(a) Define land. (b) State the two major classifications of land based on uses and give two examples in each case. (c) List six factors that influence the availability of land for agricultural production and explain two of the factors.
Explanation
(a)Land is the solid part of the earth's surface which has as its components water, air, soil, rock, minerals, natural l vegetation and animal life and suitable for agricultural production. Or it is the uppermost layer of the earth's crust on which agricultural and non-agricultural activities are carried out.
(b) Major classification of land based on uses: (i) agricultural land e.g. land for crop production, livestock production, fisheries, forestry. wildlife conservation etc. (ii) non-agricultural land e.g. mining, construction of buildings, roads, sports centres.
(c) Factors affecting land availability for agricultural production: (i) ecological factors. (ii) population density/ population growth. (iii) rate of growth of the population. (iv)climatic conditions. (v) topography or slope of the land. (vi) socio-cultural factors. (vii) economic factors. (viii) prevalent land tenure system (ix) fertility status of the land/ soil type (x) degree of land degradation e.g. pollution, erosion etc.
(d) Explanation for any two factors:
(i) Climatic factors: (1) such as rainfall, htemperature, daylight, length of growing season etc. (2) affect land availability for agricultural purposes such tha t e intended type of farming may not be possible, if it does not have the right factors. (3) Areas with high rainfall tend to encourage the cultivation of tree crops e.g. Cocoa, Oil-palm, Rubber; Kolanut. (4) Area with moderate rainfall favour food crops production e.g. Rice, Maize, Cowpea, (5) Extremes of rainfall leads to desert and swampy area which do not favour crop production.
(ii) Ecological factors: (1) such as swampy and desert areas do not favour crop production (2) high temperature and low rainfall lead to desertification, which renders the land useless for any agricultural activity.
(iii) Economic factors: (1) Such factors like value of land, labour, transportation etc. may lead to poor utilization of agricultural land when they are not adequate.
(iv) Population density/production growth: (1) land tends to be available for agriculture where the population is very low e.g. rural areas. (2) Land is not available for agricultural purposes where population is high e.g. urban areas. (3) People in urban areas need land for many other purposes e.g. construction of industries, building houses etc. hence land is expensive to acquire.
(v) Land Tenure System: (1) The system does not make land easily available for large scale agriculture. (2) Prospelcd-etivtoe, farmers find it difficult to acquire enough land because of the system, be-it communal, inheritance or leasehold (3) Land may be held by individuals who have no interest in agriculture.
(vi) Soil type !Fertility Status: (1) The type of soil in an area determines whether or not such land will be available for farming. (2) Loamy soil and to some extent clay soil in an area make such land available for farming. (3) Presence of crops.csaronpdsY. soil in an area prevents the availability of such land for farming because sandy soil does not support growth
(vii) Topography: (1) Hilly, mountainous and other forms of highlands do not make land available for agriculture as erosion may wash away any crop planted. (2) Gentle or even slopes to support the cultivation of crops (3) Hilly and mountainous areas are not easily accessible.
(viii)Socio-cultural practices: (1) Land may be reserved for cultural activities such as shrines, cemeteries or place of worship (mosque and churches) such land may not be available for agriculture.
(ix) Socio-economic activities: (1) the use of land for residential buildings, hospital, industries, roads, market, recreation centers, mining etc. does not make land available for agricultural activities. (2) Land used for such activities generates more revenue to the government than agriculture.