Subsistence vs.
Commercial
Agriculture
What makes subsistence agriculture
different from commercial agriculture?
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Purpose of farming
Percentage of farmers in labor force
Use of machinery
Relationship of farming to other business
Subsistence Agriculture
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Production of food primarily for
consumption by the farmer’s family
Less Developed Countries
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Percentage: labor intensive
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More than 55% farmers in LDC
Machinery?
Farm Size?
Relationship of farming to other business?
Subsistence Agriculture
Types of Subsistence
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Shifting Cultivation
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The moving of planting from place to place
provide crops better land
Subtropical areas
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Humid low latitude
High temperatures with large amounts of rainfall
 Amazon, Central West Africa, And Southeast Asia
Types of Subsistence
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Process of Shifting Cultivation
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Slash and Burn
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Pick area surrounding settlement
Clear vegetation
Burn debris
Rain washes nutrients into soil
 Swidden- Cleared area
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When nutrients are depleted, let vegetation take
the land and find a new area
Types of Subsistence
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Pastoral Nomadism

Based on the herding of domesticated animals
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Extensive Agriculture- uses little inputs on vast areas of land
 Low Output per area
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Arid and Semiarid land
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North Africa, Middle East, and Central Asia
Bedouins (Saudi Arabia, North Africa)
Depend on animals more than crops
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Trade with sedentary subsistence farmers
Why do you think this is?
Types of Subsistence
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Pastoral Nomadism
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Choice of animals
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Camels?
Goats?
Sheep?
Movement of Nomads
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Territoriality
Transhumance- Seasonal migration of livestock
between mountains and lowland pastures
Types of Subsistence
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Intensive Subsistence Agriculture
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Intensive Agriculture- More input of labor and materials
relative per area
Labor Intensive Intertillage-the practice of planting taller,
stronger crops to shelter lower, fragile ones from tropical
downpours
East, South and Southeast Asia
Small tracts of land
Large labor forces

Lowland rice-Wet Rice
Commercial Agriculture
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Production of food primarily for sale off the farm
More Developed Country
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Percentage: MDC 5% farmers
Machinery?
Farm Size?
Relationship to other businesses?
What are the different types of commercial
agriculture?
Types of Commercial Agriculture
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Mixed Crop and Livestock Farming
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Both crops and livestock
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Fertilizer from livestock
Feed for livestock
Reduces seasonal variation in income
Crop rotation
Corn Belt
Dairy Farming
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Near urban areas- Why?
Milkshed- ring around a city from which milk can be
supplied w/o spoiling
Milk Cows per acre by county
Milk Production
Types of Commercial Agriculture
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Grain Farming
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Grain-seed from various grasses, like wheat, corn, oats,
barley, rice, etc…
Produced for people (not livestock)
Where do you think grain farming occurs?
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Winter Wheat Belt-Kansas, Colorado and Oklahoma
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Spring wheat belt-Dakotas, Montana, and southern
Saskatchewan
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Planted in autumn, ripe at beginning of summer
Planted in spring, harvested in the late summer
Palouse region- Washington State
Grain
Wheat Production
Types of Commercial Agriculture
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Livestock Ranching
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Commercial grazing of livestock over an extensive area
Where do you find livestock ranching?
Cattle ranching in America
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Rail to major cities (Chicago)
Pampas- Argentina, Southern Brazil, and Uruguay
Sheep in Australia
Types of Commercial Agriculture
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Mediterranean Crops
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Southern Europe, North Africa, and Western Asia
High Moisture, mild winters, hilly
Examples: Olives, grapes, fruits, vegetables,
wheat for pasta an bread
Types of Commercial Agriculture
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Commercial Gardening and Fruit Farming
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U.S. Southeast
AKA Truck farming
Examples: apples, asparagus, cherries, lettuce,
mushrooms and tomatoes
Migrant workers
Specialty Farming
Types of Commercial Agriculture
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Plantation Farming
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Large farm that specializes in one or two crops
Tropics and Subtropics
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LDCs
Corporate Ownership
Examples: cotton, sugarcane, coffee, rubber,
tobacco, cocoa, tea, coconuts, and palm oil
What types of
commercial
agriculture do you see
around here?
Why is it important for the world
economy to have these multiple types
of commercial agriculture?
Rank the types of agriculture from
most intensive to least intensive
(Extensive)
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Remember!
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Intensive
High inputs:
 Labor, Machinery, effort, etc…
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Relative to area farmed
High Output
Extensive
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Low inputs
Large area
Low output
9
7
10
8
6
17
11
1
12
2
14
16
5
15
13
19
4
3
20
18
What are the two major types of
Agriculture?
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What are the types within Subsistence?
What are the types within Commercial?
Short Presentation- Each person will
get a type of agriculture

You will need to:
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Describe every location where this type of
agriculture takes place
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Map this on the board
In what climate is this type mostly prevalent?
Other than climate, why is this type of agriculture
here?
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Think historical, political, economic or cultural
reasons why