This document provides an overview of the course GETh 405: Agricultural Geography. It discusses key concepts in agricultural geography including the definition and scope of the subject, agricultural systems and how they are influenced by physical, socio-economic and technological factors. It also outlines various models used in agriculture and approaches to classifying and regionalizing agricultural patterns worldwide. The document lists several recommended readings and resources on topics like the agriculture of Bangladesh, diffusion of innovations, and agricultural systems around the world.

1. GETh 405 : Agricultural Geography
1. Introduction to Agricultural Geography: Definition
and Scope; Methods, Themes and Concepts
2. Agricultural Origin, Development and Diffusion: Plants,
Animals and Technology
3. Agricultural System: The Role of Physical, Socio-
economic and technological factors: Eco-environmental
and biological approaches including perception.
Socio-Economic Concepts and Principles: Land, Labour,
Capital and Scale of Production; Ownership Tenancy,
Farm Size; Intensification, Co-operation and
Mechanization; Transportation and Marketing; Processing
and Storing; Agricultural Organization: Peasant Farming,
Commercial Farming

2. GETh 405 : Agricultural Geography
4. Models in Agriculture : Crop Combination Regions (Weaver
Model); theoretical Approach to Agricultural Landuse
Patterns: Input-Output Relationships; Agricultural location in
relation to market, distance - Function and landuse (Von
Thunen); Decision-Making under risk and Uncertainty (Game
Theory Model); including behavioural models- Diffusion
concept in agriculture.
5. Agricultural Classification : Regionalization of agricultural
patterns, Types and Typology of Agriculture, Agricultural
systems of the world (Whittelesy’s).
6. Agriculture in Bangladesh: Nature and characteristics, Types,
Patterns, Landuse, Crop Diversification, Intensity; Recent
Trends, Govt. Policies, Food security and prosperity of
Agriculture in Bangladesh.

3. Suggested Readings
A. Aliam,: Agriculture of Bangladesh
B.M. Rogers : Diffusion of Innovations
D. R. Harris: The Ecology of Agricultural Systems in Trends in Geography, Coke R.V. and Johnson, J. H. (eds)
D.B.Grigg : Agricultural systems of the world
Duckhan :The Fabric of Farming
H. F. Gregor: Geography of Agricultures Themes in Research
H.H. McCarty: Agricultural Geography" in (ed) S.E. Jones and C.F. Jones
J. Burton : Types of Agricultural Occapance of floodplains in the United States (Dept. of Geography, University of
Chicago) Res. Pap. 75
J. R. Tarrant: Agricultural Geography
J.D. Henshall: Models of Agricultural Activity in socio-economic Geography(ed) R.J. Chorley and Peter Haggett
L. D. Stamps: The Land of Britain : Its Use and Misuse
L.D. Stamp: Applied Geography
M. Chisholm : Geography and Economics
T. Hagerstrand : The Propagation of Innovation Waves, Land Studies in Geography, Series-B. Human Geography
T. R. Saarieen: Perceptions of the drought Hazard on the Great Plains, Res. Paper 196, Dept. of Geography,
University of Chicago
W.B. Moefan and R.J.C. Muntan : Agricultural Geography
W.C. Found: Theoretical Rural Land Use
Madjid, H. : Systematic Agricultural Geography
Sing, J and Dhillon : Agricultural Geography
Brammer, Hugh : Land Use and Land Use Planning in Bangladesh
Brammer, Hugh : Agricultural Development Possibilities in Bangladesh.
Hossain, Mosharraf: Agriculture in Bangladesh.
Faruquee, Rashid: Bangladesh Agriculture in the 21st Century.
Mandal & Dutta: Crop diversification.

4. Overview of Agricultural Geography

5. What is Agriculture
The word “agriculture” comes from the Latin agri ‘field’
and cultura ‘till, care for
• The expanded definition of Agriculture includes the
cultivation of plants and animals.
• Agriculture is defined as the science, art, and business
of cultivating the soil, producing crops and raising
livestock.
• The goal of agriculture is produce sufficient food
supplies.
• In the broadest sense, agriculture comprises the entire
range of technologies associated with the production
of useful products from plants, and animals through
soil cultivation, and crop and livestock management.

6. What is Agriculture
• Agriculture as a "branch of economic geography has
its emphasis on the spatial pattern
of agricultural activities as well as on the nature of
relationships between agricultural activities and
biological, economic and cultural elements that
influence those activities.

7. What is Agricultural Geography
• Etymologically Agricultural Geography means the art of
cultivation of soil with reference to natural environment
and human circumstances in a particular region.
• Thus Agricultural Geography is concerned with the spatial
variations, distribution and location of agricultural
activities on the earth’s surface and the factors
responsible for them.
• It is dominated by the interrelationship and effects of both
physical and socio-economic factors on spatial farm
enterprises and farm operations.

8. Agricultural Geography: Concepts
• As a sciences of agricultural geography is concerned with
– the formulation and testing of hypothesis
– interpretation of spatial distribution and location of
various characteristics of agricultural activities and
– measurement of geographic relationships
• Further as a science it seeks to identify, describe and
clarify the problems of agriculture against the geographic
background

9. Agricultural Geography: Nature
• Agricultural potentialities of a region determines the
human societal condition.
• The growth of the agricultural production brings economic
prosperity through better planned industrial location and
developed communication.
• Without improving the conditions of the people,
agricultural land use and industries no progress will occur
in regional development and planning.
• So the subject matter interlinked with the all kind of spatial
and economic aspects of agricultural activities.

10. Agricultural Geography: Scope of the subject
• Regional agricultural analysis
• Food and commercial crops
• Agricultural problems and planning
• The ownership of agricultural land
• Agroclimatology
• Classification of agricultural region
• Land conservation
• Crop combination
• Crop diversification
• Crop concentration
• Agricultural productivity and efficiency
• Levels of agricultural development
• Supply of food in relation to population

11. Agricultural Geography: Aims and objectives
• To know the different kinds of agricultural systems are
distributed over a region and how they function with
spatial arrangement
• To understand how particular types of agriculture have
developed in a particular area and how they are similar or
dissimilar to farming in other areas
• To analyze different systems of farming and their
operations and also to know the changes that they undergo
• To highlight the volume and direction of the changes in
agriculture of region
• To define the crop regions with reference to crop
production and combination or the system of agricultural
enterprise

12. Agricultural Geography: Aims and objectives (Cont’d)
• To measure and examine the causes for the levels or
agricultural development and disparities
• To identify weaker areas of agricultural productivity and
efficiency
• To delimit the areas of agricultural stagnation, transition
and dynamisms

13. Agricultural Geography: Theme
• One of the biggest established themes in agricultural
geography is the study and analysis of agricultural region

14. Geographer’s Perspective of World Agriculture
• Geographers are interested in the patterns and
distribution of agriculture in the world today.
– What are the patterns of agriculture worldwide?
– Why are agricultural areas distributed in the manner
that they are?

15. Location, Location, Location…
• Geography
– People
– Places
– Time
• Agriculture
– Food
– Land
– People
Does a continent latitude or longitude matter?
Source: Guns, Germs, & Steel: Jared Diamond

16. Topography and climate
• Does Geography determine where civilizations
begin?

17. Topography and Soils
• Can soil types predict where civilizations thrive?
• Do you know about the soils in the various colors?

18. Geography: Food, Land & People
• Different culture,
religions, traditions
based on food and land.

19. • What does the average family
around the world consume
and spend for food for one
week?
• Source: “Hungry Planet” - Peter
Menzel
Geography: Food, Land & People

20. Country
Weekly
Total, US $
Number of
People
Per
Person % of USA
Chad 1.23 6 $0.21 0.4%
Bhutan 5.03 13 $0.39 1.5%
Ecuador 31.55 9 $3.51 9.2%
Egypt 68.53 12 $5.71 20.0%
Poland 151.27 5 $30.25 44.2%
Mexico 189.09 5 $37.82 55.3%
Italy 260.11 5 $52.02 76.1%
USA 341.98 4 $85.50 100.0%
Germany 500.07 4 $125.02 146.2%
Cultural Comparisons

21. Another way to look at it!
$0
$100
$200
$300
$400
$500
$600
Chad Bhutan Ecuador Egypt Poland Mexico Italy USA Germany
Weekly Total
Weekly Total

22. Geography and Agriculture…
How will we feed a hungry planet?
www.agclassroom.org/ut

23. World Land Area for Agriculture
• 27% too cold
• 27% too dry
• 36% too mountainous
• 2% too swampy
• 8% juuuuuuust right! To feed over 7 BILLION
PEOPLE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

24. Focused area of Agricultural Geography
• Agricultural Geography addresses
- bio-physical determinants of agricultural patterns
and productivity;
- socio- cultural and economic determinants of
agricultural patterns and productivity;
- agricultural activities and spatial organization;
- agricultural decision making analysis;
- agricultural technological changes;
- agriculture and economic development;
- global emerging issues in agriculture from spatial
and temporal perspectives.

25. Factors of Influencing Agricultural Production
Physical Factors
– Location (latitude and altitude)
– Sun ( temperature, evaporation rates)
– Land/Soil (fertility)
– Water (precipitation & rivers)
– Climate/season
Cultural Factors
– Population Distribution
– Diet of population-calorie supply, protein, health
– Living Material-clothes, houses
– Cultural Tradition-nomadic, sedentary/rain dances
– Economics-cash crops with greatest profit ie. viticulture
– Government/Political Policies-Argentina wheat, Japan rice

26. Agricultural Trends
Over years, cultivation methods have changed significantly
depending upon the characteristics of physical environment,
technological know-how and socio- cultural practises.
• Hand Labor - Mechanization
• Small Plots - Large corporately - owned holdings
• No fertilizers - natural fertilizers - chemical fertilizers
• Natural Seed Production - Hybrid Seeds
• Farm to family - Farm to processing to supermarkets
• Nature controlled water - man controlled water