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Key Issue 3- Commercial Gardening and Fruit Farming 

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Key Issue 3- Commercial Gardening and Fruit Farming 

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1. Describe Commercial Gardening and Fruit Farming

This type of agriculture is predominant in the United States Southeast. The region has long growing seasons, humid climates, and accessibility to large markets located in New York, Philadelphia, Washington, and other urban areas in the U.S.. Truck farming is the type of agriculture practiced in this region. This type of farming involves bartering and exchanging commodities. These farms grow many fruits and vegetables that the consumers in more developed countries demand. These fruits and vegetables include apples, asparagus, cherries, lettuce, mushrooms, and tomatoes. Some are sold freshly to consumers but a majority of them are sold to large processors for canning or freezing. These farms are highly efficient large-scale operations that use machinery to their full advantage at every stage of the growing process. Truck farmers willingly experiment with new varieties, seeds, fertilizers, and other inputs that can maximize efficiency. Labor costs are lowered because they hire migrant farm workers. These farms tend to specialize in a few crops.

1. Define the following terms:

1. Truck farming: Truck Farming is very important to fruit farming. This term is derived from the meaning that farmers are producing fruits for the market to be distributed. They use large amount of production to create and make large amounts of fruits and vegetables. These large quantities are sold so that they can be sent to the processors. Within truck farming, they mostly manufacture and process beans and other vegetables. After processing the food, they send it to be canned or packaged. This type of farming has made large sources of money for farmers and to the point that they can make a large profit.

1. Specialty farming: Farmers are growing crops that have limited by increasing demand among rich consumers. This type of farming represents a profitable alternatice for the farmers in New England, at the time that dairy farming is declinging because of the high operating costs and low milk prices.

2. Labor force: A group of people either employed or available for employment in a country or region. In the United States, if one is over the age of 14, he/she could get a job. However, children of farmers in LDC's enter the labor force from a very young age (5 to 6 years old) to help their parents with planting and harvesting.

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Regions

Live primarily in large belt of arid and semiarid land (North Africa, Middle East, pasrts of Central Asia)

Example of Nomadic groups

The Bedouins of Saudi Arabia and North AFrica

Masai of East Africa

Characteristics

Depend primarily on animals rather than crops for survival

Animals provide milk, skins and hair are used for clothing and tents

Nomads consume mostly grains rather than meat

Animals are commonly not slaughtered but dead ones could be consumed

Size of their herd is important measure of power and prestige and their main security during adverse environmental conditions

Some get grain from sedentary subsistence farmers in exchange for animal products

Women and children in these groups could plant plants in fixed locations

Might hire workers to practice sedentary agriculture in return for grain and protection

Some remain in one place and cultivate the land when rainfall is abundant

CHOICE OF ANIMAL

Select type and number of animal based on local cultural and physical characteristics

Depends on relative prestige of animals and ability of species to adapt to particular climate and vegetation

Camel is most desired in North Africa and Middle East, followed by sheep and goat

Horse is important in Central Asia

Camel well suited to arid climates, can go long periods without water, carry heavy baggage, and move rapidly

Camel is bothered by flies and sleeping sickness and has relatively long period from conception to birth (12 months)

Goats need more water than camels but are tough and agile, can survive on virtually any vegetation

Sheep are slow moving and more affected by climate changes

Require more water and are selective of the plants it’ll eat

Minimum number of animals necessary depends on particular group and animal

Typical nomadic family needs 25-60 goats/sheeps and 10-25 camels

MOVEMENTS OF PASTORAL NOMADS

Has a strong sense of territoriality

Each group controls  piece of territory and will invade another group’s territory only in emergency or if war is declared

Goal: control territory large enough to contain forage and water needed for survival

ACtual amount of land depends on groups wealth and power

Migration patterns evolve from knowledge of areas physical and cultural characteristics

Groups usually divide into units of five or six families and choose routes based on most likely water sources during the various seasons of the year

Transhumance: seasonal migration of livestock between mountains and lowland pasture areas

Pastures: grass or other plants grown for feeding grazing animals, as well as land used for grazing

Major crops

The major crops are grains, most notably rice.

Future development

Once viewed as stage in evolution of agriculture

BEcause they domesticated animals instead of plants, they were considered more advanced than hunters and gathers, less advanced than settled farmers

now seen as offshoot of sedentary agriculture

simply a practical way of living on land that receives too little rain for cultivation of crops

Declining form of agriculture because of technology

played important role as carriers of goods and information across sparsely inhabited dry lands before transportation

Government efforts to resettle nomads is vigorous in China Kazakhstan, and Middle EAstern countries like Egypt, Israel, Saudi Arabia, and Syria

Reluctant to cooperate

They force them to stop because they want the land for other use

Irrigated land is converted from this type of agriculture

Mining and petroleum industries operate in drylands occupied by pastoral nomads

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Purpose of Farming:

Percentage of farmers in workforce:

2%

Use of machines:

In most developed countries, small number of farmers can feed more people because machinery helps perform work. For example, forage harvesters, are used to chop and cut crops such as corn.Transportation improvements aid commercial farming by allowing them to transport crops and livestock farther and faster. Commercial farmers also use scientific advances such as genetically modified plants that are made to withstand pesticides.

Average size of farm:

The relative farm size is typically large in commercial farming. US farms average a size of 175 hectares. Most commercial farms are family owned and operated (98% in US). In US, 4% of farms make up for more than ½ of the country's total output. One half of US farms make less than $10,000 a year. Large size is partly a consequence of mechanization. The a mount of land devoted to agriculture has increased in US.

Relationship between farming and other sectors of economy:

The economy is heavily affected by commercial farming. This has created great success in our history, particularly in the 19th century, which is exposed to many technological advances. The expanding markets gave rise to new economic markets that has strengthened two-thirds of American exports. This has also greatly affected the International markets and the industrialization of companies. Things like John Deere's steel plow and lawn mower benefit from commercial agriculture because it greatly attributes to the functions of the industry. This can also affect the trucking business within produce for scientific research for genetic research.

https://www.boundless.com/u-s-history/textbooks/boundless-u-s-history-textbook/the-market-revolution-1815-1840-13/a-market-society-109/commercial-farmers-587-1705/

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Describe: The Americas Agricultural Hearths 

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Describe: The Americas Agricultural Hearths 

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United States

1) Corn (84 million acres)

2) Soybeans (73.8 million acres)

3) Hay (55.7 million acres)

4) Wheat (45.7 million acres)

5) Cotton (9.5 million acres)

6) Sorghum (grain) (3.9 million acres)

7) Rice (2.6 million acres)

South America

Cashews, Brazil nuts, and cacoa are cultivated in South America and are a major source of cash for these countries.

Central America

Manioc, sweet potato, and arrowroot diffused to Central America and eastern parts of South America through vegetative planting.

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The reproduction of plants through annual planting of seeds that result from sexual fertilization. Seed agriculture developed and diffused within the South Asian areas and across the European landscape. Cyprus was one of the first ones to achieve this practice. It eventually diffused northwestward and also southwest. After its development in the countries of China, it spread and created great success in the rice industry.  The independent seed agriculture was also in the industry of cotton.