Unit 5: Land and Water Use

can be regenerated quickly, such as plants and animals (trees are the line between nonrenewable)

an area of vegetation is cut down and burned before being planted with crops. provides temporary nutrients and cleared land, but is depleted quickly

1950s/1960s the time after the industrial revolution when farming became modernized

promoted integrated pest management and organic methods, such as fertilizers that are not synthetic

integrated pest management uses a combination of several methods and is a more environmentally sensitive approach than chemical pesticides. Only use chemical pesticides only in the worst-case scenario

caused by repeated irriation. Significant buildup of salts on the soil’s surface, which makes land unusable for crops. Flooding crops to avoid this leads to woterlogging plant roots

cutting furrows between crop rows and filling them with water (inexpensive and unproductive)

flooding a field with water, can lead to waterlogging and loses about 20% of the water to evaporation and runoff

pumping water into spray nozzles and spraying fields. Only loses about 1/4 of water, but requires energy to run and can be expensive

allots an area only as much water as is necessary and delivers the water directly to the roots using perforated hoses that releases small amount of water. This is very efficient, but very expensive

Genetically motified organisms, made by adding genes from one species to another to encourage desirable characteristics. discourage biodiversity, harm beneficial insects, pose new allergen risks, increase antibiotic resistance, create pesticide resistent pests

practiced mainly in tropical developing nations, in which a monoculture cash crop such as bananas, coffee, or vegetables. Grown and exported to developed nations

suitable for plant growth

balanced mixture between clay, sily, and sand. Considered the best type of soil for plant growth

the extend to which it aggregates or clumps

formed and held together by such substances as clay particles and organic matter

planting several crops on the same plot of land simultaneously (as opposed to crop rotation, where you switch out different crops at different times)

formed in the 1930s, when the Great Plains became degraded and prone to wind erosion

rows of crops are plowed across a hillside, prevents the erosion that can occur when rows are cut up and down on a slope

scraping top soil to sift it and reveal nutrients

more intense tilling, in which soil is upturned and mashed to reveal soil under the topsoil

crops that grow back without replanting each year

made up of one or more rows of trees or shrubs planted near crops in such a way as to provide shelter from eroding winds

made by leaving plants to wither and then serve as mulc