Farming Types

Geography: Cambridge International GCSE (2027 Exams), topic 10.1.1

Types of Farming

In food production, there are lots of different types of farming.

Commercial farming is producing and selling the produce for a profit.
E.g. A tea plantation.
Subsistence (hand-to-mouth) farming is farming just enough for your own family to survive from.

Arable farming is growing crops like wheat, corn or vegetables.
Pastoral/livestock farming is keeping animals for their meat, milk, eggs, wool, etc. (eg. sheep, cows).
Mixed farming is having animals and crops on the same farm.

Intensive farming means putting in the maximum effort/input in money, time, effort, seeds, fertilizer, etc. to get the highest yield.
E.g. Market gardening (growing things like strawberries, tomatoes, etc).
These farms are normally small so that the most produce possible can be grown on the land.
Extensive farming involves putting in a smaller amount of input and getting back whatever the land gives you.
This tends to be done in large areas to make them economically viable.
E.g. Australian cattle ranching on large ranches.

Crop rotation means growing different crops in succession on the same piece of land.
This keeps the soil fertile and controls weeds, pests and diseases.

What do we call the type of farming concerned with growing crops (like wheat)?
What is it called when different crops are grown in succession on the same piece of land?