Wind • Wind erosion is severe in semi-arid and arid regions • Typhoons bring serious damages to crops • Constant strong winds make the crops difficult to get hold of soil. • Local winds bring sudden change in temperature and humidity. • Light wind helps pollination and seed dispersion • Light wind helps to lower relative humidity and increase transpiration

33. Relief • Temperate regions: lowland is suitable for crops growing for too short growing season in Mts. • Tropical regions: the best farming areas are in upland for too hot and wet in lowland. • Aspect: • Affect temperature and water availability • Slope: • Too steep cannot cultivated • Tree crops and tea can be grown on hillside • Paddy, wheat and sugar should be grown in lowland. • Reliefdirectly and indirectlyaffects other factors (soil and climate)

34. Soil • Different soils support different crops • Rice: clay with much water • Tea: acid soil and well-drained • Sugar: very fertile soil • Sweet potato and yam: poor soil is OK. • Application of fertilizer (natural manure or artificial) would change the soil water, texture, chemical composition and fertility

35. Cultural components affecting agriculture • Socio-economic environment may determines the possible farming system and the input intensity. • Cultural components • Transport • Capital • Market • Labour • Technology • Social Factors

36. Transport • Transport networks link up farm and market • Farm products market (cities) • Cities (machines, artificial fertilizers) farm • Transport cost includes delivery cost, freight rate, insurance and customs charges • Rural poverty of developing countries is partly the result of insufficient linkage with the cities • Means of transport • Land, sea and air • Transport has greatly been improved in • Speed and facilities (packing and refrigeration) • The importance of transport is increasing with technology improvement

37. Capital • Buy seeds, animals, farming machines, fertilizers and other farming materials….. • Govt. loan (low interest rate) and grants may help the productivity of farms • Lack of saving of farmer in developing countries is one of the important drawback for improvement • Capital in developed countries not only allows farm improvement, but also saves them in times of bad harvest.

38. Market • Places for selling farm products • Some advanced nations have carried out co-operative groups for processing and marketing of their products. (eg. Sunkist) • Promoting sales, • standardize price and quality of products • Linkup with supermarket, large scale freezing and canning factories

39. Labour • Different types of crops need different amount of farm workers • Wheat: less workers • Tea: more workers • Some general farm work can be replaced by machines • Harvesting period needs more labour • Farm workers are tight in thinly populated rural area.

40. Technology • Modify the physical environment by • Irrigation on dry fields • To drain swamps • To build terraces on steep slopes • To produce artificial rain • New strains of plants (Bio-technology, Genetic engineering) • Eg. Miracle rice, drought-resistant plants, cloning • Adding artificial fertilizers • Spraying insecticides • Mechanization • Technology is increasing the importance in farming.

41. Social factor • Social attitudes of people, traditions, level of education…are all determinants on farm production. • Some are encouraging but other are negative • Land tenure (land ownership) • Tenant farming • A cash tenant farmer: • Long lease will encourage further investment and cultivate more carefully • Short lease will make him maximize profits by over-grazing and over-cropping, which lead to soil erosion • A share cropper: safeguard against fluctuating yield • Freehold ownership: • Advantage: incentives to manage their farms efficiently • Disadvantage: fragmentation of fields through inheritance law • State ownership(communist countries) • Advantage: consolation of fields, mass team work • Disadvantage: lack of private ownership discourage incentive

42. Impacts of Urbanization and Industrialization on Agricultural Landscapes • Impacts on agriculture production pattern • Agricultural land use patterns • Economic influences on agricultural location • Von Thunen Model • Sinclair Theory

43. Impacts on agriculture production pattern • Impacts of Urban Expansion • Loss of Farmland • The anticipation of urban expansion • Intensity of agricultural activities • Farm Size and land ownership • Case Study: Hong Kong

44. Impacts of Urban Expansion • Urbanization and industrialization necessitate the expansion of urban areas and an inevitable infringement into the surrounding farmlands

45. Loss of Farmland • Especially good farmland in areas close to the urbanized areas • Urbanization • Increase urban population • More houses, shops, factories, schools and other public works…. • UK’s Green Belt Policy for checking the rapid expansion of urban sprawl.

46. Anticipation of urban expansion • Farmers within a few km of the city edge may have a opportunity to sell their farmland at very high prices • This will influence the intensity of farmland • Farmers are unlikely to start long-term improvements • Fewer investment and become more extensive • Insufficient labour force for intensive cropping • Part-time farmers rarely farm intensively and part-time farming is very common. • Plant orchards or other perennial crops • Land is left idle for the building road, which cut off a field from the main part of the farm.

47. Intensity of agricultural activities • More intensive agricultural activities may be found in the large urban periphery. • Reasons • Large market for fresh and quality products of suburban orchards and nurseries • Urban area provides fertilizers, machines and casual labourers, which help to cut down costs of agricultural inputs. • Urban dwellers contribute to investment in agriculture. • Specialized and intensive farming systems can be found in peri-urban regions • Products: high value products (fresh vegetables, fruits, flowers, nursery plants, milk, fish, pigs and poultry……

48. Farm size and land ownership • In general, near the peri-urban • Farm size become smaller • Land is expensive • Few farmers can increase their holding • Part of the farm may be sold • Farming may be intensive (horticulture, pigs, poultry or dairying) • Farming may be extensive even abandon • Relatively high proportion of tenants • Must be use case studies for specific examinations

49. Case Study – Hong Kong (1970s) • Urban population growth of Hong Kong start from 1950 and the increase of urban areas and satellite towns. • Tsuen Wan, Kwun Tong, Shatin, Tuen Mun, Tai Po,…….. • The impact of urbanization on farming is very strong

50. Agricultural Zones in YL (1970s)