Agriculture

It is the science and art of cultivating plants and livestock. It came from a word
"Agercultura" in which "Ager" means field and "Cultura" means cultivate.
Types of Agriculture:
Type Definition
1. Intensive High inputs or yields for given area of land.
2. Extensive Low inputs or yields for given area of land.
3. Commercial Crops are cultivated and animals reared are sold.
4. Substinence Cultivating crops or rearing animals for consumption by the farmer and his family.

5. Arable The cultivating of crops.

6. Pastoral The rearing of animals.
7. Mixed A combination of arable and pastoral.
Physical Influence on Agriculture:
1. Climate:
It includes temperature, air, relative humidity, wind, light and rainfall.
a. Temperature: It affects various growth processes in crops such as seed
dormancy breakage, photosynthesis, transpiration, respiration and seed
germination. Plants mature earlier in higher temperature because
photosynthesis and translocation occur faster. Most of the plants cannot grow
if the temperature falls below 6®C.
b. Air
Crops require oxygen during respiration to produce energy used in growth and
development processes. During photosynthesis, plants require CO 2to
manufacture food.
c. Relative Humidity
Relative humidity is the amount of water vapor air can hold at any given
temperature. Relative humidity influences the closing and opening of stomata
regulating water loss in crops during photosynthesis and transpiration.
d. Light
It influences phototropism, mineral absorption, stomatal movement and
translocation. The intensity, quality and daylength of light affects plant growth
and development.
2. Topography
It relates to how difficult it is to till land, soil erosion and poor transportation
networks and facilities. Mechanization of land entirely depends on the land
topography. If the land is high than there is more chance of soil erosion.
3. Soil
A rich soil is the chief requirement of successful agriculture. Soils with poor
texture and harsh chemicals are low in productivity.
Social, Cultural and Economic Influence on Agriculture
1. Market
Relation to market generally determines the character of farming . Places away
from the market will generally grow crops which can afford the cost of
transport to the market. Places near large center of population generally
develop market gardening and produce easily perishable goods which can be
transported to the market for short distances.
2. Transportation facilities
Commercial farming is impossible in those regions which are far from the
market and is ill-equipped with transportation facilities.
3. Capital
In the developed country, there is a well developed system of supportive
banks, private investors and government subsidies which means that
agriculture is most likely to be capital intensive. In the developing countries,
the system of capital support are less developed and farmers have little capital
of their own which means the agriculture will be labor intensive.
4. Labor
It determines the character of agriculture. Intensive agriculture is labor
intensive and shows the human pressure on the land. Agriculture requires
skilled labor that can appreciate the relations of season and soils with the
crops and adopt the required cultural patterns.
5. Commodity prices
Commodity crops earn farmers losses or profits based on the prevailing price
of the output that industrial buyers are willing to pay.
Industry
It refers to production of handy craft to aircraft. It is a group of organizations
involved in producing/manufacturing or handling the same type of product or
service. It is a part of the secondary activity. In a nutshell, industry can be
defined as:
1. production of goods
2. extraction of minerals
3. provision of services
Classification of Industries:
1. On the basis of raw material
a. Agro-based Industries
It uses plants and animals based products as their raw materials.
b. Mineral based industries
It is based on mining and use mineral ore as raw materials and are used for
heavy machinery and building materials.
c. Marine based industries
It uses raw material from the forest like wood.
2. On the basis of Size
a. Small-scale industries
It has less capital and technology invested in them with less labor. It is also
known as cottage industry.
b. Large scale industry
It is the exact opposite of small scale industries with the large amount of
capital invested and advanced technology used.
Cottage Industry Large Scale Industry
It is based on leisure time. It is based on operation of 24 hours.
The production occurs in small scale. The production occurs in large scale.
There is use of local raw materials. There is use of excessive raw materials
imported from every place.
 There is participation of family members. There is large number of participation.

There is use of traditional tools. There is use of modern machines and tools.

There is low amount of investment. There is high amount of investment.

There is supply on local level. There is supply on global level
3. On the basis of Ownership:
a. Private sector
It is owned and operated by an individual or group of individuals.
b. Public Sector
It is owned and managed by the government.
c. Joint Sector Industries
It is jointly operated by the state and the government.
d. Cooperative Sector Industries
It is operated by the suppliers, producers or workers.
Factors influencing the location of industries:
1. Physical factors
a. Raw materials
Modern industry is so complex that a wide range of raw materials is necessary
for its growth and production of goods. Sometimes the industry of location is
simply determined by the location of raw materials. Industries which use heavy
and bulky raw materials in their primary stage in larger qualities are usually
located near the supply of the raw materials.
b. Power
Regular source of power is the requirement for the most of the industries.
Most of the industries tend to be located at the source of power. The main
source of power is coal, mineral oil and hydroelectricity.
c. Accessibility
The site of new factory needs to be accessible so that importing of raw
materials and exporting of finished product is easy, safe and at low cost.
d. Water
Many industries are established near rivers, canals and lakes because of water.
e. Climate
Harsh climate is not much suitable for the establishment of industries. There
can be no industrial development in extremely hot, humid or dry or cold
climate that is why there is no industries in mountainous region of Nepal.
f. Site
Generally, site should be flat, well adequate transport facilities and cheap.
Large areas are required to build factories. Now, there is a tendency to set up
industries in rural areas because the cost of land has risen in urban centers.
2. Socio-Economic Factors
a. Capital
Modern industries are capital intensive and require huge investment.
Companies cannot set up their chosen industry without investment of money.
Capitalist are available in urban centers and this is why big industries are
located in urban centers.
b. Government Policies
Government can greatly influence the location of industry by giving tax
incentives, cheap rent and other benefits, reducing regional disparities and
eliminating air and water pollution in certain areas of the country.
c. Labor Supply
It is important in two aspects:
a. Workers in large numbers are often required.
b. People with skill or technical expertise are needed.
Labor intensive industries are located inside the cities because there is a huge
pool of potential workers.
d. Market
The entire process of manufacturing is useless until the finished goods reach
the market. Nearness to market is essential for quick selling of manufacture
 goods because it helps in reducing the transport cost and enables the
consumer to get things at cheaper cost.
e. Banking facilities
Establishment of industries involves daily exchange of crores of rupees which is
possible through banking facilities. So the areas with better banking facilities
are better suited to the establishment of industries.
Geography
It is a social science that focuses on the spatial distribution of human and
physical phenomena. It is the study of physical world, its inhabitants and
interaction between two.
Geography is divided into two branches
1. Human Geography
2. Physical Geography
1. Human Geography:
It is a branch of the geography which studies patterns and processes that
shape the human society.
Sub-branches of human geography:
Sub-branches Definition
1. Economic It studies the manner in which different products and services are
Geography distributed in the various markets and also studies about the distribution of
wealth across the planet.
2. Population It studies the demographic distribution of people and includes the study of
Geography migration, population growth.
3. Political In studies the political aspects of humans and involves boundaries of the
Geography countries.
4. Religious It studies the spread and distribution of religious groups, their culture.
Geography
5. Medical It studies the patterns and spread of epidemic and pandemics.
Geography
2. Physical Geography
It studies the physical characteristics of the earth and also studies the
characteristics on the earth's surface but also beneath the earth. It deals with
the study of processes and patterns in the natural environment such as the
atmosphere, hydrosphere, biosphere and geosphere.
Sub-branches of Physical Geography:
Sub-Branches Definition
1. Biogeography Study of animals and plants and their distribution and patterns
on the earth's surface.
2. Water-Resource Study of water resources and how the various water resources
Geography are managed and distributed across the physical earth.

3. Climate Geography Study of the weather patterns and how these weather affect
the climate
4. Geomorphology Study of the land and the processes that different land
formations go through
5. Soil Geography Study of the soil
6. Hydrology Study of the amount and quality of water moving
7. Glaciology Study of the glaciers
Scope of Human Geography:
The scope of human geography is very wide. The core concern of human
geography as a discipline is to understand the earth as home of human beings
and to study all those elements that have sustained them.
1. Greek and Roman scholars like Aristotle, Herodotus, Strabo recognized the
close relationship between man and his physical environment.
2. The Arab Scholars like Al Masudi, Al Bruni also established the relationship
between physical environment and cultural characteristics.
3. In the classical period of modern geography, German Geographers
Humboldt and Ritter focused on the relationship between social groups and
their physical environment. He concluded that the earth and its inhabitants
stand in closest reciprocal relation and one cannot be truly presented in all its
relationships without the other.
4. German Geographer Ratzel established human geography as an
independent discipline.
5. French Geographer Vidalde La Blache published " Principles de Geographie
Humaine" which has three major parts:
a. Distribution of men on the globe
b. Forms of civilization
c. Circulation
6. Brunches gave the clear idea of geography of a man with the identification
of following scope of human geography:
a. On the basis of Evolution of Civilization
i. Geography of the first vital necessity
It includes primary needs like food, cloth and shelter.
ii. Geography of the Exploitation
It includes the human activities and efforts in which human beings satisfy their
needs based on exploitation of natural resources.
iii. Geography of Social and Economic needs
It includes interdependence, cooperation, division of labor and civic system.
iv. Political and Historic Needs
It includes description of political and historical events in relation to
geographical facts.
b. On the basis of Positive Classification
i. Facts of unproductive occupation of the soil
ii. Facts of plan and animal conquest
iii. Facts of destructive exploitation
7. Finch and Trewath classified the elements of human geography in the three
groups:
a. Physical Elements
It includes topography, climate, soil, minerals, water bodies, natural vegetation
and animals.
b. Population
It includes growth, distribution, density, migration and composition.
c. Cultural Elements
It includes settlements, agriculture, manufacturing, industry, trade and
commerce.
8. Ellsworth Huntngton took a comprehensive view of physical conditions,
forms of life and human responses while determining the elements of human
geography. According to him, all elements of bio-physical environment are
interrelated and affect each other and their combined affect is reflected in
various responses. He grouped these human responses into four categories
and identified 21 responses as scope of human geography:
a. Material needs
i. Food and Drink, ii. Clothing, iii. Shelter, iv. Tools and v. Means of
Transportation
b. Fundamental Occupation
vi. Hunting, vii. Fishing, viii. herding, ix. Farming, x. Lumbering, xi. Mining, xii.
Manufacturing and xiii. Trade and Commerce
c. Efficiency
xiv. Efficiency, xv. Cultural stimulus and xvi. Recreation
d. Higher Needs
xvii. Government, xviii. Education, xix. Science, xx. Religion and xxi. Art and
Literature
Approaches to the study of Human Geography:
a. Systematic Approach
It is also known as nomethic approach. It was introduced by Alexander Von
Humboldt. In this approach, a particular phenomenon is considered for
detailed understanding. The study of specific natural or human phenomenon
that gives rise to certain spatial patterns and structures on the earth surface is
called the systematic study. It is divided into four main branches:
1. Physical Geography
It studies the various elements of earth system liker air and their distributions.
2. Biogeography including environmental geography
It focuses on various kinds of forests, grasslands, distribution of flora and
fauna, human nature relationships, quality of living environment and its
implications for human welfare.
3. Human Geography
It describe the human population, culture, dynamic social and political aspects.
4. Geographical methods and techniques
It is concerned with methods and techniques for field studies, qualitative,
quantitative and cartographic analysis.
b. Regional Approach
It is also known as ideographical approach. It was developed by Carl Ritter.
Region could be classified based on a single factor like relief, vegetation.
Administrative units like states, districts and taluks can be treated as region.
The main sub-branches of regional geography are given below:
1. Regional studies
2. Regional Analysis
3. Regional development
4. Regional planning
Uniqueness and Interdependence of a place
Factors Affecting the Uniqueness of a Place
Factors Description
1. Location It is defined as a particular place or position. It consists of site
and situation.
2. Land Topography It is shape and feature of land surfaces. A place can be located
at hill or mountains or terai.
3. Physical Geography It include landforms, soil and climate. For eg: Australia is
located on island and Mumbai is located on Coastal area.
4. Land use It is defined as the management and modification of natural
environment into built envirionment. For eg: Kathmandu's land
is used for settlement and Dhanusa's land is used for
agriculture
5. Built Environment It refers to the human made environment.

6. Infrastructure It includes road and rail networks, waterways, airports.

7. Demographic It includes age structure, ethnicity

Factors Affecting Interdependence of a place

Factors Description
1. People Migrant workers come from outside
2. Capital Investment from a business based outside the area.
3. Resources Raw materials of one place is transported to another place.

4. Ideas Urban planners, architects, business and artists bring ideas to

shape and change a place.
5. Diffusion The process by which a characteristics spreads across space.

6. Distance Decay The farther away one group is from another the less likely the two
groups are to interact.
Relation of Human Geography with Other Social Sciences:
1. Economics and Human Geography

 Both subject focuses on building theories about spatial arrangement and

distribution of economic activities.
  Both subject examines the economic conditions of particular regions or
countries of the world. It deals with economic regionalization as well as
local economic development.
 Both subject examines the history and development of spatial economic
structure. Using historical data, it
 Both subject examines how centers of population and economic activity
shift, what patterns of regional specialization and localization evolve over
time and what factors explain these changes.
 Bothe subject examines the cognitive processes underlying spatial
reasoning, locational decision making, and behavior of firms and individuals
2. Politics and Human Geography
Both subject focuses on the matters like:
 How and why states are organized into regional groupings, both formally
(e.g. the European Union) and informally (e.g. the Third World)
 The relationship between states and former colonies, and how these are
propagated over time, for example through neo-colonialism
 The relationship between a government and its people
 The relationships between states including international trades and
treaties
 The functions, demarcations and policing of boundaries
 How imagined geographies have political implications
 The influence of political power on geographical space
 The political implications of modern media (e.g. radio, TV, ICT, Internet,
social networks)
 The study of election results (electoral geography)
3. Population Studies and Human Geography
Both the subject focuses on the subject matters:

 Demographic phenomena (natality, mortality, growth rates, etc.)

through both space and time
 Increases or decreases in population numbers
 The movements and mobility of populations
 Occupational structure
 The way in which places in turn react to population phenomena,
e.g. immigration
5. Sociology and Human Geography
Both the subject studies the social theory which deals with the social
phenomenon and its spatial components, deals with the spatial interaction
among groups and culture, tradition and language of a particular society.
Human and the Environment:
1. Environmental Determinism
It is the belief that the environment i.e. physical factors such as landforms and
climate determines the patterns of human culture and social development.
Environmental determinists believe that ecological, climate and geographical
factors are responsible for human cultures and individual decisions. Aristotle
and Plato explained the environmental determinism by using climate factors.
The rise of most prominent stage of environmental determinsim in modern
geography in the beginning of the late 19th century when it was revived by
Ratzel. It regarded men as a passive agents who were not free and adapted
according to the nature. Humans are naturalized according to this theory.
2. Possibilism
It began from 1920. It states that the environment sets limitations for cultural
development but it does not wholly define culture. Culture is defined by
opportunities and decisions that humans make in response to deal with such
limitations. French Geographer Vidal de la Blache developed this theory as a
reaction to environmental determinism. According to this theory, nature got
humanized. Technology, capital and efficient organizational skills widens limits
of the human and expands range.
3. Neo-Determinism
It was put forward by Griffith Taylor. He argued that possibilists had developed
their ideas in temperate environment such as North-Western Europe which
had offer several viable alternative forms of human occupance but such
environments are rare in the most of the world and the environment is much
more extreme. This theory shows neither there is a situation of absolute
necessity nor is there a condition of absolute freedom. It states that
possibilities can be created within the limits which do not damage the
environment. It attempts to bring a balance nullifying the "either" "or"
dichotomy.
Fundamental Concepts of Human Geography
1. Location
It is defined as the particular place or position. It is an important term in
geography. Most of the geographic starts with the study of location. Location is
of two types:
a. Absolute Location
It provides a definite reference to locate a place. The reference can be latitude
or longitude.
b. Relative Location
It describes a place with respect to its environment and its connection to the
other place.
2. Place
It refers to the physical and human aspects of the location. It is associated with
toponym, site and situation of the place. Each place in the world has its own
characteristics. Place usually have :
a. Human Characteristics
It includes the human designed cultural features of a place like livelihood,
political system, transportation.
b. Physical Characteristics
It includes the description of the things such as mountain, rivers, beaches, etc
3. Accessibility
It is defined as the ability to reach a place with respect to another place. It
refers to the ease of reaching destinations. It determines equal access and
opportunity. It determines equal access and opportunity. The main component
of accessibility in geography is location and distance.
4. Spatial Interaction
It involves the wide range of flows between nodes which includes human
movement and movement of goods. These flows are important aspects of
urban and regional dynamics. It is explained based on analogy with Newton's
model of the Gravitational Attraction between body.
Central Place Theory
Introduction:
It was first developed by the German Geographer Walter Christaller in 1933
AD. It is a spatial theory in urban geography that attempts to explain the
reasons behind the distribution patterns, sizes and a number of cities and
towns around the world. Christaller developed this theory after the study of
settlement patterns in Southern German which analysed the relationship
between settlements of different sizes and related their economic activites
with the population.
Assumptions:
 An even  (flat) terrain 
 Evenly distributed population
 Evenly distributed resources 
 Similar purchasing power
  Preference for the nearest market 
 Equal transportation cost 
 Perfect competition 
Two main concepts of Central Place Theory
As per Walter Christaller, Central Place Theory is based on 2 fundamental
concepts which are “Threshold” and “Range”

Threshold – The minimum population needed to make a service viable at

a particular place. If this size is not reached then a particular activity will not
start or it will be closed down.

Range – This is the maximum distance a consumer is willing to travel to

purchase good or avail a service, beyond this distance consumer will not
travel as the distance traveled for good/service will outweigh the benefit.
Range has two limits, Upper Limit denotes an area beyond which there will
be no buyer willing to travel. And, Lower Limit denotes an area need for a
firm to make profits and have sufficient demand.

Sizes of settlements/communities as per central place theory

Walter Christaller gave a system with 5 sizes of settlements based on

population. The smallest unit is Hamlet which is considered a rural
community and the largest unit is Regional Capital.  The rank order of
central places in ascending order include:
1. Hamlet
2. Village
3. Town
4. City
5. Regional Capital/ Metropolis
The arrangement of the Central places/ settlements:
As transport is equally easy in all direction, each central place will have a
circular market area as shown in C in the following diagram:

However, the circular shape of the market areas results in either un-served
areas or over-served areas. To solve this problem, Christaller suggested the
hexagonal shape of the markets as shown in D in the above diagram.
Within a given area there will be fewer high order cities and towns in
relation to the lower order villages and hamlets. For any given order,
theoretically, the settlements will be equidistant from each other. The
higher order settlements will be further apart than the lower order ones.

Principles in the arrangement of the central places:

Christaller’s theory gives 3 principles which are the marketing principle,
transport principle and administrative principle for orderly
arrangements and the formation of hierarchy. Settlements are regularly
spaced – equidistant spacing between same order centers, with larger
centers farther apart as compared to smaller centers. The market area is
hexagonal shaped as it is free from overlapping, most efficient in both
number and function. Three Principles of Christaller for determining
distribution of central places in a region.
 Marketing principle:  If the distribution is entirely based on the range
of the good, then it would result in evenly spaced central places with
hexagonal markets area.
 Traffic principle:    If any central place (city) is smaller in size  than
expected than it be because of lower accessibility (not falling on
major transport route) and vice-versa
 Separation principle:  Spacing and sizing of Central places can
sometimes be distorted due to socio-political consideration.
The different layouts predicted by Christaller have K-  values which show
how much the Sphere of Influence of the central places takes in — the
central place itself counts as 1 and each portion of a satellite counts as its
portion:

1. Marketing Principle (K=3)

2. Transport Principle/ Traffic Principle (K=4)
3. Administrative Principle (K=7)
The three principles of central place theory are as follows
Marketing Principle (K=3): As per this the market area of a higher order
occupies one-third (1/3 part) of the market area of each of the consecutive
lower size place(node) which lies on its neighbor. The lower size nodes (6 in
numbers and 2nd larger circles) are located at the corner of the largest
hexagon around the high-order settlement. Each high-order settlement
gets 1/3rd of each satellite settlement (which are 6 in total), thus K =
1 + 6×1/3 = 3.
With K=3 the transport network is not efficient even when the distance
traveled is reduced. This is because of the absence of transport links
(network) between the larger places (nodes).
Transport Principle (K=4): This provides for most efficient transport
network. High order place half of the market area of 6 neighboring lower
order places located on the edge of the hexagon formed by high order
settlement. There are maximum central places possible. These are located
on the main transport routes connecting the higher order center. The
transportation principle involves the minimization of the length of roads
connecting central places at all hierarchy levels. In this system of nesting,
the lower order centers are all located along the roads linking the higher
order centers. This alignment of places along a road leads to minimization
of road length. However, for each higher order center, there are now four
centers of immediate lower order, as opposed to three centers under the
marketing principle.

Administrative Principle (K=7): According to K = 7 administrative

principle (or political-social principle), settlements are nested according to
sevens. The market areas of the smaller settlements are completely
enclosed within the market area of the larger settlement. Since tributary
areas cannot be split administratively, they must be allocated exclusively to
a single higher-order place. Efficient administration is the control principle

in this hierarchy

Criticisms

1. It's assumptions are flawed and unrealistic.

2. Transportation costs are not equal in all direction.
3. Rural market are not evenly distributed.
4. People or resources are never perfectly distributed.
Theory of Agricultural Location
Introduction:
The model was developed by Johann Vonthunen in early 1800s and was
translated into English until 1966. It is also known as "concentric rings
theory of agricultural land use" It outlines an ideal state whose plan
revolves around farming practices focusing on which farming makes most
profit. It explains the development of agricultural towns and cities. The
main aim of this theory is to show how and why agricultural land use varies
with the distance from the market.
Assumptions:
1. Land must be isotropic.
2. The State must be isolated surrounded by unoccupied wilderness.
3. The soil and climate must be consistent.
4. The transport cost must be proportional to the distance.
5. All the farmers should have equal access to transport.
6. Farmers act to maximize the profit.
7. Farmers are rational.
The Four Rings:
In an isolated state, Von Thunen hypothesized that a pattern of rings
around the city would develop:
1. Dairying and intensive farming occur in the ring closest to the city
because vegetables, fruit, milk and other dairy products must get to the
market quickly as there was no refrigerator in that time.
2. Timber and firewood in the second ring because before industrialization ,
wood was a very important fuel for heating and cooking and wood is very
hard to transport.
3. Crops in the third ring because grains last longer than diary products and
are much lighter than wood.
4. Livestock in the final ring because they can walk to the central city for
sale or butchering.
Modification of the Model:
It was created before factories, highways and roads. Isotropic plain and the
central city received a lot of criticism. The modified model encompassed
roads and rivers that might decrease transportation costs to some
locations.

Criticisms:
1. The conditions described in this theory is hardly available in any region of
the world.
2. It is not necessary that all types of farming systems as described by Von
Thunen exists in all regions.
3. Not only physical but also social, political and cultural factor effect
agricultural location.