AGRARIAN LANDSCAPE: CHARACTERISTICS AND EXAMPLES - GEOGRAPHY

The agrarian landscape refers to all those spaces and territories that are used for agriculture, livestock or forestry. Within this type of landscape, physical aspects such as relief, soil and climate are considered, as well as other humans, such as the type of work that is done, the techniques used in treating the land and the use that is given to the produced.

Agriculture is the set of activities and techniques developed by humans to cultivate the land and obtain plant products such as vegetables, fruits, legumes or cereals. These can be used as food or as raw materials for industry.

Fields and plantations are examples of agrarian landscapes. Source: pixabay.com

Livestock, for its part, consists of raising domestic animals for their consumption and use, including obtaining meat, eggs, milk, wool and skins. Meanwhile, logging includes cutting down forests and natural forests to obtain products such as wood, cellulose, resin, rubber, artificial silk and wax, among others.

On the other hand, the agrarian landscape differs from the urban landscape in that the latter is that of large cities.

Characteristics of the agrarian landscape

The agricultural landscape is characterized by 3 key aspects: the plots, the use of the territory and the use of what is generated.

The parcels

The parcels are the parts in which the space is divided and, depending on the size, they are divided into latifundios (large extensions of land) and minifundios (small pieces of land).

On the other hand, based on the way of defining their limits, they are classified as: "openfield", which are open fields or "bocage", which are those closed by fences, walls or stone walls for protection.

Use of the territory

The use of the territory can be for agricultural, livestock or forestry purposes.

In the first case, lands are defined according to the type of plantations: monocultures are those in which a single type of seed is sown, and polycultures, which include several types.

On the other hand, based on the use of the soil, they are classified as intensive, when the greatest amount possible is produced in minimal areas, or extensive, when large spaces are used in which it is not intended to maximize productivity in the short term.

Meanwhile, taking into account the irrigation system, they are divided into drylands (when they depend exclusively on the rains) or irrigated (when they are artificially irrigated through channels, sprinklers or ditches).

For their part, livestock spaces are distinguished according to the type of livestock. Thus, they can be cattle or bovine lands (cows, bulls and oxen), sheep (sheep), goats (goats), equines (horses, mares, donkeys and mules), pigs (pigs) or poultry (chickens, turkeys, ducks and geese).

The use

What is produced in agricultural landscapes can be used for own consumption or for commercialization. In general, smallholdings are dedicated to polyculture and what is generated is destined for personal use.

Meanwhile, the latifundios that practice monoculture usually sell what they have harvested in the different markets.

Physical aspects of the agrarian landscape

The relief, the soil and the climate are very important in the agrarian landscape. Source: pixabay.com

Within the agrarian landscape, certain physical aspects are vital, such as relief, soil and climate.

Relief

The relief refers to the set of shapes, levels and irregularities that the surface presents. These include valleys, depressions, mountains, plateaus, plains, dunes, and mountain ranges, among others.

In general, slopes and elevated areas hamper rural work and therefore terraces are built on the slopes of the mountains to take advantage of the land.

Soil

The soil, for its part, has to be fertile and allow the growth and development of crops. For this, it must have certain organic compounds and nutrients, such as nitrates, ammonium, potassium, phosphorus, sulfur, magnesium, calcium, sodium, iron or copper.

These can be reinforced through the use of fertilizers, being important to avoid those that are toxic. The sandy and clayey soils, meanwhile, make agricultural work difficult.

The weather

Climate is another important factor to take into account based on temperature, humidity, rainfall and the strength of the wind.

For example, a space with high temperatures and little rainfall is not very conducive to growing.

Examples of agrarian landscapes

Cereal plantations such as corn, wheat, rice, barley, rye, oats, sorghum, millet, quinoa and farro are examples of agrarian landscapes.

Also those of fruits such as orange, banana, strawberry, blueberry, apple, grape, kiwi, peach, pineapple and cherry.

The same happens with the fields where legumes such as alfalfa, chickpea, lentils, peanuts, soybeans, beans or broad beans are grown; or vegetables such as carrots, turnips, onion, garlic, beets, spinach, chard, cauliflower, broccoli or artichoke.

On the other hand, other examples of agrarian landscapes are spaces dedicated to raising cows, chickens, sheep, pigs, horses and other animals.

Differences with the urban landscape

The spaces dedicated to raising cows and other animals are also agrarian landscapes. Source: pixabay.com

The agrarian landscape, associated with the countryside, is generally contrasted with the urban landscape, which is typical of large cities.