AP Geography Unit V Overview

By Musa Holmes Published October 27, 2025 Uncategorized

Agriculture and Rural Land Use

Agriculture is more than planting crops—it’s a mirror of cultural practices, economic development, and human adaptation to the environment. In Unit 5: Agriculture and Rural Land-Use Patterns and Processes, we explore how food systems develop, where they thrive, and how they’ve evolved globally. Let’s dig in.

I. What Is Agriculture?

Agriculture is the deliberate modification of Earth’s surface through the cultivation of plants and the rearing of animals to obtain sustenance or economic gain. It began with the Neolithic Revolution (around 10,000 years ago) when humans transitioned from hunting and gathering to farming and herding.

There are two main types of agriculture:

Subsistence agriculture: Growing food mainly for the farmer’s family (e.g., parts of Sub-Saharan Africa)
Commercial agriculture: Producing food for sale in markets (e.g., U.S. Midwest grain farming)

II. Agricultural Revolutions

Agriculture evolved through three major revolutions:

First Agricultural Revolution (Neolithic): Domestication of plants and animals.
Second Agricultural Revolution (1700s–1800s): Industrial innovations like the seed drill and enclosure movement boosted yields.
Third Agricultural Revolution (Green Revolution): From the 1940s–1980s, high-yield seeds, fertilizers, and irrigation transformed agriculture in developing countries.

While the Green Revolution increased food production, it also caused environmental strain (e.g., water shortages, soil degradation) and widened economic gaps between farmers.

III. Agricultural Practices Around the World

Different environments, cultures, and economies shape farming types:

Intensive agriculture: High labor and resource input per unit of land. Examples: rice paddies in Southeast Asia, greenhouses in the Netherlands.
Extensive agriculture: Low input and large plots. Examples: cattle ranching in the U.S. West, shifting cultivation in the Amazon.

Major forms of agriculture include:

Pastoral nomadism: Herding animals in dry climates.
Shifting cultivation: Slash-and-burn technique used in tropical zones.
Plantation farming: Large-scale cash crops like coffee, cocoa, and bananas in tropical developing nations.
Mixed crop and livestock: Midwest U.S. farms that balance grains and livestock.
Dairying: Near cities due to perishability (Milkshed concept).
Grain farming: Found in drier regions like the U.S. Great Plains.
Mediterranean agriculture: Olives, grapes, citrus in regions like California or southern Europe.

IV. Rural Land Use and Settlement Patterns

Where and how people live impacts agriculture:

Rural settlement types:
- Clustered: Homes and farms grouped in villages.
- Dispersed: Farms spread out over large areas.
- Linear: Buildings arranged along transportation routes (rivers, roads).

Survey systems shape rural landscapes:

Metes and bounds: Uses natural features; common in colonial New England.
Township and range: Grid-like, used in the Midwest.
Long-lot system: Long plots stretching from roads or rivers (seen in Quebec, Louisiana).

V. Land Use Models and Theories

The most famous agricultural land-use model is the Von Thünen Model (1826). It explains how farmers decide what to grow based on distance from the market:

Central city: Market.
Dairying and gardening: Perishable and high-value crops.
Forests: For fuel and construction.
Grains and field crops: Less perishable.
Ranching: Requires lots of land and low transport costs.

Assumptions include uniform land, isolated market, and no physical barriers—so it’s more conceptual than literal. Still, it helps explain zoning and cost-distance relationships.

VI. Agricultural Impacts on the Environment

Agriculture shapes—and strains—the Earth:

Deforestation: Especially in tropical rainforests for pasture or soy.
Desertification: Overgrazing and overuse of water in drylands.
Water usage: Intensive irrigation leads to aquifer depletion.
Pollution: Fertilizers and pesticides enter water systems.
Loss of biodiversity: Monocultures reduce ecological variety.

Sustainable practices like crop rotation, agroforestry, and organic farming aim to reduce environmental harm while maintaining productivity.

VII. Global Trade and Agriculture

Modern agriculture operates within a globalized economy:

Export commodities: Developing countries grow cash crops (tea, sugar, coffee) for wealthy consumers abroad.
Fair trade: A movement to ensure fair wages and conditions for producers.
Agribusiness: A system where agriculture is integrated into the food-processing industry. Big companies (think Tyson or Nestlé) control everything from seed to supermarket.

These systems increase food access but can also marginalize small farmers and prioritize profit over sustainability.

VIII. Challenges in Contemporary Agriculture

Farmers today face economic, social, and environmental challenges:

Declining farmland: Urban sprawl pushes out agriculture.
Food deserts: Urban areas lacking fresh food access.
Climate change: Alters growing seasons, increases droughts.
Gender inequality: In many regions, women have limited access to land or credit, despite being primary agricultural workers.
Biotechnology and GMOs: Improve yields but raise ethical, health, and trade debates.

IX. Why This Unit Matters

Unit 5 shows that agriculture isn’t just about food—it’s about survival, inequality, innovation, and the human relationship with nature. From the rice paddies of Southeast Asia to the cornfields of Iowa, how we grow our food reveals how we live—and who benefits.

Understanding rural land use connects past to present and local practices to global markets. Whether debating GMOs or analyzing food deserts, geography helps us understand what’s on our plates—and what it took to get it there.