MSU RETURNING MATERIALS: P1ace in book drop to LIBRARIES remove this checkout from your record. FINES will be charged if book is returned after the date stamped below. aim/@9513 . , ‘ _ “91.21991 3°“ 1% 07 e 515*“ ., ":20 we 0 6 1“ 91 “22W AGRICULTURAL LAND USE PATTERNS IN RELATION TO THE PHYSICAL: LOCATIONAL. AND SOCIOECONOMIC FACTORS IN THE ASSARAH REGION OF SAUDI ARABIA By Sa1ih A11 AT-Shomrany A DISSERTATION Submitted to Michigan State University in partiai fuifiiiment of the requirements ' for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY Department of Resource Deveiopment 1984 ABSTRACT AGRICULTURAL LAND use PATTERNS IN RELATION TO THE PHYSICAL. LOCATIONAL. AND SOCIOECONOMIC FACTORS IN THE ASSARAH REGION OF SAUDI ARABIA By Salih Ali Al-Shomrany This study examined the land use patterns of the Assarah High- land region. which is located in southwestern Saudi Arabia and has been regarded as one of the most actively used agricultural regions in the Arabian Peninsula. In recent years. land use for agriculture in the region has progressively been diminishing owing to a series of complex environmental factors; some of these are physical. whereas others are locational. socioeconomic. and institutional. The main focuses of this study were (1) to describe the changes and developments in the agricultural land use patterns in the Assarah region and (2) to examine specific agricultural land use patterns in relation to physical. locational. and socioeconomic determinants. The Bashut-Al-Alaya district in the central part Of the Assarah region was selected as the representative area. Primary data were collected and analyzed to determine the effect of selected environmental factors on agricultural land use patterns and the rela- tionships between the factors and the types of agricultural land use. Salih Ali Al-Shomrany The techniques used in analyzing the data were frequency distribution. chi-square. Pearson correlation matrix. and factor analysis. The conclusions reached in this study are: (1) there is a strong relationship between the spatial distribution of the patterns of agricultural land use and the physical. locational. and socio- economic determinants; and (2) the agriculture in the representative area in particular and in the Assarah region in general is diminishing and will continue to diminish because of low agricultural productivity. shortages of water supply. rural-urban migration. lack of good trans- portation facilities. poor extension services. fragmentation of agri- cultural land. sOil erosion. and lack of an agricultural marketing system and Of planning for better use of agricultural land. This writer identified specific areas for further research and recommended measures to reverse the trends of diminishing agriculture not only for the study area but also for the entire agricultural region. To my parents. my wife. and my children. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS This dissertation could not have been written without the assistance of many individuals from whom information. advice. and help are required. I would like to express my gratitude to all those individuals who are not specifically named but who shared in this research experience. This especially applies to the local administra- tive officers in the Al-Alayah-Bashut district in particular and in the Assarah region in general. Special acknowledgment must go to Dr. Milton H. Steinmueller. To him I express my sincere appreciation for serving as both chairman of my guidance committee and dissertation supervisor. His encourage- ment and generous counsel were very important aids throughout my graduate program. Appreciation is also expressed to Drs. Paul E. Nickel. Frank A. Fear. Assefa Mehretu. and Allan J. Beegle for serving on the examining committee and for providing useful comments and suggestions on this manuscript. Special thanks go to Dr. Mohammad Ceryani in the Department of Geography at Um Ul-Oura University. Saudi Arabia. for his helpful assistance. advice. and guidance mainly during field work when the data Of this dissertation were collected. Appreciation is also extended to my colleagues. Ali 5. Al- Karni. Ali A. Al-Ghamdi. Dr. Assad M. Atiyah. and Dr. Abdulazize 8. Al- Ghamdi. for their encouragement and financial support. Finally. my special recognition and deep love go to my parents. wife. children. brothers. sisters. and relatives and friends for their patience. understanding. and encouragement throughout my graduate work at Michigan State University. TO all of them I express my sincere gratitude and deep appreciation. TABLE OF CONTENTS Page LIST OF TABLES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ix LIST OF FIGURES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xii LIST OF PLATES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xiv Chapter I O INmmUCTION O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O 1 Statement of the Problem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 The Rationale for This Study . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 The Objectives of the Study . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 Organization of the Study . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 Limitations of the Study . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 II. REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE RELATING TO THE PHYSICAL. LOCATIONAL. AND SOCIOECONOMIC FACTORS AFFECTING MRICULWML LAND USE O C I C O C O C O O O I C O O O 1] Physical Factors Influencing Agricultural Land Use . . 12 The Climate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . l2 Precipitation and the Supply of Water . . . . . . . 12 Rain as a Source of Soil Erosion . . . . . . . . . . l3 Floods as a Source of Destruction . . . . . . . . . 14 Snow . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 Effects of Temperature . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . l4 Frost . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 Light and Sunshine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 Length of Day . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17 Winds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 The Soil . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . l9 TOpography . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21 Sociocultural Factors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 Population Distribution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24 Ethnicity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25 The Role of Literacy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 Population Density . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 Population Density and Farm Size . . . . . . . . . . 27 Effects of Farmers' Perceptions and Preferences . . 28 Rural Migration in Cities The Role of Land Tenure . Rural Settlements . . . . Farm Mechanization . . . . Urban Sprawl . . . . . . . The Systems of Agricultural P Economic Factors . . . . . . Labor . . . . . . . . . Transportation . . . . . o uct Agricultural Marketing Income . . . . . . . . Agricultural Production Institutional Factors . . . . . . . . . . . Locational Factors Affecting Agricultural Land Overview of Agricultural Land Use Theory . . . . The Effect of Urban Sprawl on Agricultural Land Use Patterns . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Patterns Of Agricultural Land Use Developed by Boserup O C 0 O O O O O O O O O O O O O O 0 I The Literature on the Assarah Region . . . . . . . . e. on 0 0'10 0 o o o o o e o o e no 0 o o o o o o e o 0 auto. 0 e e o 0 no. 0 e o :00 o e o 00 e o o 0. on o o o o. .0 o o o o o o o o to o e o o o o o o. o C (n 0 III. RESEW MEWODS O O O O O O I O O O O O O O O O O O O IntrOdUCt‘on O O O O O C O O O O O O O O O C O O O O The Research Hypotheses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Hypotheses Relating to the Physical Environmental Factors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Hypotheses Relating to the Locational Factors Hypotheses Relating to Socioeconomic Factors The Sampling Design . . . . . . . Selection of the Study Area . The Sampling Procedure . . . . The Organization of the Survey Data-Collection Methods . . . . The Data-Collection Instrument Methods of Data Analysis . . . . IV. THE ROLE AND PLACE OF THE AGRICULTURAL SECTOR IN THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT OF SAUDI ARABIA . . . . . . Definition of Development . . . . . . . . . . . Economic Growth Versus Economic Development . The Objectives of Development . . . . . . . . Agricultural and Rural Development . . . . . . The Role and Place of Agricultural Development Objectives of Agricultural Development . . . . Economic Characteristics Of Saudi Arabia . . . . vi 89 V" 90 91 92 94 97 V. VI. The Performance of the Saudi Economy . . . . The Role of the Saudi Government in the Economic Development . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Planning for Economic Development . . . . . Agricultural Development in Saudi Arabia . . . Major Characteristics of Saudi Agriculture . Constraints on the Agricultural Development 1 sandi Arab1a O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O The Role of the Saudi Government in Agricultu Development . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Agricultural Development in the Assarah Region n Policy Options for Agriculture in Saudi Arabia . . ral The Development Program for the Assarah Highland Region 0 O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O Prospects for Successful Agricultural Development in the Assarah Region . . . . . . . . . . CHANGE AND DEVELOPMENT IN AGRICULTURAL LAND USE Land-U56 Patterns 0 o o o o o e o e o e e o 0 General Aspects of Agricultural Land Use . . . AGRICULTURAL LAND USE PATTERNS IN RELATION TO THE PHYSICAL. LOCATIONAL. AND SOCIOECONOMIC FACTORS IN THE ASSARAH REGION OF SAUDI ARABIA . . . . The Physical Environmental Factors . . . . . . Physical Characteristics of Agricultural Terr The Role Of the Physical Environmental Factors Influencing Agricultural Land Use Patterns . The First Hypothesis . . . . . . . . . . . . The Second Hypothesis . . . . . . . . . . . The Third Hypothesis . . . . . . . . . . . . The Fourth Hypothesis . . . . . . . . . . . Correlation Matrix Analysis for the Selected Physical Factors . . . . . . Locational Factors . . . . . The First Hypothesis . . . The Second Hypothesis . . The Third Hypothesis . . . Socioeconomic Factors . . . Income Characteristics . . Migration . . . . . . . . Transportation Characteristi s . . Agricultural Technology . . . . . and Farm Input-Output Relation . . Imported Food . . . . . . . . Fragmentation Of Agricultural L vii aces in Page lOl l02 103 106 107 111 112 114 120 121 124 128 129 130 Page Governmental Assistance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 253 Farm Labor Characteristics . . . . . . . . . . . . . 255 Social Characteristics of the Owners . . . . . . . . 257 Farmers' Reaction to the Major Difficulties Facing Agricultural Development in the Study Area . . . . 261 Factor Analysis of the Physical. Locational. and Socioeconomic Factors Influencing Agricultural Land Use in Assarah . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 262 VII. CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS . . . . . . . . . . . . 275 com1u51ons O 0 O O O O O O O O O O I I O O O O O O O 275 Recommendations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 279 Recommendations for Further Research . . . . . . . . . 280 APPENDICES I O I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O 2$ A. WE QUESTIONMIRE O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O 284 BIBL ImRAmY C O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O 303 viii Table 1. 4. 5. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. LIST OF TABLES The Sample Size and Household Distribution in the Representative Area by Villages and Subdivisions . . Fractions of Terraces Under Cultivation During 1950. 1%0'197O'and19820000000000000... Fractions of Terraces Under Cultivation During the Summers of 1978 and 1982 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Types of Crops Grown in the Study Area. 1950-1982 . . . A Comparison Between the Crops Grown in the Study Area 30 Years A90 and the Crops Grown in 1982 . . . . . . Types of Crops on the Agricultural Terraces. Summer 1978 O O O O C O O O O O O O : O O O O O O O O C O 0 Types of Crops on the Agricultural Terraces. Summer 1982 O O O O O O C C I O O O O O O I O O O O O O O 0 Frequency Of Farm Products Sold in 1978 . . . . . . . . FrBQuency of the Farm Products sold in 1982 . . . . . . Farmers Raising Animals Versus Those Not Raising Anima15' 1982 O O O O I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O 0 Kinds of Animals Raised in the Study Area. 1982 . . . . Purposes for Which the Animals on the Farm Are Raised . Places Where the Farm Animals Graze . . . . . . . . . . Veterinary Care for the Livestock . . . . . . . . . . . Terrace Classification According to the Selected Criteria Based on the Sample Size of 578 Terraces . . Physical Characteristics of Agricultural Terraces . . . ix Page 81 136 137 143 148 149 150 151 152 153 154 154 155 157 165 168 17. 18. 19. 20. 21. 22. 23. 24. 25. 26. 28. 29. 30. 31. The Role of the Selected Physical Environmental Factors in Influencing the Farmers to Grow What They Grow on Their Agricultural Terraces . . . . . . . The Assarah Agricultural Land Use Patterns Nith Respect to the $011 Depth 0 O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O The Assarah Agricultural Land Uses Patterns Nith Respect to the Slope Inclination . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Farmers' Perception of the Physical Factors Hazardous to Agriculture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The Means and Standard Deviations for the Hazardous Physical Factors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Correlation Matrix for the Role of the Selected Physical Factors in Agricultural Land Use . . . . . . . Correlation Matrix for the Selected Physical Hazards to Agricultural Land Use . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Geographical Distribution of Agricultural Land Use With Relation to the Distance From the Local v111ages O O O O O O O O O I I O O O O O O O I O O O O Intensity of the Annual Agricultural Land Use Based on the Frequency of the Crops Cultivated on the Irrigable. Dry-Term. and Forest Terraces . . . . . . . Agricultural Land-Use Patterns in Relation to the . Distance From the Village: A Case Study of the Barn Ben Sahir Village in the Bashut District . . . . . . . Agricultural Land Use in Relation to the Distance From the Village . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Agricultural Land Use in Relation to the Distance From the Local Markets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A Comparison of the Incomes From Agriculture and Other sources 0 O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O 0 Selected Socioeconomic Factors Responsible for the Farmers' Inability to Sell Their Farm Produce . . .. . Factors Affecting Rural Migration . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 177 179 183 186 189 190 191 211 215 218 223 226 228 230 232 Page 32. Transportation Characteristics . . . . . . . . . . . . . 235 33. Land Use Patterns in Relation to the Lack of Transportation Facilities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 237 34. Correlation Matrix for Selected Transportation Detemi "ants O C O O O O O O O C O O O I O O O O O O O 89 35. Farmers' Perceptions About the Use of Modern Agricul- tural Technology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 243 36. Agricultural Land Use Patterns in Relation to the Use of Agricultural Technology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 245 37. Approximate Annual Returns From Farming . . . . . . . . . 246 38. Relationship Between Income and the Farm Input-Output . . 248 39. Farmers' Perceptions About Imported Food . . . . . . . . 250 40. Farmers' Perceptions of the Selected Factors as Contributing to Low Agricultural Productivity . . . . . 254 41. The Frequency Distribution Regarding Family Size . . . . 255 42. The Frequency Distribution Regarding the Farm Labor Force 0 I O O O O O O O I O O O O O I O O O O O O O O O 256 43. The Frequency Distribution of Hired Farm Labor . . . . . 257 44. The Frequency Distribution of the Farmers' Duration of Residency in the Villages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 258 45. The Frequency Distribution Regarding the Educational Level of the Farmers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 259 46. The Frequency Distribution of the Farmers by Age . . . . 259 47. The Relationship Between the Age and the Educational Lave] Of the Farmer O O O O I O O O O I O O O O O O O O 260 48. Factor Analysis of the General Environmental Variables Influencing Agricultural Land Use in the Assarah Region 0 O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O 265 49. Factor Analysis of the Income Variables . . . . . . . . . 272 50. Factor Analysis of the Migration Variables . . . . . . . 273 xi LIST OF FIGURES Figure Page 1. Assarah and Southwestern Saudi Arabia . . . . . . . . . . 2 2. Environment. Space. and Economic Rent . . . . . . . . . . 42 3. Illustration of Stages of Production Function and Input- Output Relationships Involved in Operation Of Physical Law of Diminishing Returns . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47 4. Variations in Zonal Patterns in the Land-Use Model Of von Thunen O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O I O 50 5. Linear Rent-Distance Function for a Single Crop . . . . . 52 6. Rent Gradient for a Single Crop Grown at Different Inten51 ti as O O O 0 O O O O O O 0 O O O O 0 O O O O O 0 S4 7. Land-Rent Triangles and Concentric Ring Derivation . . . 56 8. Relationship of Value for Agriculture and Distance From Urban Areas for a Single and Two Competing Land uses 0 O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O I O O O O O O 6] 9. Variations in Zonal Patterns in the Land-Use Model Of SinCIair 0 O O O O O O 0 O O O O O O O O O O O I O O 62 10. Physiographic Divisions of Southwestern Saudi Arabia . . 78 11. Saraht Balqarn and Shomran . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80 12. Agricultural Land in Saudi Arabia . . . . . . . . . . . . 108 13. Organisation of the Ministry of Agriculture and Water . . 118 14. Agricultural Land in the Southwest Region . . . . . . . . 122 15. Land Use Patterns in Bashut-Al-Alaya Districts. 1953 . . 131 16. Land Use Patterns in Bashut-Al-Alaya Districts. 1982 . . 132 17. Climate Characteristics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 162 xii Page 18. Mean Monthly Rainfall and Temperature for Selected Stations in Assarah. 1966-1978 . . . . . . . . . . . . 163 19. Land-Use Patterns on a Slope Under Human Utilization and Under Natural Conditions . . . . . . . . . . . . . 181 20. Type and Intensity of Land Use With Relation to Distance From Al-Garen Village in Bashut District: "GSt-EaSt CPOSS‘SBC't‘iOfl o o e e o e o e o e o o e e o o 220 21. Type and Intensity of Land Use With Relation to Distance From Al-Garen Village in Bashut District 1982 O O O O O I O O O O O O 0 O O O O O O I O O O O O 221 xiii LIST OF PLATES Plate Page 1. (a) A beautiful "other" view of Saudi Arabia: Greenery. plateaus and mountains in the vast sea of sand . . . . . 3 (b) Another view of the same beautiful landscape that follows miles and miles of the same panoramic view . . . . 3 2. (a) A general view of the patterns of agricultural land use in the southern part of Assarah . . . . . . . . . . . 5 (b) A general view of the patterns of agricultural land use in the northern part of Assarah . . . . . . . . . . . 5 3. (a) The relationship between the north and northwest slopes and vegetation cover .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . 67 (b) The relationship between the slope facing the east and the thinness of vegetation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67 4. (a) A general north-south view of the Bashut district . . 79 (b) A general east-west view of the Bashut district . . . 79 5. (a) Cluster type of villages in the northern part of Assarah O O O O O O O O O O I O O O I O O O O O O O O O 0 133 (b) Dispersed type of villages in the southern part of Assarah I O I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O I O O 133 6. (a) Encroachment of the marginal agricultural land . . . . 134 (b) Preservation of the irrigable agricultural land . . . 134 7. (a) Irrigable terraces devoted to vegetables and sorghum during the summer season . . . . . . . . . . . . . 144 (b) Dry-field terraces devoted to wheat and barley during the winter season . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 144 xiv 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. (a) Multiple cropping in the irrigable terraces during the summer season . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . (b) Single cropping (sorghum) in the irrigable terraces during the summer season . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . (a) Cultivation of grape. fig. and peach trees in the BaShut dIStrICt O O O O O O O O O O O O I O O O O O O (b) Pomegranate cultivation in the Al-Alayah district (a) Sheep and goats grazing on the public land . . . . (b) Sheep and goats grazing on private uncultivated te r races I O O O O O O O O I O O O O O O O I O I O O O (a) Cross-channel terraces on the gentle and moderate 51 Opes O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O (b) Lateral and contour terraces Of gentle and moderate slopes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . (a) Contour terraces of moderate and steep slopes . . (b) Irrigable terraces of gentle and moderate slopes . (a) A private forest on the cross-channel terraces . . (b) A public forest of Juniperus Procera in the low slope areas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . (a) Land-use patterns on a slope under man-made conditions (Bashut) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . (b) Land-use patterns on a slope under natural conditions (Bashut) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .' (a) Agricultural land-use patterns in irrigated areas with adequate water supply (Bashut) . . . . . . . . . (b) Irrigable and dry terraces uncultivated because of the shortages of water supply (Bashut) . . . . . . . . (a) Excessive soil erosion on the abandoned agricultural terraces O O O O C O O I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O (b) Diminished soil erosion due to the management of 1and O O O O O O O O C O O I C O O O I O O O O O O O O XV Page 146 146 147 147 156 156 166 166 167 167 170 170 182 182 187 187 188 188 17. Page (a) The new highway running through the Assarah region from Taif City in the north to Abha in the south . . . . . 236 (b) The type and the nature of housing construction that seems to have been influenced by the new highway . . 236 xvi CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION Nhen Saudi Arabia is mentioned. the stereotype image that.jumps to one's mind is that of a vast desert where uninterrupted sand dunes form the physical landscape. . . . Assarah is the exception to many blanket generalizations that have been made about Saudi Arabia. (Mughram. 1973. p. 2) The Assarah highland region in the central part of southwestern Saudi Arabia is characterized by abundant natural resources. These resources include a good-quality soil trapped by human-made terraces.‘ the highest rain-receiving area in Saudi Arabia. and the availability Of minerals. livestock. and wildlife. In comparison to other regions in Saudi Arabia. the Assarah highland is unique in its recreational resources and the beauty of its natural scenery (Figure 1. Plate 1). Assarah is an agricultural region and the human beings here. at least up until recently. had depended on agriculture as the main source of their livelihood. A subsistence type of mixed farming dominates the area. It seems that the climatic factors. especially the precipi- tation. are some of the most important natural forces that encourage agriculture in such a rugged and harsh environment. Normally. agriculture in Saudi Arabia is practiced in the flat. fertile valleys and oases where the water supply for irrigatiOn is more easily available. but in the Assarah highland agricultural land is at a 1- 19° ‘Woxm eastern boundary of Assarah PO + IOOK 41° J Source: AL-Bhomrany. 1080. p. 4 Figure 1 (a) A beautiful 'other' view of Saudi Arabia: Greenery, Plateaus and Mountains in the vast sea of sand (b) Another view of the same beautiful landscape that follows miles and miles of the same panoramic view Plate 1 premium. The farmers in the region have transformed the available land for agriculture by terracing. which has long been used by the farmers to increase the quota of farmland. to stem soil erosion during the rainy season. and to conserve water (Al-Shomrany. 1980. p. 150) (Plate 2). Wm For centuries the Assarah highland has been regarded as one of the most actively used agricultural regions in the Arabian Peninsula. In recent years. particularly after the discovery of oil in the eastern region of the country. the use of land for agricultural purposes has been continuously diminishing. Farms have generally been abandoned: farm animals have been sold; and the younger generation has migrated to work in the cities. where high-paying Jobs have been found more tempting than farming at home. Up to 1970. the farmers in Assarah had been cultivating most of their terraces to produce food for their own consumption as well as shipment to the neighboring regions. Now. the majority of the farmers import food from outside the region. and the abandonment Of the ter- races is increasing. It is believed that this depletion of the agri- cultural land is related tO many environmental determinants. Some of them are purely physical. while others are locational. socioeconomic. and institutional. The effects of these environmental factors on the type. distribution. and the decline of land use for agricultural pur- poses are very challenging and complex from the standpoint of geog- raphy. I ‘ “I ._ '.- '. <3“... . .‘,-~' (a) A general View of the patterns of agricultural land use in the southern part of Assarah (b) A general view of the patterns of agricultural land use in the northern part of Assarah Plate 2 The purpose of this study is to analyze the agricultural land use in the Assarah highland. Saudi Arabia. with regard to the positive as well as negative effects of the physical. locational. socioeconomic. and institutional environmental factors. Wu The Justification for the need and importance of this study lies in the fact that (1) there has never been a comprehensive study concerning the type and distribution of agricultural land use in the Assarah region with respect to the physical. locational. and socio- economic factors: (2) the present decline of and encroachment on agri- cultural land pose a very challenging problem from an agricultural and geographical point of view. The trend in the land use in Assarah bodes ill for the agricultural future. both in the long and short runs. The short-term effect on the agriculture is discernible in that the area is continuously on the decline: and in the long run the region may be rendered totally unfit for agriculture with the disappearance of the man-made terraces. The walls of the abandoned terraces have already collapsed owing to a poor or totally nonexistent maintenance. and the soil that had accumulated over thousands of years has already been washed away by rains and thunderstorms; and (3) this study. it is hoped. will provide a material and intellectual inducement to other researchers to investigate further the issues arising out of this research. Hopefully. this study will help the decision makers with the basic information contained in this investigation in planning for the future. W The main objectives of the study are (l) to describe the changes and developments in the agricultural land use patterns discernible in the Assarah region during the last three decades. (2) to examine the specific agricultural land use patterns in relation to the physical. locational. and socioeconomic factors in the study area in partiCular and in the Assarah region in general; (3) to determine what physical. locational. and socioeconomic factors have influenced and are still influencing the agricultural land use patterns in the region; and (4) to recommend an optimum use of agricultural land in the Assarah region in the future. W This study is divided into seven chapters. Chapter I briefly outlines the Objectives and the limitations Of the study. Chapter II is divided into two sections. The first section discusses the general literature relating to the physical. locational. and socioeconomic factors. and the second focuses on the literature dealing specifically with the study area. Chapter III describes the sources of the data. the method of and the approach to the data collection. and the techniques of analysis. Chapter IV focuses on the agricultural development in Saudi Arabia in general and in the Assarah region in particular; Chapter V examines the major changes in and developments of the agricultural land use during the last three decades. In Chapter VI. the main focus is on the patterns of agricultural land use with regard to the physical. locational. and socioeconomic factors. Finally. the last chapter includes the conclusions reached by this study and the recommendations and sugges- tions made by this study for further research in the Assarah region. Minimum): A broad-based research is faced with many problems and diffi- culties: First. the Assarah region is isolated from the rest of the country and is little known to researchers because of its rugged topography. Second. the basic reference materials about the region are very scanty; 'The only materials available for this study were a Ph.D. dissertation by Mughram in 1973. an M.A. thesis by Al-Shomrany in 1980. another M.A. thesis by Al-Ghamdi. and four general reports about the southwest region of Saudi Arabia published by the Ministry of Agriculture in 1969. Third. the most frustrating difficulty faced by this investigator was the total nonexistence of any detailed maps of the land use or the topography of the region. In short. it was soon found that any reliable data on the region were either severely limited or difficult to obtain from the Offices of the Ministry of Agriculture. Fourth. the field survey. on which this investigation relies heavily. was extremely difficult to conduct and inordinately time consuming because of the highly rugged terrain. poor transportation facilities. and the location of the villages away even from the new paved highway that runs north-south through the region. Fifth. the personal interviews that were resorted to were beset with difficulties because a research inquiry like the present one was something strange to the entire population and they were extremely suspicious. Many prospective interviewees confused the questions with some kind Of secret inquiry that had some bearing on their incOmes and holdings. Many of the farmers interviewed were very reluctant to cooperate. Besides. this interviewer had to engage in prolonged discussion before any meaningful answers could be elicited to the main issues being investigated in this research. Some farmers refused totally to be interviewed or to engage in any discussion whatsoever. ‘Those who made themselves available for interview had to be reached either in the central mosque or around their farms. and. often enough. the interviews had to be staggered into more than one session to suit the interviewees' schedules. Sixth. as has already been pointed out. the greatest difficulty encountered by this investigator was the nonavailability of any contour or land-use maps of the region. He had to rely on his own maps. sketches. and photographs of the region. It took him an inordinately long time to collect the reliable data. which have proven significantly rewarding for this dissertation. In short. the information on which this study is based was built almost from scratch. as there existed no reliable body of comprehensive data regarding the study area. The data collection. it must be pointed out. took a heavy toll of this researcher's time. money. and prestige. as the people in the area largely look down 10 upon all research: What can an outsider find out that we do not know already? However. the moments of exhilaration experienced out of new insights and knowledge have sufficiently compensated for the hardships suffered. perhaps. as a necessary hazard faced by all who venture abroad on the rough seas. ‘The field survey. which was undertaken in pursuit of this researcher's thesis for the master's degree at Michigan State University. has widened his knowledge of the land. its people. their customs and problems. and has enriched him in experience. which. despite his frequent visits with his family in the region and his childhood spent in the area. would have remained static and less illuminating. but for the trek of discovery through his native countryside. CHAPTER II REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE RELATING TO THE PHYSICAL LOCATIONAL. AND SOCIOECONOMIC FACTORS AFFECTING AGRICULTURAL LAND USE In the analysis of agricultural land use patterns. several factors operating in various combinations in space and time deter- mine the types. the spatial distribution. and the use of the land resources. Works by Adams (1960). Baker (1921). Barlowe (1978). Chisholm (1969). Dhillon (1977). Dunn (1952). Found (1971). and Symons (1979) have identified at least four groups of determinants. that is. the site characteristics. cultural preferences and percep- tions. systems of production. and locations relative to the market. controlling land use. While this study is primarily concerned with the physical. socioeconomic. and locational factors in the analyses of agri- cultural land use patterns. it is the purpose Of this chapter to examine the manner in which these environmental factors operate to bring about spatial variations in agricultural production. It is hoped that conceptual and empirical background of the agricultural land use analysis. examined in the following pages. will provide a broad framework within which to formulate the present study. 11 12 WW .Astlcultural_Land_Use Physical factors play a dominant role in determining the geographical distribution of agricultural land use patterns. Among the most recognized important physical factors affecting the agri- cultural land use are the topography. the climate. and the soil ._.__._ H— J, (Barlowe. 1978; Griffin. 1972; Symons. 1979L . i Ih§_911mn19*3 To a large extent. the moisture. precipitation. snowfall. hail. fog. humidity. the rate of evaporation. temperature conditions including sunshine. farming seasons during spring and fall. frosts. and wind determine land use (Symons. 1979. p. 21). In this regard. Baker (1921) pointed out: A third of the area of the United States and Asia. almost one half of Africa. and fully two-thirds of Australia are unsuited to crop production because of deficient moisture: a half or more of Canada and of Siberia. because Of deficient temperature. The climatic factors also affect the use of the land indirectly because of their influence upon the comfort and health of the people. The tropics. where half of the arable land of the world is located. are probably not suited to permanent occupation by the white race. ‘The yellow race. however. appears to possess a wider climatic range of adaptation and is able to live. labor and reproduce in the tropics. (p. 18) (W Too much moisture. either from that trapped in the soil or from underground reservoirs and/or rivers and streams. is as harmful to agriculture as too little. but adequate moisture. trapped in the soil. helps plants to absorb the nutrients from the soil. Yet. 13 The amount of water entering the soil . . . depends on a host of factors: the intensity and duration of rainfall. soil texture and structure. the amount and type of plant cover. the amount of leaf litter and humus on and in the surface soil. the amount of water already in the soil. and the steepness of slope. (Amato. 1976. p. 53) In this regard. precipitation. for any given period of time. is considered highly significant to agricultural production as it provides the badly needed trapped soil moisture. Otherwise this much-needed moisture has to come from artificial irrigational means (Symons. 1979. p. 24). W W Rainfall. however. can be equally harmful to agriculture if it becomes a source Of soil erosion. This erosion is largely caused by runoffs which remove the upper layers of the soil much faster than they are replaced by fresh deposits. Heavy thunderstorms are another cause of heavy soil erosion. However. the amount of this soil erosion is dependent on the intensity of the rainfall. the nature of the soil including its texture and structure. and the slope Of land. Low-slope areas abate the force of the runoffs. whereas the high-slope areas experience the full fury of the runoffs. resulting in a heavy denudation of the soil. Thus. moderately sloped areas have a moderate soil denudation. Protection against erosion calls for maintenance of vegetative cover. contour ploughing and construction of contour ridges. banks. stream control. etc. . . . . The risk of erosion should inhabit many farming practices and ought indeed. in some region. to be a major factor in deciding on the type of farming to be practised. . . . (Symons. 1979. p. 26) 14 Wm Winn Floods are in part caused by poor drainage due to the soil texture and structure. Heavy rainfalls. for these structural and textural reasons. in regions of low rainfall and high evaporation. cause catastrophic floods and heavy erosions of the topsoil and the destruction of crops and vegetation. Snow Snow has both a positive as well as a negative effect on agriculture. When the snow melts in the low areas. it adds to the water reservoir of the soil. 0n the other hand. snow insulates the soil against low temperatures seeping down to the lower levels of the soil. protecting it from soil frost. Farmers in these areas take advantage of the protection provided by the snow and sow the fields in the autumn. Most of the negative effects of the snow. in fact. are due to its accumulation in the winter when farms become uncultivable and. if cultivated. result in a total loss or damage to the crops (Symons. 1979. pp. 26-27). W The temperature of the soil and the surrounding atmosphere are as important for germination as rain and snow. Plants require varying degrees of temperature for their growth. maturation. and fruition. For agriculture. the ideal temperatures are 18 to 25 degrees centi grade. Low temperatures stunt the growth of plants: high temperatures in the initial periods of plant growth kill the 15 young seedlings. It is estimated that the minimum temperature for wheat and barley is five degrees centigrade and for maize (corn) nine degrees centigrade (Symons. 1979. p. 27). In order to understand the part temperature plays in agricultural production. we must have a fair idea of the life cycle of various crops. the period involved from sowing to harvesting times. and the kinds of atmospheric conditions most conducive to their growth. Most crops need what has come to be called the frost- free days. at least in the initial stages. Given this condition. wheat needs a minimum of 5 degrees centi grade and 1400 degree days of accumulated temperature. Rice. on the other hand. needs 3000 degree days. with an average temperature of 20 degrees centi grade (Symons. 1974. p. 28). However. temperatures far above the freezing poi nt slow or stop the growth of many crops. Although the number of frost-free days usually has been used to indicate the length of the growing season. the temperature at which plants are killed varies greatly for different species. and even for different culti- vators of the same species. Some are killed at temperatures well above 32 F (0 C). A rapid drop in temperature kills more frequently than does a slow drop to the same degree. (Metcal fe 8. Elkins. 1980. p. 100) Ernst Frost is one of the main killers of crops. and the damage caused by it is particularly heavy wherever it occurs. often interrupting agricultural planning. In Siberia. for example. permafrost limits the growth of the tayga to larch and other trees. Agricultural cultivation in Siberia is limited only to the summer. 16 with the result that agriculture is less rewarding than elsewhere in the world. Regions Of very high altitude share the same fate owing to frost. Abnormally late frosts are particularly damaging since they catch a high proportion of plants at the seedling or early leaf ing stages when they are most vulnerable. Recovery. however. may take place if the frost is not too severe or repeated. Otherwise the farmer's only remedy is to re-seed with later maturing varieties. which is not always possible. (Symons. 1979. p. 29) However. farmers have devised ways to protect their crops from frost. Fer instance. farmers keep paraffin heaters burning under the trees and plants. or they constantly keep spraying them with water throughout the frosty period. But either method is expensive and laborious (Symons. 1979. p. 29). Almost all of the earth's surface affords sufficient access to sunlight to permit some type of crop. range. or forest use. Optimum use of this possible access to sunlight. however. is prevented by temperature extremes--pri mari 1 y by the problem of short growing seasons and unseasonable frosts. Baker has estimated that around one-fourth of the earth's land surface is too cold for wheat culture. Much of this area has value for forestry purposes. as is attested by the northern forests of Alaska. Canada. the Scandinavian countries. and the Soviet Union. Some of it also has commercial value for summer range. for the pasturing Of sheep and cattle. and for provision of forage for wildlife and reindeer. Yet large areas such as the city expanses of the Arctic and the Antarctic must be written off as waste so far as current agricultural uses is concerned. (Barlowe. 1978. pp. 26-27) LEW Light and sunshine are essential for agricultural growth and productivity. The sun provides the energy for photosynthesis in plants which. in turn. provide the carbon compounds that feed plant life. Solar energy also powers the water cycle. That is. it 17 purifies and desalinates ocean water and provides fresh water upon which land life depends (Miller. 1982. pp. 63-82). The photosynthesic efficiency with which a plant converts light energy to chemical energy stored in the plant tissue sets the upper limit of crop output per acre. In other words. if photosynthesis is occurring at its maximum rate. additional inputs of water or fertilizer will not increase productivity. In regard to this environmental constraint. Bonner suggests that the upper limit of crop yield. as determined by the factors that regulate photosynthesic efficiency. is already being approached in those regions with the highest level of agricultural output. viz. Japan. Western Europe. and the United States. (Amato. 1976. pp. 49-50) W The length of day is a factor in plant growth and allows plants and crops to grow rapidly in regions of high latitude. During short summers. especially when the sky is clear. plants can complete the flowering and seeding essential to reproduction of the species. for rapid photosynthesis allows useful plants to use the long day to breed and preserve the species. In the tropical regions. the length of day is always below the critical level for some plants such as potatoes. In the subtropical regions. there are many plants that require about 100 hours of darkness for flowering. For some species the length of day (light) and the shortness of night (darkness) are unimportant (Symons. 1974. p. 30). Regardless of how favorable light. carbon dioxide. moisture. and nutrient conditions may be. plant growth ceases when the temperature drops below a certain minimum value or exceeds a certain maxi mum value. Between these limits there is an optimum temperature at which growth proceeds with greatest rapidity. Change points out that these temperatures are comparatively low for cool growing season crops such as oats. rye. wheat. and barley minimum 32 to 41 degrees F.. optimum 77 to 88 degrees F.. 18 and maximum 88 to 99 degrees F. For warm growing season crops such as melons and sorghums. the critical temperatures are considerably higher: minimum 59 to 65 degrees F.. optimum 88 to 99 degrees F.. and maximum 111 to 122 degrees F. (Amato. 1976. p. 51) 11.0115 Winds increase the rate of evapotranspiration and consequently increase the need for water. They. often enough. are a source of destruction to agriculture and cause serious damage to the crops because of their excessive force due to velocity. Their positive contribution to agriculture consists in the driving force for windmills for pumping water for irrigation and generating electricity. as affirmed by the following passage: In regions subjected to strong winds. like the British Isles. cereal crops are frequently blown over or lodged and strength of stalk is an important factor in choice for variety sown. Very strong winds sometimes thresh the crop while it stands leaving only a straw residue to be harvested. "Killing" winds in many countries are associated with particular directions of origin. The Misteral of the South of France. a cold. northerly wind funnelled by the Rhone Valley. sometimes brings heavy losses to growers of olives. citrus and other fruits on the Mediterranean low land. . . . (Symons. 1979. p. 30) Based on the analysis of the effect of the climatic factor on agriculture. this investigator finds the conclusions reached by Barlowe (1978) in Land_Bfl§Qn££fi_EQanm1:s fully justified--that . . . only 34 percent of the world's land area enjoys both an adequate and a reliable supply of rainfall. and that only 200 million acres--considerably less than 1 percent Of the world's surface land area--benefit from irrigation. Baker's estimates show that only 11 million square miles. 20 percent of the earth's land surface. have suitable temperature and moisture conditions to permit wheat culture. Of the 41 million square miles with suitable temperature conditions for wheat. Baker found that 17 million were too dry while l3 million were too wet for wheat culture. (p. 27) 19 Ihe_Snil Tfl§,§911' besides providing the medium for agricultural activity. serves to preserve the moisture for crOps and stores badly negdgd nutrients essential for the growth and development of plant life. In fact. cereal production is largely restricted to areas of high-clayey-content soil of high natural fertility (Griffin. 1972. p. 124). The soils that cover the earth's surface vary considerably in color. structure. texture. physical constitution. and chemical composition and in their natural characteristics. They range from light-colored soils to black earth. from heavy clay to sand and gravel. from shallow soils to deep formations. from soils that tend to be acid to those that are alkaline. and from soils that provide plants with little more than space and foundations to soils of high inherent productive capacity. Agricultural uses vary somewhatLin their soil requirements. but most crops are responsive to fertile and productive soils. The same may be said of grazing and forest uses. even though these uses are often relegated to the less fertile and less desirable lands. (Barlowe. 1978. p. 28) Baker (1925) found that wheat is not grown successfully on sandy. gravelly or peaty. or heavily clayey soils in cool climates. In warm climates. clayey soils take on a more permeable character and are often used for wheat (p. 28). Amato (1976). on the other hand. pointed out that fine- textured soils of high potential fertility do not necessarily mean that they are the most favored for all or even for most types of agricultural systems. Clayey soils have several characteristics that are not conducive to agricultural production. For instance. the clayey soils are Often difficult to cultivate because of their stickiness and plasticity when wet. their firmness when moist. and 20 their tendency to bake hard in hot. dry weather. Furthermore. their low permeability Often renders them unreceptive to rainfall. thereby making them prone to erosion from runoff even on gentle slopes. Other deficiencies of fine-textured soils include poor oxygen content and high carbon dioxide levels due to poor aeration. stunted growth of plant life (p. 55). However. in comparison to the potentially fertile clayey soils. the coarse-textured soils have a low potential for fertility. But this type of soil. characterized by having a texture of sand and gravel. is looked upon as being highly suitable for many forms of commercial agriculture in technologically advanced societies. such as the production of high-value specialty enterprises like fruit and vegetable farming and horti- and floricultures. For the sand- and gravel-textured soils usually have a loose consistency and high tilth quality. favoring ease of cultivation. air and water movement. and root development. Moreover. this type of soil tends to warm up much faster in the spring than the clayey type. Agriculturists. farming on coarse-textured soils. are able to put their produce on the market while prices are still high (Amato. 1976. p. 55). Soil depth is another element that affects crop productivity and farming practice. If the bedrock is near the surface. normal root development is retarded and the supply of nutrients and water tends to be too low to meet the needs of the crops throughout the growing season. Pearson and Harper have indicated that around 46 percent of the earth's surface is covered with "good soils." which are suitable 21 for crop use. This estimate may be taken as a general measure of the world's soil characteristics. It must be remembered. however. that soil conditions vary a great deal. that the supply of the more productive soils is relatively limited. that man is continually drawing upon less and less fertile areas. and that the decision as to what is "good soil” involves value judgements that may change with time and circumstances. Furthermore. the requirement of "good soils" for cropland use is not an unwavering one because numerous soil deficiencies can be overcome with fertilization. soil-building practices. irrigation. draining. and other measures. (Barlowe. 1978. p. 28) Montana ,19999532213 among the natural factors. greatly affects_the‘ geogrsphical distribution of agricultural land useand productivity. Among the most important elements of topography are altitudesand .flope. The effect of the altitude is largely indirect through the climate. while the slope affects land use and productivity more . directly. as agricultural activity is directly limited by the steepness of the terrain. The primary consequence of high altitude is lowered air pressure. . . . The secondary effects of decreased mean temperatures and increased precipitation and wind forces are the economically impor- tant consequences of higher elevation. (Symons. 1979. p. 46) At high altitudes. temperatures fall as the altitude from sea level increases at a rate called the lapse rate. because of the exposure and the aspect of the slope. Also. at high altitude winds and precipitation are high and cause severe thunderstorms that erode the soil and damage crOps (Symons. 1979. pp. 46-52). The effect of the slope on agricultural land use is both positive and negative. On flat land. gentle slopes tend to create soils of sufficient depth. fertility. and proper drainage to permit 22 the development of large-scale crop farming. The negative influence upon rural land use is most meaningfully expressed in mountainous regions of the world. Here. relatively high local reliefs associated with rocky soils inhibit any type of crop production in the area. Areas of steep slopes usually have shallow soil profiles and are very rocky and. consequently. unsuitable for plowing. Sometimes these steep slopes with thin soil layers can support only sparse grass with a limited grazing potential. The mountainous regions usually experience heavy soil erosion. which further limits farming. In many places of the world where the terrain is characterized by steep slopes. terracing was the only way to control erosion and conserve water for agriculture (Griffin. 1972. pp. 127- 29). Based on the data from MacGregor (1957) about Great Britain. Amato (1976) illustrated a correlation between the inclination of the slope and the land use. He concluded that slopes of 5 degrees or less are most easily cultivable by farmers: that slopes of 10 degrees. while easily cultivable by farmers on foot with some physical effort. present some difficulties in the use of heavy farm machinery: and that the 20-degree slopes represent the limit beyond which it is well nigh impossible to use heavy agricultural machinery (p. 57). Finally. Boyce (1974) described the man-land relationship in the following terms: Finally. man often modifies physical features to suit his needs. Agricultural crops are surely much affected by climate and soil 23 variables. yet man has many ways of overcoming such natural obstacles. He can fertilize poor soil. drain wet soil. irrigate arid areas. and through the application of chemicals. overcome such problems as soil acidity and alkalinity. Given steep slopes. which in their natural conditions normally prevent agriculture because of soil erosion. he may terrace land to make it usable. In rolling topography. the land may be leveled to make it suitable for irrigation. For example. in the Palouse grain-growing area of Washington. special machinery with balanc- ing devices has been developed. so that very steep slopes can be traversed without the machinery tipping over. . . . Ox 40) W Agricultural land use is as much a product of the physical factors as the socioeconomic and institutional environment. ‘The socioeconomic and institutional factors include the population distribution and density. farmers' perception and attitude. and their organizations and societies. internal and external migration of farmers. urban sprawls. the tenure of agricultural land and fragmentation. farmers' customs. habits and traditions. their edu- cation and religion. the state of the technology. and mechanization of agriculture. Among the economic determinants are the labor force. transportation costs. the market. income. production. and the price of agricultural produce. The institutional conditions governing agriculture include state subsidies. agricultural exten- sion and research. land reforms. planning. and taxation (Mohammad. 1980(b). p. 225). In the following pages. based on an overview of the theoretical dimensions of rural land use with relation to selected socioeconomic and institutional conditions. an attempt is made to 24 explain the role of these conditions as a cause for variations in agricultural land use patterns. Esaulatianflstnimm Population distribution is most significantly related to variations in the spatial distribution Of patterns and the intensity of agricultural land use. As in the case with the physical envi- ronmental factors. the socioeconomic and institutional factors are seldom independently linked to the geographical patterns Of agricul- tural land use. Rather. they must be analyzed in combination with the physical environmental determinants if a meaningful interpreta- tion of the geographical arrangement of land use is to be made (Griffin. 1972. p. 129). If physical elements alone do not explain population distri- bution. what other factors are involved? Human distributions are molded by the organization. technology and development of economic systems. ‘They are strongly influenced by culture traits. which also affect demographic components of fertility. Inortality. and migration. Social disasters. like war. may alter population distribution at any scale. Social and political decisions. such as tax policies or zoning and planning ordi- nances. are eventually reflected on the population map. Time or inertia has a profound impact on distribution. We must always conSider historical circumstances when we are trying to inter- pret the variable distribution Of people over the earth. (Souza & FOUStr 19799 P. 43) Several studies have indicated a positive relationship between the population distribution and the spatial organization of agricultural land use patterns. Baker (1926) classified agricul- tural regions of North America on the basis of physical. socio- economic. and institutional factors. He found that the population 25 distribution within each region of the United States is a factor affecting the pattern of agricultural land use (p. 478). Another study by Griffin (1972) in Uruguay showed a positive relationship between the agricultural land use and the population distribution. In particular. Griffin pointed out that the Uruguay population distribution is the primary cultural phenomenon affecting the pattern of agricultural land use. The country's population is concentrated in the sOuth. particularly around Montevideo. while the rest of the land use has remained unoccupied by the Uruguayan popu- lation (p. 130). The major feature Of the population distribution in relation to” .agricultural land use is the concentration of intensive farming around major urban centers. However. extensive agriculture dominates the areas sufficiently far removed from these major cities. where the cost of transportation of agricultural products inhibits the production of the high-value. bulky. and perishable farm produce. Most of these areas aredevoted to an extensive type Of land use for grazing. Theulgcatjon gof the intensiveflcrop—production areas around urban centers is predicated on the influence Of an attractive market.(Griffin. 1972. pp. 130-31). 1 Ethnicity Sometimes the ethnicity of the population influences the patterns of agricultural land use. In many countries. immigrants usually bring their specialized agricultural skills and techniques with 26 them. establishing a familiar agricultural system of land use patterns (Amato. 1976. p. 63). Wm Huntington (1926) examined the role of literacy of farmers in agricultural land use of good and poor lands in the northern and southern regions of the United States. He reached the conclusions that the northern-region White. Black natives. and immigrant Whites farming good agricultural land had a low literacy level and those working poor lands. a higher literacy level. However. overall illiteracy is more common on poor-land farms than on the good. as the people on it have limited opportunities to educate themselves because of their poverty. In the South. both the native-born and immigrant Whites. farming good productive land. were found to have a low literacy level. while those on poor farm lands showed higher levels of literacy. The Blacks who live on poor lands have lower literacy levels than Southern Blacks who live on good-soil farms. In other words. those Blacks living on the poor farms in the South are a trifle better educated than those on good farms (pp. 351-53). W In many parts of the world there is a distinct relationship between population density and land use intensity. This relationship becomes all the more significant when a large population is con- centrated in a small area. The Nile Valley in Egypt forms a good example. 27 With Egypt. for example. the average density figure of 37.1 persons per square kilometer suggests a population distribution similar to that found in the United States. which has an average density of 27.6 in its contiguous 48 States. The situation appears differ- ently. however. when it is noted that 98 percent Of Egypt's popula- tion is concentrated on about 3 percent of its land area and that the Nile Valley has what is probably the highest density of agri- cultural population in the world. (Barlowe. 1978. p. 59) The relationship between population density and the intensity of land use will largely determine the level of demand for agricultural commodities and the potential labor supply. The pressure of population has not helped the growth of agricultural production but has. in fact. led to the change in cropping pattern. 'This phenomenon has been studied particularly in the West Bengal region of India (Williams. 1973' ppo 40-43)o The changing patterns of agricultural land use due to the increasing population pressure could be studied in greater depth at a micro level in a predominantly agricultural tract. Robinson and others (1961) found a high positive correlation between the farm population density and the percentage of the total land used for crops in the rural farm population of the Great Plains (p. 215). WWW There exists a significant relationship between population and. the size of a farm. An inverse relationship between farm size and the intensity of land use tends to reflect the fact that larger farms are located in sparsely settled areas where labor is scarce and the demand for agricultural products is low. Chisholm (1969) affirmed that the 28 size of a farm does have some influence on the type and intensity of land use and the density of the rural population. Most populations are . . . immobile. finding changes in geo- graphical location and/or employment difficult. Under these cir- cumstances. a change in the number of inhabitants will have an immediate effect upon the size of farms in the area concerned. With an increasing populace. there will be strong pressure for the division of holdings and a general intensification of output. In such a case. it is not the size of farm which is the cause of the type and intensity of agriculture; both are consequences of a more basic factor. the increase of population. (p. 149) W Wanna Different cultures have different food habits and preferences. and this fact affects the type of food that is produced. For example. Muslims are prohibited to eat pork and Hindus beef by their respective religions. Many Africans and others do not eat protein-rich chicken. On the other hand. Europeans. Americans. and some other cultural groups have very little lamb on their menus. And quite a size of the population of the world is vegetarian. The cultural eating preferences. in turn. affect the patterns of agricultural land use. For instance. the American farmer devotes a sizable proportion Of his farm to forage crops. whereas countries like China and India. where animal meat does not form a sizable part of the people's eating habits. devote most of their farming to food grains (De Souza et al.. 1979. pp. 159-60) . Mummies In most societies. migration to urban centers from rural areas is a common phenomenon. particularly when these societies are in the 29 process of industrialization. If this migration is continuous and large. most low-productivity farm lands are abandoned first. and later even the good high-productivity land is left to lie fallow. This migration. in the second place. creates a heavy pressure on the services in the cities. Many socioeconomic and physical causes. in turn. tend to accelerate this exodus to cities. Among the most important are regular drought conditions on farm lands. unhealthy environmental conditions. and very often. lures of bettering one's condition economically (Al-Thubaity. 1981). W In many societies. land tenure is both a legal as well as a cultural factor and has a direct effect on agricultural production. Barlowe (1978) pointed out that it is ”a concept that involves the many relationships established among men that determine their varying rights to control. occupy. and use landed propertyJ' Much as agriculture in the modern world differs from the olden days. the ties between farmer and land remain. 'Thus. the rules controlling ownership of land and the rights of its use are as important as ever. In some countries outdated laws and customs still prevail. in others they have gradually been adapted to new circumstances. Elsewhere revolutionary land reforms have at one stroke abolished the old order. The four main types of land tenure existing today are (l) communal tenure. (2) latifundium or estate. (3) freehold ownership. and (4) tenancy. (Brook et a1“. 1978. p. 242) We Rural settlements influence the geography and organization of agricultural land use. There are three types Of rural settlements 30 observed: (1) clustered rural settlements. (2) dispersed rural settlements. and (3) semicl uster rural settlements. The first type is referred to as the farm village where the farmers group themselves together in cluster settlements. varying in size from a few farmers to as many as 25.000 essentially agrarian people. The pattern Of distri- bution of land use usually consists of a farmstead in the village and the farms. pastures. and meadows stretched out in the country even beyond the limits of the village. The second settlement type is known as the isolated farmstead. In this type. the farming community lives in dispersed. isolated farmsteads. at least a mile or so from their nearest neighbors. This type is best suited for efficiency in production and transportation (Jordan et al.. 1979. p. 69). The third type of settlement is characterized by being neither clustered nor dispersed. Instead. the settlements share character- isti cs of both. The most common types of semicl ustered settlements are: hamlets. which consist of a small number of farmsteads grouped loosely together. The hamlet farmsteads lie in the settlement nuclei separate from the crop land. The size of the hamlet is small. con- sisti ng of 3 to 20 houses. The row village is a type of semicl ustered settlement. In this settlement pattern. a line Of farmsteads is spaced at intervals along a road. a river. or a canal. The spatial distribu- tion of the houses of the row-village farmsteads is spaced farther apart from those in a street village. This type is found mostly in North America. Europe. Brazil. and Argentina. The distribution Of 31 these farmsteads maximizes control of the farms. ‘That is. farms lie adjacent to the farmers' homes. permitting economies of travel and life in a closely knit community (Jordan et al.. 1979. p. 69). Eamjechanizatinn Farm mechanization is a means to an end and not an end in itself. Agricultural mechanization is essentially a labor-saving device and is introduced basically to increase agricultural production. create employment opportunities. and reduce rural poverty and promote equitable distribution of income. It is essential to mechanize agriculture in ways that meet all three Objectives at once and to avoid all that adversely affects these goals. Since any form of mechanization assists or replaces hand labor in agriculture. it inevitably displaces some portion of the rural labor force. The resulting dislocation may be alleviated in part by local diversification of the economy. Mechanization proceeded in the face of labor shortages in Japan. Korea. and Malaysia. but caution should be exercised elsewhere to make sure that displaced laborers have alternative employment. (Hemmi et al.. 1981. p. 9) mm Urban sprawl. the expansion of the urban centers into the rural areas. is due to increases in the city populations that require a permanent home in the city and a second home in the countryside. This phenomenon has caused changes in the organization of agricultural land use and a decline in agricultural productivity. Large areas of prime agricultural lands have been encroached upon and converted to urban use (Wilkening et al.. 1978). 32 Wu Based on the commitment of farm labor. the systems of agri- cultural production can be classified as peasant-based. capitalist. and socialist systems. Under the peasant-based system. production is car- ried out in small units by the family members as a joint venture. In both the socialist and capitalist systems. the family still farms the nucleus of the production. but the entrepreneurs can hire and fire farm labor as their needs and the sizes Of their operations dictate (de Souza et al.. 1979. p. 160). We The effect of social and cultural factors on agricultural land use was discussed in the previous section. It has been found that social and cultural values can strongly influence crop patterns. especially in the countries where agriculture is a way of life. Farming communities and societies have developed their own habits and traditions. with the result that the crops that are best suited to the soil and that can be economically cultivated are grown. Farmers. through time. have devised means of meeting the variations in their environments. They know the quality of their farms and the crops that are best suited for them under any given conditions of temperature and precipitation. They are aware of the economic gains from choosing particular combinations for their holdings. Further. each farmer knows that growing the same crop. year after year. on the same land results in diminishing returns and will diminish his soil quality. Crop rotation. therefore. is invariably practiced (Mohamed. 1980. p. 334). 33 Labor is an important factor affecting all agricultural systems. Labor requirements vary from one crop to another because crops are different. All the countries of the world. even the highly mechanized. capital-intensive countries like the United States. Japan. Australia. Western Europe. the Soviet Union. and other industrialized nations. rely on the availability of a dependable supply of cheap labor. frequently on a seasonal basis. Labor needs are particularly intensive during planting and harvesting seasons. In typical British conditions for example. about 5 man-days work are required annually per hectare of wheat. about 25 man-days per hectare of sugar beets and about 170 man-days per hectare of hops. (Symons. 1979. p. 82) From these figures. it is apparent that labor shortages force a range of specific needs and restrictions on the type of farming that is practiced. In other words. a scarce labor supply has serious conse- quences for growers and is reflected in higher prices for consumers. As the population increases. labor supplies increase and more intensive farming becomes inevitable. although desirable land holdings tend to become smaller. Where there is a dense population living on agricultural land. intensive agriculture capable of providing the maximum subsistence is necessary. 'The paddy or wet rice farming. which can absorb over 4000 man-hours per hectare per year. is a good example of this type of agriculture. Above the optimum. labor input brings diminishing returns. even with rice or other labor-intensive crops. 34 We It is essential to move agricultural products from the producers to the consumers. The development of many new agricultural areas in Asia. Africa. and Latin America has been hindered by the lack of good transportation systems. The development of new arable land always requires the construction of good agricultural roads. Roads need to be given a high priority in all development schemes. Review of the road systems in developing countries illustrates their poor communication and high transportation costs. In order to transport farm products to the main markets. the farmers have to use slow. traditional methods of transportation. In developed countries like Western Europe. the United States. Japan. Australia. and New Zeal and. the advantages of low unit cost and operating flexibility are apparent in the development of good transportation systems. which include railways. waterways. highways. and agricultural roads. The effect of transportation is obvious in commercial farming with high agricultural productivity and high returns. for example. in the United States. Poor transportation facilities dominate where subsistence agriculture is practiced. for example. in Africa (Griffin. 1972. pp. 134-35: Symons. 1979. p. 70). WW All business activities involved in the flow of food products and services from the producer to the consumer is termed agricultural marketing. In other words. it includes the movement of goods from the farm to the processors. wholesalers. or directly to the individual 35 households. Agricultural marketing influences agricultural land use. in that increased demand for a particular product tends to generate production of that commodity. The lack of agricultural marketing has a negative effect on agricultural land use because commercial farming. for example. tends to become subsistence farming without agricultural marketing opportunities. Together. this need for marketing and the number and the diversity of farmer-producers make farming a financially high-risk occupation. Unless farmers establish and develop some form of group control. as producers they find themselves in a weak position in relation to their markets (Kohls et al.. 1980. p. 19; Tarrant. 1974. p. 204). Income As with other economic factors. income influences agricultural land use patterns. Farm income. as well as consumer income. is influential in determining what farmers grow on their farms. Farms are devoted to the types of production that fetch the best returns over a number of years. From the practical point. the farmer would not like any increase in production costs for buying more fertilizers or hi ring more labor unless the farm income has a corresponding increase. Such a farmer will not allow his farm income to drop unless the cost of production is proportionally reduced. This means that small farms. which do not enjoy economies of scale. must be worked more intensively than large ones to obtain high income. The growth of highly special- ized. large-scale agricultural units. such as dairy farming and cattle 36 rearing and fattening operations. are less intensive enterprises and are better suited to large farms. where labor cost is low. than in intensive agriculture. The income derived from these farms. as well as from other commercial agricultural enterprises. is high in comparison with the income from subsistence agriculture. A general rise in incomes of the population creates an increased demand for agricultural products and brings about a change in the food habits and preferences. affecting the type of food consumed. This results in farmers diversifying plant- and animal-food production. Since all farmers cannot produce all types Of food. they tend to specialize in specific agricultural production (Kohls et al.. 1980. pp. 84-85). AgricultuLaLEmdumen Farmers have little control over the prices at which their products are sold. ‘TO obtain a surplus. or personal income. farmers must concentrate on the production they can market and from which they can realize at least their expenses. Such production can be increased by the optimum use of water and land resources and by the selection of crops most suitable to the area. Intensifying farming or increasing the amount of productive land will only increase productivity as long as revenue increases exceed cost increases. Optimum production is achieved when marginal costs and marginal revenues are equal. In other words. profitable production is reached when total revenues exceed total costs. 37 For any particular crop or animal product. certain places are particularly favourable for production. i.e.. because of climatic. labour and other production factors. and convenient markets. income comfortably exceeds outlay. Away from these favourable areas. cost rises and returns are lower. until eventually the zone is reached where the particular type of production does not pay. . . . (Symons. 1979:. p. 80) We Institutional practices that have an effect on agricultural land use include the role of the government policy with regard to subsidies. extension services and research. taxation. and land reform. Institutional factors are important because of their continuing influence on producers' and consumers' economic behavior. While they help make economic behavior more stable. at the same time they help make it changeable. dynamic. and unpredictable. “The various aspects of group. collective. or social action may be described as institution or institutional factors" (Barlowe. 1978. p. 375). The role of government pol icy in agricultural land use is discernible in almost every country in the world. Every decision regarding land ownership or the use of its resources is in some way affected by public policies or restrictions. Political factors are more recognizable in some land use patterns than economic and social motives. Real property and estate taxes change land use patterns by making some uses unprofitable. Production of certain crops can be made profitable by the imposition of protectionist measures. Restrictions on imports Often serve to protect local producers against foreign competitors. 38 Real property taxes represent an annual levy on real estate ownership and can be used to force lands into more intensive uses. Inheritance taxes--or "death duties” as they are known in Great Britain--can force the breaking up of landed estates. ‘The power of eminent domain can be used in the public acquisition of properties from owners who are unwilling to sell. Various aspects of the government's sovereign or police power may be used to protect property rights. prevent fraud. and force individual compliance with public health standards. building codes. or local land-use zoning ordinances. (Barlowe. 1978. p. 380) Barlowe (1978) illustrated the effect of public policies and restrictions on the development and use of real estate resources by the United States government in such measures as (l) acquiring additions to the public domain and prescribing public land disposal. prompting rapid settlement of public lands: (2) preserving agricultural land and stemming the rapid encroachment Of urbanization upon agricultural land use: (3) acquiring land from private owners for forestation. military. and other public purposes: (4) making additional credit facility available to the farmers and conservationists: (5) subsidizing efforts to encourage conservation of water. soil. and land; (6) providing price .supports to bring stability to the agricultural sector of the economy and rent controls to prevent tenantvgouging during periods of severe housing shortages; and (7) issuing land-use zoning ordinances. subdivision regulations. forest-cutting restrictions. and directing private land-use practices in the public interest (Amato. 1976: Barlowe. 1978). Griffin's (1972) study noted that taxation policies have generally affected agricultural land use intensities in Uruguay. while subsidies have played a critical role in determining whether particular crops like wheat or sugar cane can be produced and to what extent. 39 According to him. such institutional factors exert a greater influenCe on the intensity of land use than on the spatial distribution of farming systems. Both are important. however. in explaining the causal relationships interacting to produce present patterns of agricultural land use. W W The purpose of this section is to examine the role of locational factors in the spatial distribution of agricultural land use to bring about spatial variation in agricultural production. The relative location of a place.‘vis-a-vis its access to important places and the market. often plays a decisive role in determining the uses to which various tracts of land are put for the benefit Of local as well as international markets (Barlowe. 1978. p. 35). The importance of relative location in agricultural land use was first studied by geographers. whose discipline concerns areal differentiation over space. A primary concern of geography is spatial patterns or the relationships of physical and cultural factors in earth space. Since the earliest geographic research. spatial variation has been a unifying theme of geographic studies (Griffin. 1972; Najm. 4 1982). The study of areal variations has also captured the attention of many economists. including agricultural economists. since the beginning of the nineteenth century. Economists become involved in analyzing relationships between geographic locations and land use 4O patterns to determine those factors that affected such economic characteristics as intensity of land use. competition between land and the location of enterprises (Barlowe. 1978: Griffin. 1972). Geographers. regional scientists. and agricultural economists. over the last two and a half decades. have had a growing interest in location theories because of their need for an objective and general explanation for the spatial organization of agricultural land use. This intellectual pursuit has revived interest in several classical theories of location and led to a re-examination and elaboration of Von Thunen's theory of agricultural location (Dayal. 1981. pp. 31-41). The researcher's intention in this section is to review some of the literature dealing specifically with agricultural land use theory. The importance of relative location is expressed in terms of distance and accessibility to market will be emphasized. ‘The effect of urban sprawl on agricultural land use will also be examined in relation to the recent location theory. W Mailman: war-Ricardo introduced the concept of economic rent around 1817. and it has since become an important part of classical economic theory. His economic rent relates land quality. measured by natural soil fertility. to farm income. Farm income per acre is greater where soil is more fertile. assuming equal production costs and market prices (Butler. 1980. p. 60). “Ricardo describes economic rent as income arising from the use of land of superior 41 fertility. in comparison with the income that comes from the use of marginal land" (Dayal. 1981. p. 14). Ricardo also indicated that the most fertile first-grade land would be brought under cultivation first. with increasing demand for agricultural products. and because Of the population growth. cultivation would extend to less-productive second- grade land. ‘The increased demand would cause shortages of agricultural products in the market. resulting in higher prices and enabling farmers to bring less productive land under cultivation for the welfare of society. When less favorable land or second grade land is brought under cultivation. the farmers on more productive land will have an advantage over those cultivating second grade land. in that they will earn additional income per unit of land because of the ”original and indestructible power of the soil." that is. the difference in soil productivity. Thus. additional income that the farmers on first grade land get becomes the rent of first grade land. (Dayal. 1981. p. 14) In other words. Ricardo realized that land is fixed in quantity. immovable. and varies in quality. that is. soil fertility. with the result that progressively low quality land is brought under cultivation as the population and demands rise. The owners of the first-grade land usually receive the same price for their product at the market. but their production costs per unit of output are low. giving them surplus returns. 'These surplus returns constitute economic rent (Butler. 1980. p. 61). McCarty and Li ndberg presented a diagrammatic version of Ricardo's rent theory (Figure 2). In the center there is an area of "optimum” conditions for the production of certain crops. Toward the ‘12 ENVIRONMENT.SPACE.AND ECONOMIC RENT A TOO HOT vgio f .c re. 20* *7 ac GO | OPTIMUM j p 7 J L .. J 00 COST TOO COLD PRECIPITATION RENT C TOO VVET TOO DRY TEMPERATURE s—J‘~LNMTs A fli-ib-LLfi -1»- i L .‘ L J L L 5 4 U : 4' 0 : J L _‘: : 2° 1 E J 5 : COST 5 1 ‘5‘ E 5 5 ‘COST ‘0‘ i a s q ..... o-OGO—OO-C-O-O-C‘---’ - PR'CE 4 : RENT I O -J-.--. L l. .L .- —Roglon oi Production —' Optimal and Marginal Limits Aitor Butler Figure 2 43 periphery. conditions become less and less favorable. and a limit is finally reached beyond which production becomes impossible. owing to severe limitations Of moisture and temperature (Dayal. 1981. pp. 14- 15). ‘The costs Of production per acre increase as one moves outward away from the Optimal physical conditions for the crop. Rent is high in this central "Optimum" zone and decreases toward the periphery (Figure 2-a). The rent Of land beyond the zone Of production feasibility is zero. In Figure 2-b it has been assumed that a price Of $7 per unit will meet the costs Of production up to the end Of the fourth zone. 'This establishes the amount and areal extent Of rent produced. Beyond the fourth zone. then. land will be cultivated only if there is a rise in market prices increasing the marginal (revenue) productivity Of the land. Changes in the climatic variables or prices change the amounts Of rent produced and the configurations Of the profitable production region (Butler. 1980. p. 62). Further. in 1817 Ricardo formulated his Law of Comparative Advantage to explain regional differences as the bases for speciali- zation and trade. The theory Of Comparative Advantage says that the world output will be maximized if each nation specializes in the pro- duction Of those commodities and services that it can produce rel a- tively cheaply. The exchange earned from exporting competitive items can then be used to import products in which other countries have a comparative advantage (Butler. 1980. p. 67; Zuvekas. 1979. p. 109). Generally speaking. each area tends to produce those products for which it has the greatest ratio of advantage or the least ratio of disadvantage as compared with other areas. This concept is known as the “principle of comparative advantage)‘ In practice. it 44 explains why some areas tend to concentrate on the production Of a limited number of goods while they look to other areas for many of the products they use. (Barlowe. 1978. p. 268) Wedge-The locational theory Of agricultural land use had its origin in northern Germany in 1826 when Johann Heinrick Von Thunen published his classical work. W Von Thunen's model is considered the first economic model Of spatial organization that emphasized the importance Of relative location in agricultural land use. based on the simple idea that rents decline with distance. From his experience as an estate manager. Von Thunen Observed that identical plots Of land would be used for different purposes. depending on their accessibility to the market. In Ihe_15glated_fitate he explained the relationships among (1) agricultural prices. (2) distance Of farms from the market. and (3) land rent (Berry et al.. 1976. p. 126; De Souza et al.. 1979. p. 166; Najm. 1982. p. 44). l. The model assumptions. The model assumptions made by Von Thunen are expressed in the opening lines Of Ihe_1591ated_§tate. These assumptions enabled him to focus on spatial differences and. in particular. upon the effects Of transport costs on agricultural land use. Imagine a very large town. at the centre of a fertile plain which is crossed by no navigable river or canal. Throughout the plain the soil is capable Of cultivation and of the same fertility. Far from the town. the plain turns into an uncultivated wilderness which cuts Off all communication between this state and the outside world. There are no other towns on the plain. ‘The central town must therefore supply the rural areas with all manufactured products. and in return it will Obtain all its provisions from the sur- rounding countryside. The mines that provide the State with salt and metals are near the central town. which. as it is the only one. we shall in future call simply "the town.” (Hall. 1966. p. xxi) 45 According to Foust and de Souza (1978. pp. 30-31). this landscape is an isotropical surface. an unbounded. flat plain. and homogeneous in all respects. Movement is equally easy in all directions. and the unbounded surface eliminates the need for boundaries. Transportation costs are a simple linear function Of distance. Costs are the same per kilometer regardless Of the distance travelled. There is only one form Of transportation which has been assumed by Von Thunen. 'The physical environment Of the imaginary landscape is completely homogeneous. All land has equal soil fertility. Every hectare produces exactly the same output with a given amount Of labor and capital input. In the central part Of the isotropical surface there is only one single city or marketplace. ‘The farmers are assumed to sell their product at this market. and the city producers manufacture goods tO be exchanged for agricultural products. At the marketplace. the prices are assumed to be stable and fixed. .A farmer delivering a load Of wheat to the city must take the price Offered. Farmers are unable to alter the prices Of crops through individual or collective action. Government intervention is excluded. NO price supports and controls are allowed. Agricultural production is solely a reaction to the economic conditions. Finally. all inhabitants are assumed to be optimizers. They have perfect knowledge Of all possible outcomes Of a given action and act solely to maximize profits. These assumptions are severe: a plain with complete physical homogeneity: a single market. the ”town"; a single source Of food supply. the plain: transportation costs related only to volume and distance shipped: and decisions made by economic man. relentlessly 46 organizing space in an optimal way. But these assumptions are needed in order to establish the role of distance. whose operation in reality is in constant conflict with other factors affecting land use. including variations in climate. soil fertility. management. and transportation network with its freight-rate structure (Berry et al.. 1976. p. 126). 2. The law Of diminishing returns and the marginal productivity analysis. ‘The law Of diminishing returns is one Of the most important factors that affect man in his use of land. ‘This economic principle was an important addition to Von THunen's model of agricultural land use. By the law of diminishing returns. each successive increase Of inputs yields a smaller increment Of production than the last oneI(ChishOlm. 1969. p. 26). ‘The concept Of diminishing returns can best be illustrated by the following quotation from Barlowe (1978). Man has long observed that whenever successive inputs of a pro- ductive factor are added to a limited fixed factor. a point is soon reached after which the additional or marginal output of product per unit Of input decreases and eventually becomes a negative quantity. This principle is known as the law Of diminishing returns. (p. 130) The law of diminishing returns states that as successive units of a variable input (labor) are added to a fixed input (land). the total product (output) usually passes through three stages: (1) an increase in the total physical product at an increasing rate. (2) an increase at a declining rate. and (3) finally a decline (Figure 3) (Barlowe. 1978. p. 131: de Souza et al.. 1979. p. 167). 3. Von Thunen's location rent. Von Thunen developed the concept Of location rent which makes distance to the market a key variable in explaining spatial patterns of agricultural land use. 117 .0 Stage 1 Stage 2 Stage 3 70- 80- 60- lncreaeing Diminishing Negative Returns Returns Returns Units of Output I .- r 0 e... \ 'Oe \~ \ d eeeeeeeeeeeee O... ........... ..... 1 I I ‘1 ‘ C 7 8 9101112131415 Units of Variable input (labor) ._/\ Total Product ............ Average Product ’~-/' Marginal Product Illustration Of Stages Of Production Function and Input-output Relationships involved in Operation Of Physical Law Of Diminishing Returns Source: de Souza et. al.. 1070. pp. 188. (with modification) Figure 3 48 Location rent is not concerned with spatial variation in land quality. but reflects the advantage Of nearness of production to the market. According to Von Thunen. farms close to the market have greater location rent per acre than those at greater distances because the unit costs Of shipment are lower. and all farmers receive the same price at the market. Von Thunen's location rent is used to allocate land use in ordered patterns around the main market centers (Butler. 1980. p. 63). An alternative view Of economic rent was provided by Von Thunen. Holding land quality constant. he showed rents decline with distance from the market center. He demonstrated (1) that rent reflects differences in cost Of production and transportation at various locations: (2) that a location near the market place is the most productive: and (3) that net profits fall to zero at the margin Of cultivation. Geographers Often use the term "location rent." as opposed to "economic rent." to express the idea that rents decline with distance from the market p1ace.(de Souza et 81.. 1979' ppe 170-71) WWWM .IQ_!Qn_Ibunnnls_mane1.-- 1. Market proximity and associated transportation costs. The role Of market proximity and transportation costs was the most important factor in the concepts developed by Von Thunen in 1826. As mentioned. Von Thunen assumed an isolated state with one central city. free from all possible effects Of other urban markets. According to him. differences in land use in the isolated state can be attributed to variations in transportation costs. Transportation costs. in turn. are dependent upon such other factors as distance to the market. ease Of transportation. bulk. weight. and perishability Of the products shipped to the market. Von Thunen assumed that agricultural lands near the market (First Zone) would be used for the production Of fresh milk and 49 vegetables. Slow transportation and the absence Of refrigeration in his time made it impossible to ship these products over great distances. Due to the high demand for fresh milk and vegetables in the central market (see Figure 4). prices for them were assumed to be high enough to yield a higher rent (Amato. 1976. pp. 27-28). The Second Zone Of Von Thunen's model is devoted to the production of forest products. which are bulky and their transportation cost is high. A continuous demand for firewood and building materials in the city. at that time. would keep the market prices high enough to yield greater returns to the farmer than any other crop except fresh vegetables and milk. The Third Zone is used to cultivate field crops. grain. or hay. More and more land toward the outer edge Of the intensive grain-production region is used for moderate and extensive grain production. The last zone Of Von Thunen's model is used for grazing. including livestock raising. Sheep and cattle are reared and fed in this area and driven to the market for sale. Beyond this grazing zone (see Figure 4). the outermost zone Of the Isolated State is assumed to be generally unprofitable for crops and remains a wilderness (Amato. 1976. p. 28; Barlowe. 1978. pp. 36-39; Najm. 1982. p. 47). 2. Market distance and location rent for a single crop at a single intensity. 'The relationship between location rent and market distance can be illustrated by reference to one crop produced on land of comparable quality around a city. Von Thunen. in particular. Observed that location rent is solely a function Of distance because 50 a small city with its own production zones eeeeeeeeeeeeee ............. eeeeeeeeeeee -------- a Horticulture and dairying 0 Central city - Wood product --.—- Navigable river Grain production- intensive Grain production-moderate D Grain production-extensive Livestock raising VARIATIONS IN ZONAL PATTERNS IN THE LAND-USE MODEL OF VON THUNEN Aiter Chisholm Figure A 51 distance determines total transportation costs and therefore income. This assumes a constant market price. and transportation cost becomes the single variable determining economic rent (Foust et al.. 1978. p. 32). Von Thunen in particular Observed that when crops produced for a central city market are grown on lands Of like fertility. the lands located nearest the city enjoy a definite rent advantage over those located at greater distance. The extent of this rent advantage corresponds with the difference between the transportation costs that arise in the shipment Of products from the two areas to market. (Barlowe. 1978. p. 172) Von Thunen essentially calculated location rents for a single product. as shown in the following formula: R = E (p - a) - efk in which: R I location rent per unit Of land E - output per unit Of land p - price per unit Of output (market price) a = production cost per unit of land (including labor) f - transportation costs per unit Of output per mile k 8 distance to market As Figure 5 indicates. the greater the distance from the market. the higher the transportation cost. In other words. the location rent drops to zero or no rent 40 miles from the market. According to Barlowe. any production beyond the extensive margin Of production can be accomplished only with a reduction Of payments that normally accrue to labor and management. 52 Location Rent per Acre LINEAR RENT-DISTANCE FUNCTION FOR A SINGLE CROP 15' 12.. ............... Transportation Cost (Dollars) . Extensive Margin I of Production l(No Rent Margin) 3 .. deetien Rentl i l I I I I I I I l/ 6 I I . 10 20 so so it: Distance from Market (Miles) Source: Modiiied from Barlow. 1078. pp. 173 Figure 5 53 3. Market distance and location rent for a single crop at differing intensities. In Von Thunen's day. when technology was limited. distinct intensities Of a single crop. wheat. for example. were clearly discernible. with regard to distance from the market. Von Thunen argued that agricultural land located near the central market enjoyed higher location rent because Of its transportation advantage. over more distant locations. High-rent land provided the farmers with an incentive to increase output per hectare by increasing inputs Of capital and labor. If it is assumed that a single crop. say wheat. is grown at two different intensity levels. agricultural land close to the market will be devoted to the more intensive farming system (Figure 6). On a steep location rent curve. it is profitable up to 36 kilometers from the central market. More distant land. between 36 and 70 kilometers from the market. enjoys less intensive wheat farming and a rent curve.less steep than the previous one. As Figure 6 shows. the margin Of transference between the two intensities Of wheat farming occurs at the intersection Of the bid-rent curves. The separation between intensive and extensive systems illustrates the economic principle Of the highest and best use of agricultural land. According to this principle. agri- cultural land is allocated tO that use which earns the highest location rent for its owners. but not necessarily for the tenant farmers de Souza. 1979. pp. 174-75). 4. Market distance and location rent for multiple crops. The most prominent contribution of Von Thunen's study was his determination 54 Net income (dollars) .0 70 Rent Gradient for a Single Crop Grown at Different intensities intensive Wheat Farming Extensive Wheat Farming 60" 60- 40- 30- 20- 10" ‘1. Margin of Transference Margin of Wheat Farming \._..____.__..__.___1 Distance From Market (km) Source: de Souza et. al.. 1970. pp. 176 Figure 6 55 Of land organization for multiple crop use. Agricultural activities were ordered according tO the economic principle of the highest and best use. as measured by their location rent at each distance from the central market. Von Thunen's crop model primarily concerned the role of transportation costs in allocating agricultural land to different uses at varying distances from the market (Figure 7). Thus the first zone around the market was employed for intensive uses requiring considerable care and frequent travels to market. The second and third zones were allocated to agriculture producing bulky. heavy. and hard- to-transport products. Zones more distant from the market were allocated to more easily transportable products (Barlowe. 1978. p. 276). WWW.--VOR Thunen's model has been controversial since its inception. Researchers of agricultural land use have discussed. analyzed. modified. and tested it in a variety Of environmental contexts and applied it at inter- national. national. regional. and local levels. The following empirical applications have attempted to determine whether intensity Of land use and land values actually do decrease in practice as one moves outward away from the central market and. if so. what farm practices and patterns Of agricultural land use tend to evolve. Jonasson (1925) argued that northwest Europe can be regarded as one major urban center that acts as a market for much Of the worldwide agricultural production. especially for an inner agricultural zone Of horticultural and perishable crops. 56 Economic Rent (dollars) Distance from Central Market 10.00 7.00 4.50 2.00 1.7m 5.0m ’ 10.0m 40.0m b—- ’ LAND-RENT TRIANGLES AND CONCENTRIC RING DERIVATION 120 so . 1 Distance from Central Market [I 1 After Barlowe Figure 7 57 Post (1969) proposed a type of agricultural land use system similar to Von Thunen's crop model but extended this approach to include a dynamic element. He pointed out that under conditions Of rising demand in the central markets and reductions in transportation costs. there will be a rapid outward expansion Of farming into the uncultivated wilderness. Using data on imports into Britain in the nineteenth century. Peat analyzed worldwide zones Of agricultural production. applying Von Thunen's model on an international scale to explain the expansion Of commercial agriculture. He considered Britain. Western Europe. and the Northeastern United States as a world urban-industrial nucleus and demonstrated the existence of a system Of agricultural land use similar to Von Thunen's model. Peet described a central market area surrounded by a series Of large concentric agricultural zones. but attributed the outward expansion of these zones to growth in food and raw-materials demands in the urban market. rather than to land rent and transportation costs. Horvath (1969) tested Von Thunen's model at a regional level in Ethiopia and found strong empirical evidence Of the model's land use patterns. Forest plantations (for firewood and building materials) and vegetable production were shown to be in close proximity to the central market in Addis Ababa. The area Of mixed farming lying beyond the forest and vegetable zone was shown to be experiencing intensification and commercialization. Chisholm (1969) cited many examples of Von Thunen's zones around the central markets in Spain. Italy. and Pakistan. He found 58 that in the villages surrounded by infertile soil. the land immediately adjacent was intensively tilled. while the more fertile valleys some distance from the village were either extensively cultivated or unused. Chisholm also found that net profits declined as distance to farm plots increased. His findings indicate that farmers find it worthwhile to increase inputs of labor on land near their farmsteads. Dunn (1954) Observed that farms located near a central market are smaller than those farther from the city. His model was based on classical theories of agricultural land use wherein farms nearer the market are intensively cultivated. while those farther away are extensively cropped. Muller (1973) applied Von Thunen's model. on a national level. to the United States. Finding that the spatial distribution Of agricultural land use conformed to the model. Muller concluded that the effects Of distance have shaped the macro-geographical patterns of the United States and that Von THunen's model is valid both as an organizational construct and as an analytical tool in the further development of location theory. Griffin (1973) tested Von ll-lunen's model in Uruguay and found that. in general. the Von Thunen model agreed with the actual intensity Of agricultural land use. Crossley (1976) applied Von Thunen's model to the supply rings for the beef-processing industry in England and concluded that agricultural rent declined as one moved away from the central market. His findings also indicated that near the market. high cattle prices 59 were necessary to cover the high cost Of intensive production. Farther from the market. cattle prices were lower because the production costs were lower. Najm (1982) studied agricultural land use patterns in the Benghazi area of northeastern Libya in relation to farm location. types Of land tenure. levels of government assistance. and farmer characteristics. Assuming a relationship between cultural factors and land use patterns around Benghazi. Najm found that the greater the distance from Benghazi. the larger the size of the farms. Close to Benghazi. farms were intensively cultivated with cash crops. whereas grains and grazing occupied a large proportion of the farm land farther away from the city. mm W To explain agricultural land use patterns near urban areas. Sinclair’(l967) developed a model from empirical Observations in the United States. .Assuming that in many advanced industrial countries the forces determining agricultural land use near urban areas reflect urban expansion. he found that the nearby agricultural pattern is Often one Of increasing intensity with distance from the city. quite the reverse Of the pattern developed by Von Thunen. Sinclair's model. therefore. reflects degrees of urban influence in high land prices near urban cities. high land taxes. restrictive suburban zoning. uncertainty concerning speed and direction Of urbanization. and nuisance stemming from nearby urban areas (p. 78). 6D The effect of distance from the central market is expressed in the following simple relationship: As the urbanized area is approached from a distance. the degree Of anticipation Of urbanization increases. As this happens. the absolute value Of the land increases. and the relative value for agricultural use decreases. Consequently. the intensity Of agricultural land use decreases. The result Of this process is a basic agricultural land use pattern that is the reverse of Von Thunen's model (Sinclair. 1967. p. 78). The relationship between distance and land use in Sinclair's model is illustrated in Figures 8 and 9. In Figure 8. a single use Of agricultural land is measured in terms of V. defined as the "value of carrying out this type Of agriculture" as O (the urbanized area)is approached. V decreases because the probability of urbanization increases. As the Y intercept. the V is entirely absorbed. With increasing distance from 0. V increases until it levels Off at point B. where there is no more anticipation of urbanization and its associated high land costs (Sinclair. 1967. p. 79)> As Figure 8 illustrates. Sinclair extended his argument to two competing types Of agricultural land use. The first land use (1) prevails in zone yz but. because its V-slope is less steep than that of the second land use. (2) its advantage ceases at point z. Outward from this point. land use (2) is more advantageous. The factor governing the steepness of the V-slope is the intensity Of agricultural investment. Land use (2) is a more intensive type of agriculture. which pays Off in greater agricultural returns at a distance from the 61 0 .5. 3 2 a < ° Land Use 1 O 2 : U r > i o v i. Urbanized Area Durance __. Relationship Of Value for Agriculture and Distance from Urban Area Relationship Of Value for Agriculture and Distance from Urban Area for Two Competing Land Uses O E 3 2 a < '3 Land Use 2 g Land Use 1 '6 > O O v z Urbanized Area Distance ———o Source: Sinciair. 1087. pp. 70 Figure 8 62 Variations in Zonal Patterns in the Land-Use Model ot Sinclair O h- :3 3: :3 0 T. O < 5 '5 r "' l o I £2 ‘All'll'rr : Q 3 > 2 . E l E i I Source: Sinclair (2)1967, p.80 Figure 9 63 city. As the city is approached and the likelihood of urbanization increases. the value of such intensive investment in farming declines rapidly. Sinclair argued that. at point 2. it does not pay to carry out this type of farming. but it is still economically feasible to carry out land use (1) agriculture. which requires a smaller investment (pp. 79-80). Figure 9 illustrates various intensities of agricultural land use. Land use (1). the least intensive. prevails in Zone Oil. more intensive land use (2) in Zone wx. land use (3) in Zone XY. and so on. Land use (5) extends to an undetermined distance (N) from the central market. that is. the city. because it is outside the area where urban land prices can be anticipated. According to Sinclair. this would be a regional type of agriculture governed by factors other than the direct influence of the urbanized area. With 0 as the center and 0". OX. CY. 02. etc.. as the radii. a series of rings. corresponding to Von Thunen's rings. can be drawn (p. 80). MW Wm Boserup (1965) classified agricultural land use based on intensity into five systems. including forest-fallow cultivation. bush- fallow cultivation. short-time fallow cultivation. annual cropping. and multicropping. She noted a distinct relationship between population density‘and the intensity of agricultural land use. so that with an increasing population pressure there is a shift from more extensive to 64 more intensive systems of rural land use. particularly in the underdeveloped regions of the world. In some parts of the world. cultivators in the forest-fallow system have been unable to find sufficient secondary forest. They have had to recultivate areas not yet bearing fully grown forest. Thus the forest has receded and been replaced by bush. Again. in bush- fallow areas. the cultivators have changed to short-time-fallow systems or annual cropping with or without irrigation. In densely populated regions. there has been a rapid spread of multicropping. (Najm. 19829 P. 52) . Boserup's model has been criticized by many researchers. especially economists who noted that her study dies not take into consideration the income of the population or the elasticity of land in many parts of the world. Population growth. in some regions. may not affect agriculture without also changing per capita income. Boserup's position was that subsistence agricultural communities are dynamic and subject to continual changes in agricultural technology because of the population growth or pressure (Najm. 1982. p. 52). In summary. the organization and the spatial distribution of agricultural land use are seldom determined by a single factor. Rather. a variety of physical. cultural. and institutional conditions interact to affect land use characteristics. Soil fertility and market attraction generally exert the strongest influence on agricultural land use patterns in a given area. while other factors also affect the geographical distribution of rural land use patterns. as well as the use of agricultural lands (Griffin. 1972. p. 145). 65 W A search for the literature specifically on the agricultural land use in the Assarah highland region revealed that there is hardly any work in existence other than Al-Husseiny and Murghanfls "Slope Forms 'and Land-Use in Assarah of Ghamid" (1977) and Al-Shomrany's "Type. Distribution. and Significance of the Agricultural Terraces in Assarah. Southwestern Saudi Arabia.” Al-Husseiny and Murgham identified three categories of rural land use. dominating Assarah of Ghamid. ‘The first of these categories is the agricultural land. With regard to this category. this study indicated that because of the ruggedness of the region and the absence of any vast tracts of level land. agriculture is practiced along the fertile small wadis. As the demand for agricultural land increased. slopes of hills and mountains were cut into artificial terraces. 'This study characterized the lower- and upper-slope terraces as distinctly different. 'The lower-slope terraces tend to be larger. more accessible. and more productive than the upper-slope terraces. Besides. the lower-slope terraces are devoted to a more intensive irrigable farming. while the upper-slope farms are given to dry and less intensive cultivation. The second category was described as the vegetational cover. This study observed that the Assarah region has the richest vege- tational cover in Saudi Arabia. Al-l-iusseiny and Murgham pointed out that The unterraced slopes of the interfluve are left to natural vegetation which varies in thickness and kind according to the 66 positive or negative human effect. Natural vegetation is thick only in places where it has been protected privately or communally. The most common trees that grow naturally here are Acacia sp. and Juniperus procera. There are also wide ranges of bushes. shrubs. and grasses. (Al-Husseiny & Murgham. 1977. p. 183) Murgham (1973) in his study of “Change and Development in a Rural ContextP observed two distinct features of the vegetation in the Assarah region. l. It seems that Assarah has had. in the past. a continuous woodland formation similar to those remaining patches. Murgham quoted Assulloke (1971). who listed. for example. 39 such patches of woodlands in Ghamid and Zahran subareas. that these woodlands vary in development from a real forest canopy to more dense bushes and measure in extent from about 10 km2 to less than l kmz. 2. with respect to the slopes. the north- and the west-facing slopes seem to have thicker vegetation cover than the east- or the south-facing slopes. 'This investigator believes that this phenomenon is due to the daily afternoon summer cloud formation common in the area (Plate 3). The third and last category is the settlements. of which villages form the dominant units of these settlements. ‘These villages are generally located either along the slopes or on the top of the mountains--a phenomenon best described in the following words: Villages which are the salient settlement form. are always situated on high grounds where they could be protected against enemy attacks in the past. so as to save flat land sites for farming. (Al- Husseiny a flurgham. 1977. p. 183) Al-Shomrany (1980). on the other hand. described the agricultural land use patterns in the Bashut district (the Assarah of 67 (a) The relationship between the north and northwest slopes and vegetation cover (b) The relationship between the slope facing the east and the thinness of vegetation Plate 3 68 Shomran ) into four categories of rural land use. The first category is the cultivable land. which constitutes 37% of the total surface area in Bashut. This estimates into account all actively cultivated and abandoned terraced land. The actively cultivated land is further classified into the irrigable terraces and the dry terraces. The actively used agricultural land is estimated to be 18.2% of the total area. while the abandoned land forms 19.1%. Pastural land is the second major land use type in the Bashut area. Pastures occupy the rough terrain located on the west and east sides of the study area. They cover an area of approximately 36% of the total land surface. (Al-Shomrany. 1980. pp. 98-99) The third category is the forests. which claim an area approximating roughly 14% of the total land. These forests are a mixture of privately and publicly owned forests. The trees in the forests are large and dense. though bushes and shrubs form a sizable undergrowth. (Juniper Procera. Acadia Seyal. and Olea Chrysophylla are the most important trees that grow there. The fourth category of Bashut agricultural land use has been described as follows: The villages. roads and trails comprise about 12! of the land in Bashut. The villages were built in areas unsuitable for agri- culture. immediately adjacent to the farm land. In the recent past. the encroachment of the arable land has become pronounced. Houses are constructed along the terrace margins and the new high- way was laid out along the eastern side of the active terraces. The loss of cultivable land must be evaluated in terms of the gains that have accrued from the new highway. (Al-Shomrany. 1980. p. 101) Al-Shomrany identified many land use problems. the foremost of which is the fragmentation of the agricultural holdings. The second problem is related to the shortage of water supply. Agriculture in the 69 Bashut district in particular and in the Assarah region in general depends on the rainfall. which is erratic and unpredictable. Climatically. the study area is subject to erratic and unpre- dictable rainfall. 'The rains are highly variable and may come too early or too late for the agricultural process. The scarcity of rain has usually led to the abandonment of farming and consequently of terraces. (p. 104) Other problems are soil erosion. the migration of the young farmers to the cities. poor transportation facilities. and the absence of agricultural services and research. All these problems are identified as an obstacle to high agricultural productivity (Al- Shomrany. 1980. pp. 104-105). CHAPTER III RESEARCH METHODS Introduction The major objective of this study is to examine the agricul- tural land use patterns with relation to the physical. locational. and socioeconomic factors in the Assarah region. ‘This study attempts to answer. among several others. the following two most important ques- tions with regard to the study area: (1) What physical. locational. and socioeconomic factors usually influence the agricultural land use in the region? and (2) What role do these factors play in influencing the farmers to grow what they grow on their terraces? To answer these questions in depth. primary data were collected from a sample of respondents selected from among the Assarah farmers. The Al-Alayah—Bashut district in the central part of the Assarah region was selected as a representative area. The criteria used in selecting this area as representative of the Assarah region are discussed in the following pages of this chapter. The purpose of this chapter is to provide details on the study methods used in the present research. The chapter includes sections on the research hypotheses: the sampling design. including the selection of the study area. the organization of the survey. and the sampling 7O 71 procedure: data-collection methods: the data-collection instrument: and the methods of data analysis. Wham Based on this researcher's own study. knowledge. and experience of the study area. the following research hypotheses. divided into physical. locational. and socioeconomic categories. were proposed for testing: W Wars Hypothesis 1: The physical environmental factors are more impor- tant in affecting agricultural land use than the locational factors such as distance from the village. This hypothesis suggests that the physical environmental factors such as climate. topography. soil. and water supply play a major role in determining the type and patterns of agricultural land use in the study area--much more than any other factors (Barlowe. 1978; Symons. 1979). Hypothesis 2: There is no significant relationship between the soil depth and the type of agricultural land use. This hypothesis indicates that since each type of agriculture requires certain characteristics of the soil. one would expect that a difference in the soil type parallels the depth of the soil. hence a difference in agricultural type. Hypothesis 3: There is no significant relationship between the angle of the slope and the type of agricultural land use. 72 This hypothesis indicates that the association between agricultural land use and the degree of slope inclination could be both positive and negative. On flat land. a gentle slope tends to create soil of sufficient depth and proper drainage to permit large- scale crop enterprises. On the other hand. steep slopes. particularly in mountainous regions. may permit other types of enterprises. such as small-scale farming. Hypothesis 4: The farmers' perception of the physical hazards arising out of the natural environment is related to their experience of the recent events. This hypothesis suggests that the recency of the hazards of the natural environment has a more profound effect on the farmers' perception than does the severity of the event itself. flmtheseLBeJatimJo WW Hypothesis 1: The geographical distribution of the agricultural land use patterns around the villages generally shows a similarity to the Von Thunen agricultural land use model. Concerning the major assumptions raised in the Von Thunen model. certain similarities of the study area to that model show village-type settlements. with relatively primitive transportation. homogeneous population. and uniform climate. Hypothesis 2: The intensity of cultivation is inversely related to the distance of a farm from the village: that is. the greater the distance from the village. the less intensively and more extensively a farm is culti- vated. 73 This hypothesis assumes a positive relationship between the intensity of agricultural land use and the distance of a farm from the center of the village. Since most of the intensively cultivated irrigable land is devoted to perishable and cash crops. one would expect such intensive agricultural land use to be located near the village. Hypothesis 3: As the distance from the local markets increases. a smaller percentage of the farm acreage is used for vegetables and fruits and a greater percentage is used for grain cultivation. Given the primitive nature of transportation facilities in the study area. and since vegetables and fruits are considered the most perishable crops and are highly demanded by the market. one would expect a negative relationship between distance from the market and the percentage of a farm's acreage devoted to such cash crops. WW WES Hypothesis l: Income from agriculture is lower than the income from other jobs in other sectors of the economy. This hypothesis indicates that since the discovery of oil in Saudi Arabia. many new jobs have been created-~mainly in urban centers. These new jobs have attracted workers from their traditional jobs. and agricultural workers are no exception. Such availability of jobs has made it more lucrative for people to work in any other‘jobs except agriculture in the Assarah region in particular and in the rest of the country in general. 74 Hypothesis 2: The migration of the farmers is directly related to the high wages paid for jobs in the urban centers. Because in most less-developed countries a majority of the highly paid jobs are concentrated in the major urban centers and most of the developmental aspects of the rural areas are ignored. one would expect the existence of major factors attracting rural people to migrate to major urban centers. The Assarah region. the present area of study. is no exception. Hypothesis 3: Poor transportation facilities discourage the production of cash crops. Because of the ruggedness of the topography of the Assarah region and the long-standing fgilure to develop most of the rural areas in the country. the study .ééa in particular has received little atten- tion. particularly in the last few years. Transportation facilities are no exception: compared to other facilities. transportation is still in the rudimentary stages of development. Thus one would expect that such a poor transportation system would interrupt the flow of products from the farm to the market. Hypothesis 4: The farmers engaged in the traditional farming are unwilling to use modern agricultural tech- nology. This hypothesis suggests the unwillingness of the majority of the farmers to use modern agricultural technology. Because the dominant methods of cultivation in~the study area are considered traditional and the isolation of the region discourages the diffusion of innovations. such new technology is still not accepted as a means of 75 improving agricultural production in the Assarah region. One would expect the rejection of such new technology to be a prevalent characteristic of farmers in the region. Hypothesis 5: The cost of farm input exceeds the revenues from the farm output. This hypothesis indicates that the high cost of input factors. such as wages. transportation cost. and the prices of fertilizer. as well as low demand for locally produced agricultural commodities in comparison to imported goods. would exceed the revenues that the farmers expect to obtain. Hypothesis 6: It is cheaper for the farmers to buy imported food than to produce it on the terraces. Because of the abundance of imported subsidized agricultural commodities. the farmers of the representative area in particular and of the Assarah region in general have found it more economically feasible to buy such imported agricultural commodities than to produce them locally. Hypothesis 7: The farmers perceive that the low productivity is directly related to the fragmentation and the smallness of their holdings as well as to the poor agricultural extension services and shortages of labor. Because of certain physical characteristics of the Assarah region (rugged terrain). as well as certain human characteristics (population density and land tenure system). one would expect small- sized farms in the region. It is commonly known in different parts of 76 the world that such characteristics usually lead to low agricultural productivity. WWII The sampling procedure. the process of data collection. the organization of the survey. and the methods used in analyzing the data are discussed in detail in the following pages. W The Assarah highland region is located in the central part of southwestern Saudi Arabia and was selected for several reasons. First. this investigator's personal knowledge of and experience and famili- arity with the Assarah region. its farmers and their traditions facili- tated an understanding of the area. Second. the Assarah region is still dominated by subsistence and mixed agriculture. and the patterns of agricultural land use and their geographical distribution are more easily identifiable than in other regions within Saudi Arabia. Third. the change and development in the uses of the cultivable land in the region captured the attention of this investigator. MW For reasons of money. time. and staff limitations. a more comprehensive study of the entire region from north to south and east to west was impossible. Instead. the Al-Alayah-Bashut district (Saraht Bal-Oarn and Shomran) in the central part of the Assarah highland region was selected as a representative area for this study. Other criteria for the selection of this area are: 77 l. Physiographically. the Bashut-Al-Alahah district represents the high altitude of the southern part of the region and the lower altitudes of the northern parts of the area (Figure 10. Plate 4). 2. Climatically. the area is subject to both the summer monsoon. which dominates the southern part of the Assarah region. and the late winter and spring rainfall from the Mediterranean Sea. which dominates most of the Arabian Peninsula. including the northern part of the Assarah region. 3. This researcher hails from the Bashut district and is knowledgeable about the rural community and its physical and human dimensions. 4. The Bashut-Al-Alayah district still depends on agriculture for its livelihood. 5. Despite this district's practice of traditional farming. its farmers have become interested in commercial agriculture. espe- cially near Al-Alayah. the largest town in the representative area of study. A comprehensive sample. representative of the various aspects of this study. was obtained. ‘The villages in the area were listed. and the total number of farmers in each village was obtained from the local departments of agriculture in Al-Alayah and from interviews with the heads of households and the elders of the communities. The area was divided into 16 major community locations. each consisting of three to about ten villages varying in size from 12 households to more than 250 households (Table 1. Figure 11). 78 Physiographic Divisions of Southwestern Saudi Arobio " Horrot r- is“ A ‘ i90 [on F0 er" 1 Source: AL-Shorarany. 1980. p. 29 Figure 10 79 "$1. L'l“:’5"‘“’ _ , .1- n ' “ -ZKIN—sta . (a) A general north-south view of the Bashut district (b) A general east-west view of the Bashut district Plate ll 8O _ .32 La”. Ea'qfi'LAJ‘E 31‘ °_"'_'E°_" ________ Wadi Adamah O csrch Al 0.4:... "°'°"°"' haribch . O Nc'a'ir l "Oh Oil .0“. I .Al luqeylch -. Al {93:1 Scedcn.’ Hbcyl 2...“... .AI Knob ' H .AlUneyrah rq AI . Mcnckhreh i J63.“ “I stn Al Asebleh Mesheyeh mneyn ezleh Nesheh . .Q .Shcvqen Ash Bhai NOV. loh r 1" .Dhal i.eh yin! Source : ministry of Agriculture in. Figure l1 81 Table 1.--The sample size and household distribution in the representa- tive area by villages and subdivisions. Villages and Total Number Total Number Subdivisions of Households Interviewed Oarn Ibn Sahir 250 25 Al-Amir 300 30 Al-Saqifah 135 14 Al-Malik 200 20 Shaqiq 97 10 Al-Yanah SO 5 Ejbah 103 10 Nadi Adamah 205 20 Al-Shaf Balqarn 250 25 Al-Obaid 130 13 Mashaiah 102 10 Al-Alayah 250 25 Thama 110 ll Al-Hamid 140 14 Al-Harajah 104 10 Bazaza 101 10 Total 2.577 257 Source: The Department of Agriculture at Al-Alayah (1982) and the field survey by the researcher. A problem was encountered in deciding on the correct sample size. In practice. if textbook procedures had been used in determining the sample size needed for this study. 3.45 percent (88 respondents) of the total number of farmers should have been interviewed. This number was felt to be too small. Instead. this researcher decided to interview 10 percent of the farmers residing in each village. This proportion was felt to be more representative of the total population of farmers in the Al-Alayah-Bashut district. According to Berg and Gall (1983). 82 A problem that must be faced in planning every research project is to determine the size of the sample necessary to attain the objec- tives of the planned research. The general rule is to use the largest sample possible. The rule is a good one because. although we generally study only samples. we are really interested in learn- ing about the population from which they are drawn. ‘The larger the sample. the more likely is its mean and standard deviation to be representative of the population mean and standard deviation.. . . (p. 257) Because the villages in the study area are of the cluster type and houses and streets have no numbers. the main mosque in each village was used as the focal point for the cluster. Interviews were»conducted with 257 farmers who were chosen by means of random-number tables. Various visits were undertaken to each main mosque until the determined sample size inleach village or community location was completed. Twenty farmers refused to be interviewed. and they were replaced by other farmers from their communities by means of random sampling. The initial random sample was considered representative of the Al-Alayah- Bashut district in particular and of the Assarah region in general. as shown in Table 1. Information was then collected through personal interviews guided by a questionnaire. The data collection was under- taken during the summer season of 1982. W This study was conducted during the summer months of June. July. and August 1982. led by the researcher himself; He was assisted by three local university students and a local worker. who were appropriately trained for a week before the survey. in making farm measurements. collecting the soil sample. and interviewing the respondents. The researcher's home town. in the central part of the 83 Bashut district. was used as the headquarters. located in one of the government schools. 'The interviews were conducted in the main mosque of each village and location. The researcher generally supervised the interviews and was readily available to solve unexpected problems. It was necessary to obtain permission from the local government authori- ties to conduct the study. .Data:§nllection_uethods Basic reference materials from different governmental agencies were collected during the summer season of 1978: maps. aerial photo- graphs. and relevant reports were obtained from different agencies including the Ministries of Agriculture and Petroleum. Additional field trips were made to the agricultural agencies in the cities of Bishah. Abha. and Baljurshy. within the region itself. to obtain infor- mation regarding the climate of the region and the services provided to the local farmers by the extension services. A reconnaissance trip from north to south in the region. from the headquarters. was undertaken in the initial stages because of the absence of reliable scientific data and information. for observation and measurements. Information about the region's major physiographic features. the agriculture. and the land use patterns of the region was collected. primarily from interviews that were personally conducted and supervised by this investigator. The farms were measured to collect reliable data about the agricultural land use of the study area in particular and the Assarah 84 region in general. For each of the selected farms. the investigator attempted to examine and measure the farnfls location from the village. its size and area. soil characteristics. the type of land use and its intensity. the types of irrigation or sources of water supply. the accessibility of the farms. the types of fertilizers used. and major problems relating to the management of agriculture. Aerial photographs were used to map the patterns of agricul- tural land use in the area by cross-checking the selected photographs of the representative area. Base. land use. and other relevant maps for the Bashut and Al-Alayah districts were developed from the aerial photographs to compare the past patterns and the present ones. .Iha_DaIa:99119§I19n_In§1£umflnt A questionnaire was administered through a face-to-face personal interview for a cross-sectional survey. As the majority of farmers in the region can neither read nor write. three university students helped fill in the questionnaire addressed to the 257 randomly selected farmers. primarily in the main mosque area. The interviews covered the physical. locational. and socioeconomic dimensions. Wig-4n this section of the questionnaire- interview. the effect of the following physical environmental features in relation to agricultural land use were addressed: (1) the physical features of the terraces with regard to a selected list of physical variables such as slope. soil. size. geographical location. water supply. and accessibility: (2) the patterns of agricultural land use with regard to a selected list of different types of agricultural land 85 use for vegetables. fruits. grains. alfalfa. and multiple crops: (3) the intensity of land use. measured by the number of times the farmer plants crops during a year: (4) the role of slope. climate. distance. water supply. and accessibility in determining what the farmers grow on their terraces: and (5) the possible physical hazards to agriculture. by rating how much a variable determines what the farmers grow on their farms. WW.--In this section of the questionnaire. the following questions about the relationships between the patterns of agricultural land use and the locational factors were addressed: (1) the geographical distribution of the agricultural land use patterns. measured by the degree of the respondents' agreement or disagreement with a list of selected statements concerning distribution: (2) the patterns of agricultural land use in relation to the distance from the local markets. measured by the distance in kilometers from the farm to the local market: (3) the pattern of agricultural land use in relation to the distance from the village. measured by the distance in kilometers between the farm and the village; and (4) the allocation of the farm acreage to different agricultural land uses. measured in percentage of the farm area allocated to vegetables. fruits. alfalfa. grains. pastures and forest trees. and multiple crops. Wm.--In this section of the questionnaire-interview. questions addressed concerning the income characteristics and migration of the farmers. transportation characteristics. modern agricultural technology. farm input-output 86 relationship. imported food. fragmentation. government assistance. farm labor characteristics. and the social characteristics of the owner were: (1) the income characteristics of the farmer. measured in annual returns. in Saudi ryals. from the produce sold at the local and regional markets; (2) the migration of the rural population to the urban centers. measured by the number of persons from each family who left for the urban centers and by the responses of the interviewees to selected statements concerning whether they thought rural migration was important; (3) the transportation of the farm produce to the market. measured by the respondents' perception of the degree of agreement or disagreement with selected statements concerning general transportation characteristics: (4) the use of modern agricultural technology. measured by the farmer's willingness to use modern mechanized methods of farming: (S) the farm inputeoutput relationship. measured by annual net returns. in Saudi ryals. from the farm: (6) imported food. measured by the degree of agreement or disagreement with a statement concerning whether imported food is cheaper than food produced on the terraces: (7) the fragmentation or smallness of the agricultural holdings. measured by the number of noncontiguous plots owned by a farmer and the distance in kilometers between each terrace and the farmer's house: (8) government subsidies and assistance. measured in Saudi ryals. the amount received by the farmer from the agricultural bank and whether he agreed or disagreed that the farmer usually receives assistance: (9) farm labor characteristics. measured by the number of people working all year round in agriculture: and (10) the social 87 characteristics of the farmer. measured by the level of his education. the number of years he has spent in the village. and his age. Wash Determining the existing land use patterns in relation to the physical. locational. and socioeconomic factors was the major objective of this study. and it was based on the analysis of data tabulated from the interviews. The degree of accuracy of the data was measured by the reliability of the sampling design and the method used to collect these data. ‘The data were coded and analyzed at the Michigan State Univer- sity Computer Center. East Lansing. Michigan. The data analysis used four statistical techniques. The first technique. frequency distribution and means. was employed to analyze the actual land use patterns of the study area and to answer somelof the hypotheses. The second technique. the chi-square test of associations. was employed to analyze categorized data to determine whether a systematic relationship existed between the two categories of variables (Norman et al.. 1975. p. 223). In this study. the chi-square test was used to determine if the physical. locational. and socioeconomic factors bore any relationship to the agricultural land use patterns. The results of the chi-square test are presented in cross-tabulation tables. The third technique. the Pearson correlation analysis. was used to develop a single number that summarizes the relationship between two variables. yielding a correlation coefficient that indicates the 88 strength or weakness of the paired association or relationship. In this research. the Pearson correlation coefficient was used to deter- mine whether a relationship existed between the groups of physical and socioeconomic variables. The fourth technique. factor analysis. was employed to reduce the data--that is. to determine what factors influence agricultural land use patterns and to locate clusters of related variables that are independent of the other clusters. CHAPTER IV THE ROLE AND PLACE OF THE AGRICULTURAL SECTOR IN THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT OF SAUDI ARABIA Before discussing the role of agriculture in the economic development of Saudi Arabia. it is useful to highlight several major issues and concepts that will appear frequently. either explicitly or implicitly. in this chapter. One is that there is no magic formula for rapid economic development. A development strategy that works well for one country may fail for another because of the physical. socioeco- nomic. and cultural differences. Second. development. appropriately viewed. is a complex interdisciplinary art rather than a narrow branch of economics. Economists. as well as government experts and agency advisors. have found that most obvious solutions to development prob- lems in a particular country have failed because of social. cultural. or political realities or administrative limitations. Third. many development projects are undertaken not primarily for their long-term economic benefits but for their political expedience consequences. Policy makers. often enough. underwrite development projects with a view of reaping political rewards. Finally. the price mechanism. a powerful tool at the disposal of government policy makers. is manipu- lated in the produce markets to create incentives to attain development objectives. But such other manipulations as retail price controls of food items can actually retard development (Zuvekas. 1979. pp. 3-6L 89 90 .Datinition_9I_Dexalnnmsnt In the following few pages an attempt has been made to define the substantial essence involved in development by examining the meanings of such widely used terms as general development. economic growth. economic development. rural development. and agricultural development in the resource-development literature. There is general agreement among economists. geographers. ecologists. sociologists. political scientists. anthropologists. and psychologists regarding a common meaning for the term general development. sometimes referred to as economic development. modernization. economic growth. socioeconomic transformation. or distributive justice (Mabogunje. 1981. pp. 35-50). In strictly economic terms. development for the past two decades has meant the capacity of a national economy. whose initial eco- nomic condition has been more or less static for a long time. to generate and sustain an annual increase in its gross national product at rates of perhaps 5 to 7 percent or more. . . . (Todaro. 1981. p. 68) Thus. the term development is treated almost as a synonym for improvement (Seers. 1970. pp. 1-2). Mughram (1973) quoted Myrdal (1968) to define development as “the process whereby the_real_pen capita income of a country increases over WELD-LIME" (p. 266). Score (1970) recommended basing the definition of development on reduction of the central problems of poverty. unemployment. and inequality: The questions to ask about a country's development are therefore: What has been happening to poverty? What has been happening to unemployment? What has been happening to inequality? If all three of these have declined from high levels. then beyond doubt this has been a period of development for the country concerned. If one or 91 two of these central problems have been growing worse. especially if all three have. it would be strange to call the result "development." even if per capita income doubled. This applies of course to the future too. A "plan" which conveys no targets for reducing poverty. unemployment and inequality can hardly be considered a "development plan." (p. 3) In short. the term development has been redefined by several new professional economists. ‘The quotation below demonstrates how closely akin Todaro's (1981) view is to Seers': Development must. therefore. be conceived of as a multidimensional process involving major changes in social structures. popular atti- tudes and national institutions. as well as the acceleration of economic growth. the reduction of inequality. and the eradication of absolute poverty. . . . (p. 70) MW Woman: The issues of economic growth and economic development.become needlessly complex when experts use the terms interchangeably. We should make a distinction between them. Economists generally defined the term "economic development" as Mellor (1980) delineated: WEQQ: W" is a process by which a population increases the efficiency with which it provides desired goods and services. thereby increasing per capita level of living and general well-being" (p. 3). Or. according to Zuvekas (1979). is a more comprehensive term. Some economists have defined it as growth accompanied by change--changes in the structure of the economy. in the country's social structure. and in its political structure. Viewed in this way. economic development implies a decline in agriculture's share of the gross national product and a corresponding increase in the share of such sectors as manufacturing. utilities. financial institutions. construction. and government administration. Accompanying this shift in economic structure is a shift in the occupational structure of the labor force and an increase in the degree of education and training required for those who seek jobs. Not only do the types of jobs change. but so does their geographic distribution. with most new jobs found in urban areas. (pp. 8-9) 92 Mughram (1973) quoted Robinson (1972) to define mm; .gnowth as "the increase in aggregated products. either total or per capita. without reference to changes in the structure of the economy or in the social and cultural value systems" (p. 267). Furthermore. Zuvekas (1979) added: Economists generally use the term ecgngmjc_growth to refer to increases over time in a country's real output of goods and services--or. more appropriately. real output per capita. Output is conveniently measured by gross national product (GNP) on national income. though other measures could also be used. (p. 8) WW There is a consensus among researchers in the field of development that the major objectives of development are to effect positive changes in per capita income. labor yields. health standards. educational levels. and other social services (Mellor. 1980. p. 6). Todaro (1981) summarizes these major objectives of development as follows: We may conclude that "development" is both a physical reality and a state of mind in which society has. through some combination of social. economic and institutional processes. secured the means for obtaining a better life. Whatever the specific components of this better life. development in all societies must have at least the following three objectives: (1) To increase the availability and widen the distribution of basic life-sustaining goods. such as food. shelter. health. and protection. (2) To raise levels of living including. in addition to higher incomes. the provision of more jobs. better education and greater attention to cultural and humanistic values. all of which will serve not only to enhance material well-being but also to generate greater individual and national self-esteem. (3) To expand the range of economic and social choice to individuals and nations by freeing them from servitude and dependence. not only in relation to other people and nation-states. but also to the forces of ignorance and human misery. (p. 72) 93 WNW Agricultural development should be distinguished from rural development. though some researchers have used the terms interchange- ably. .Agricultural_dexelopment usually refers to the improvement of agricultural production in order to increase the standard of living of the farming population. through the economic exploitation of such available resources as land. capital. labor. and water. On the other hand..£u£al_d§xslnnnuuup like the term integrated rural development. refers to positive changes (improvement) in education. health and nutrition. housing and allied social services. agricultural production. and standards of living of the rural peoplet “Thus rural development involves reduced inequality in rural income distribution. reduced urban-rural imbalances in income and opportunity. and the capacity of the rural sector to sustain and accelerate the pace of these improve- ments over time (Lele. 1979. pp. 19-20). As Mabogunje (1981) explained. it does not only include but also goes beyond agricultural development: Rural development is concerned with improvement of the living standards of the low-incomerpopulation living in rural areas on a self-sustaining basis. through transforming the socio-spatial structures of their productive activities. It should be distinguished from agricultural development. which it entails. and transcends. for that is concerned with only one aspect of their productive life. In essence. rural development implies a broad- based reorganization and mobilization of the rural masses so as to enhance their capacity to cope effectively with the daily tasks of their lives and with changes consequent upon this. (p. 94) Conversely. the term rnL31_Le§gnzge_dexelgpment. narrowed to specifics. refers to actions or measures designed to encourage. promote. and secure desired uses of the natural. man-made. and human resources of nonurban or nonmetropolitan areas. 94 W AarisulturaLflaernament Agriculture plays multiple roles in economic growth and development. the most obvious of which is the production of food. The functions of these roles can be summarized under four categories: 1. providing more food and raw materials. 2. serving as a market for the products of the industrial sector. 3. supplying savings to other sectors of the economy. and 4. providing productive employment. (Zuvekas. 1979. p. 204) The first role of agriculture stems from its essential and traditional function to keep a growing population alive. If the food supply increases at a lower rate than the population. than the nutritional standards will fall. Poor agricultural performance usually hinders growth and improvement in the rest of the economy and consequently limits the resources available to promote development. Food production contributes to the formation of human capital and as. indeed. many economists recognize that in the improvement in the quality and quantity of food is an investment in the sense that it promotes the quality and quantity of the labor force. In fact. malnutrition results in both the mental and physical improvement of the health of the labor force. and poor diets affect the general health of the population. As a result. workers with poor nutrition exhibit lower on-the-job productivity than a labor force with a good nutritive food supply. Another important aspect of food production is that an agricultural sector growing much more slowly than the general economy to meet the food demand can result in an inflationary pressure. In other words. if domestic food production does not grow at a rate equal to the population growth and if food imports are limited. then the 95 prices of both the imported and domestically produced food will have the tendency to rise (Zuvekas. 1979. pp. 204-206). The need for food and the extremely low level of efficiency in agricultural production demand that most of the labor force and land resources in low-income countries be engaged in agriculture. In early stages of development. 60 to 80 percent of the population is engaged in agriculture. and 50 percent or more of national income is generated in the agricultural sector. Therefore. even though agriculture may use little capital per worker. it commands a high proportion of the total capital resources of such nations as well. (Mellor. 1980. p. 4) The second role of the agricultural sector is to provide a market for the products of the industrial sector. Agricultural growth and development is expected to generate a demand for small industrial goods that farmers need for their own consumption. and for such agricultural equipment as tractors. diesel engines. pumps. and other allied agricultural implements (Gianaris. 1978. p. 121). The third role of agricultural development is its importance as a source of savings. Many developing countries that are not blessed with such natural resources as petroleum. gold. and other minerals or tourist attractiveness depend on agriculture as their main source of income. It is believed that more than half of such countries' national income is likely to come from the agricultural sector and related services. If that is where the income is generated. that is where the savings potential will be. In this regard. Zuvekas (1979) added: Thus far. we have seen that a stagnant agricultural sector limits the possibilities for growth elsewhere in the economy by restricting the supply of foreign exchange. the quality of the labor force. the demand for manufactured goods. and the supply of savings. In the last few decades. poor agricultural performance has had another serious consequence for developing countries: rising levels of unemployment and underemployment. (p. 206) 96 The fourth role of agriculture in the process of development is to provide jobs for rural people and. at the same time. to provide a productive labor force to the industrial sector in particular and to the other sectors of a country in general. As Mellor noted. it is predicted that 60 to 80 percent of the population. especially in developing countries. is engaged in agriculture. It is also suggested that the small or middle-sized farm agriculture can absorb more labor than the large farm agriculture. More intensive cultivation and higher productivity may require more employment. especially on small farms where agricultural machinery cannot be easily used (Glanaris. 1978. p. 121). Further. Mughram (1973) alluded to the same economic fact: It is only natural that agriculture development gets. by far. the largest share of attention in the economic development literature on underdeveloped countries. Not only because agriculture is the occupation of the vast majority of the people. but also because in most underdeveloped areas the agricultural sector is looked upon as the main source of capital that is needed to power the various development programmes. (p. 269) W The objectives of agricultural development which generally underlie agricultural programs in many of the developing countries can be summarized under the following heads: 1. An increase in production 2. Improvements in marketing 3. Changes in land tenure 4. A decrease in the disparity of income and wealth in the rural sector 5. The use of a part. but not all. of any increase in the production to raise the standard of living of the rural population 6. Inducing population shifts from the agricultural sector to industry: and 7. The encouragement of investment and reinvestment. (Meier. 1964. p. 291) 97 From the foregoing discussion it seems clear that agriculture is the most important sector in the general economic development of many underdeveloped countries. In contrast. industrial development represents the most important theme of economic development in many developed countries. In both underdeveloped and developed countries. financial resources are badly needed. especially in the early stages of development. These capital resources. in turn. influence the formulation of development objectives. policies. and their implementation. In this regard. there is a long-held belief that agriculture has traditionally provided such start-up or initial capital (Mughram. 1973. p. 272). WW The Saudi economic outlook is conservative in character and free in orientation (by freedom here is meant laissez fairel. 'The conservatism cannot be more clearly illustrated than by noting that one of the objectives of development. as they are stated in the 1971-75 development plan. is to maintain the "religious and moral values" of the country. What is more is that this objective comes before raising the standard of living.... . (Mughram. 1973. p. 273) Briefly. the free-enterprise orientation of the Saudi economy is based on two major features: (1) a respect for private ownership and (2) an open trade policy wherein essential goods are imported free without any barriers in the form of customs. duties. or tariffs: physical quotas; or any other restrictions. Only nonessential goods are lightly taxed. Saudi Arabia has a single-resource economy. ‘The Saudi economy is based. 75 percent on average. on the oil revenues. Indeed. the dominance of oil in the country's foreign exchange. government 98 revenues. and as a main source of growth in the national income is the most obvious characteristic of the economic system of the country. The government of Saudi Arabia is well aware of the dangers of depending on a single oil resource as the only source of income. ‘Their concern about this situation has provided one of the objectives of the country's development plan. by diversifying sources of national income and reducing dependence on oil through increasing the share of other productive sectors in the gross domestic product” (Looney. 1982. p. 99). During the period from 1965 to 1982. the economy of Saudi Arabia experienced significant structural changes. One major change was a relative shift to crude petroleum and natural gas. whose share of the nominal GNP reached its peak at 75 percent in 1975 and then declined to 56.4 percent during the rest of the decade in 1978. Another major change was a sharp increase in the oil prices. which resulted in significant reductions in the contributions of the nonoil activities to the economy (El Mallakh. 1982. p. 28). Indeed . . . . the following economic activities all increased their shares of real GDP between 1965 and 1978: (1) manufacturing other than petroleum refining; (2) electricity. gas and water; (3) construction; (4) commerce. restaurants and hotels: (5) ser- vices: and (6) other minerals. This occurred not only at the expense of crude-oil and natural gas production but also at the cost of reduced shares of other non-oil activities. such as agri- culture. government services. and transport. storage and communica- tions. (El Mallakh. 1982. p. 28) Mughram (1973) used the term.dnallsm to describe the dichotomous nature of the Saudi Arabian economyu According to him. such dualism is displayed in many ways. On the one side there is the oil sector. which is technically advanced and capital intensive. and on 99 the other the traditional. subsistence-level agricultural and pastoral sector. The crude oil and natural gas production generated about 90 percent of the government revenues in 1972-73. and in 1978 the oil sector still contributed 56.4 percent of the GNP. It did not. however. employ more than'LA percent of the labor force. The agricultural sector. in contrast. is believed to employ about 50 percent of the labor force while contributing only 8.5 percent to the GNP is 1965. 6.5 percent in 1970. and 1.0 percent in 1978. According to the information derived from Mughram's thesis. this dichotomy is apparent in the rate of growth of these two sectors. That is. while the annual growth rate of crude oil and natural gas was 8.2 percent. the growth rate in the agricultural sector was only 1.7 percent in the early 19705 and has slowed since then (El Mallakh. 1982; Mughram. 1973). The Saudi economy is characterized by the dominant role of the government. which provides nearly all the essential public services. The public bureaucracy is involved directly in providing free education. health care. postal services. social security. and most of the means of public transportation. Beginning with the Second Five- Year Development Plan (1975-1980). the central Saudi government assumed the responsibility for the economic and social well-being of all Saudi citizens. It has thus expanded and upgraded public education. as well as public health care for all citizens. and concurrently developed a social security program capable of lifelong basic human services to all the Saudis. The government also subsidizes housing and many foods. and recreational and social programs are provided at no cost (Looney. 1982. p. 22). 100 Further. the economy and the government-sector services in Saudi Arabia are based increasingly on the industrial production and export of petrochemicals and natural gas. In other words. it is obvious that the oil industry dominates the structure of the Saudi Arabian economy and overshadows all other sectors. Related industrial establishments. such as mineral exploration. oil refining. and construction. are owned and operated by the government.(Abduljawad. 1982. p. 133). In this regard. El Mallakh (1982) pointed out: The biggest project that Petromin is engaged in is the construction of the 1270-kilometer-long East-West Crude Oil Pipeline linking the Ghawar Field (the world's largest) the Red Sea port of Yanbu. Eventually the capacity of this pipeline will reach 3.5 million barrels per day (b/d). The eleven pumping stations that were built to push the crude through the pipeline to Yanbuy will be fueled by natural gas liquid (NGL). which is also supposed to reach Yangu. through a 1168-kilometer NGL pipeline. . . . (p. 5) Industrial enterprises outside the oil sector are small scale and privately owned. Primarily light industries include some transportation activities. repair. construction materials. plastic products. bricks. tiles. metal and plastic furniture. paint. and chemical plants. The agricultural sector includes such light industries as intensive poultry production. dairy products manufacturing. and other food-product packing and processing. As the new industrial diversification proceeds further. it is hoped these enterprises will replace the traditional craft sector (Mughram. 1972. p. 276). A lack of skilled and semi-skilled Saudi workers is considered one of the major problems of the economy of Saudi Arabia. It is not unusual to find that among the entire labor force employed in a Saudi industrial plant. not a single worker is an Arabic-speaking Saudi IOI citizen. In fact. management is usually European and the work force is almost entirely from the Indian subcontinent or Southeast Asia (El Mallakh et al.. 1982. p. 5). In this connection. Looney (1982) pointed out: If spending on infrastructural and industrial projects continues as planned in 1980. it will create a demand for 500.000 to 1.000.000 more foreign workers in the next five years (in addition to the 1.75 to 2.0 million who have arrived in the past five years). For a country with an indigenous population of only 4 to 6 million. the presence of 2 to 3 million foreign workers is in many respects rather risky politically. not to mention inviting criticism as to the wisdom of the kingdom's development strategy. (p. 111) Another major characteristic of the Saudi Arabian economy is its capital surplus. This surplus of capital. due heavily to the oil revenues. makes development projects feasible because the capital needed for various essential outlays no longer limits development (Mughram. 1973. p. 276). W In recent years the Saudi economy has shown positive improve- ments. During the period from 1974 to 1980. the economy achieved its greatest rates of growth. In terms of the nominal GNP. the Saudi economy performed remarkably well during this period. growing at an annual rate of 2657 percent. The explanation for this high performance may be found in the sharp increases in the oil revenues. During the previous four years. 1970 to 1975. the economy was highly inflated. so much so that the real rate of growth of’GNP was much lower than the nominal GNP rates (El Mallakh. 1982. p. 34). The growth rate in the real GNP per capita from 1970 to 1980 indicated impressive increases of 12:1 percent. During the period 1964 to 1970. the rate of growth of I02 real GNP per capita was 5.8 percent. considered quite a satisfactory rate of growth. The concept of economic welfare as used here is synonymous with consumption per capita. which is used as a measure of the economic well-being of the Saudi population. The real per capita consumption since 1964 has indicated that the average Saudi citizen has enjoyed an increasingly improved standard of living. The annual growth rates of per capita consumption for 1970-1980 and 1964-1970 were found to be 9.9 and 8.5 percent. respectively. but in the years 1970-1976. a decline was recorded reflecting high rates of inflation that averaged about 20 percent (Looney. 1982: El Mallakh. 1982). Gross capital formation (GCF) during the period 1964 to 1978 grew at a rate of 39.9 percent. During 1970 to 1978. the rate of GCF growth was 52.1 percent. a growth rate surpassed in no other sector during the period under discussion. The growth rate was made possible by the increased oil revenues that accumulated after 1972 and a development emphasis on infrastructure construction (El Mallakh. 1982. p. 35). MW inJhLEconnmiLDenlmmsnt The Saudi government plans a dominant role in the country's economic development and growth. As noted. the government takes direct responsibility for establishing. developing. managing. and subsidizing essential public services such as education. health. roads and highways. railroads. airlines. communication networks. electric power systems. social security. and agricultural development: 103 The role of the Saudi Government in the development process of the country has essentially been to undertake policies which would diversify the economy and improve the standard of living of the population. without sacrificing the freedom of the individual and the private sector's ability to respond to the government's incentives within a free market system. (E1 Mallakh. 1982. p. 35) With regard to the market system mechanisms in particular and even the economy as a whole. the government's policy is to interfere as little as possible. thus allowing the economy to function as a free-enterprise system. ”Thus. the government of Saudi Arabia over the years has sought to influence the economy by means of several measures such as fiscal policies. participation in the oil industry in cooperation with other OPEC countries. and lastly. pl anni ng" (El Mallakh. 1982. p. 36). The largest role that the Saudi government plays in economic activities is evident in government expenditure appropriations. "The annual budget serves as a means to appropriate government expendi- tures. as platforms on which to outline the government's tax. trade. financial and other policies. and as the medium through which develop- ment plans are executed" (E1 Mallakh. 1982. p. 36). WW: Efforts are underway in Saudi Arabia to improve the standard of living of all citizens. These efforts cannot be effective unless the government engages directly in the economic development of the country. Saudi Arabia has had three Five-Year Plans with definite development goals. The First Plan covered the period 1970 to 1975. the Second 1975 to 1980. and the Third Plan 1980 to 1985. 104 The general objectives of the national plans. which include economic and social development. have not fundamentally changed over the three Five-Year Plans. These objectives are to: l. maintain the religious and moral values: 2. raise the standards of living and welfare of the citizens; 3. provide national security: and 4. maintain economic and social stability (Looney. 1982. pp. 98-99; Nasser. 1976. p. 86). In other words. the means the government uses for achieving the above objectives have also not changed significantly. which consist of the following: 1. An increase in the rate of growth of the gross domestic product. 2. the development of human resources so that the several elements of society will be able to contribute more effec- tively to production and participate fully in the process of development. and 3. the diversification of the sources of national income and reduction of dependence on oil through increasing the share of other productive sectors in the gross domestic product. (Looney. 1982. p. 99) The basic strategy of the Saudi national plans has been aimed at six objectives discussed by Nasser (1976) and Looney (1982): 1. Improving and expanding the country's physical and social infrastructure. while minimizing bottlenecks. 2. Increasing the earning capacity of the people by economic exploitation of the country's natural resources. 3. Creating an economic environment to which the private sector will respond positively with contribution to production. 4. Providing free education. medical care. and welfare services to all the society's population equitably. 105 5. Allowing uncontrolled migration for those workers who will contribute effectively to socioeconomic development in any part of the country. 6. Establishing a system of welfare payments for those citizens who cannot participate in production owing to circumstances beyond their control (Looney. 1982. p. 105; Nasser. 1976. p. 87). The national plans have covered all aspects of economic life in Saudi Arabia including economic resources development. water. agriculture. mineral resources. construction. manufacturing. electricity. energy. human resource development. education and training. labor affairs. social development. health services. social and youth services. physical infrastructure. transportation. posts and telecommunication. and municipal and residential development. 'The First and Second Development Plans. 1970 to 1975 and 1975 to 1980. respectively. were implemented successfully. The GNP over the two Five-Year Plans grew at a rate of 13.5 percent and 8 percent. respectively--rates that are considered satisfactory. The actual expenditure on the Second Five-Year Plan was almost 200 percent more than planned during the First Development Plan. The Second Plan was more ambitious and almost nine times as large as the First Plan. in terms of the total expenditure. During the Third Development Plan. 1980 to 1985. the absorptive capacity of the economy has much improved. That is. the rate of increase in oil prices has been much higher than it was from 1970 to 1980; inflation was reduced to an average rate of 10.5 percent in 1979 and the bulk of the country's population has had a much higher standard of living since the 106 beginning of the Third Five-Year Plan was launched in 1981 (El Mallakh. 1981: PP. 1'2). Developed planning in Saudi Arabia has been plagued by all the problemsP-with the exception of financial constraints--which traditionally face attempts to successfully implement plans in developing countries. In the Saudi case. the main bottlenecks have been inadequate administrative capacity. manpower shortages. and the inability of physical infrastructures to absorb the increased expenditures. . . . (El Mallakh. 1982. p. 37) Since the key objective of this chapter is to look at the agricultural development in Saudi Arabia in general. and to emphasize the role of Assarah as an agricultural region in the general economic development of Saudi Arabia. the following discussion is limited to the agricultural sector. rather than including all the Saudi economic activities. which is clearly beyond the scope of this dissertation. though analyses of recent trends in the other sectors have been pro- vided by other Saudi scholars. for instance. by Abdul-Hamid Bassam (l982)and others. W In the past Saudi Arabia's primary source of income was derived from the agricultural sector. 'The country was self-sufficient in agricultural production. but this self-sufficiency was possible only at a very low level of subsistence. Over the decades since King Ibn Saudi built a nation out of the various desert tribes and before the discovery of oil. Saudi Arabia was among the world's poorest countries. a fact most of the outside world has now forgotten. Agricultural production in Saudi Arabia. then as now. included settled farming. forestry. range resources. fishing. and nomadic agriculture. 107 Most of these were carried out on a less modern scale than they are practiced now (El Mallakh. 1982. p. 79; Mughram. 1973. p. 277). Geographically. agriculture in Saudi Arabia has generally been centered around the oases and Wadi channels scattered throughout the country where soil is fertile and shallow ground water and springs are available for such crops as grains. dates. fruits. and vegetables. The Assarah highland region. the area of this study. is unique in the agricultural sector of Saudi Arabia in the sense that agriculture in this region depends on rainfall. which sometimes exceeds 400 mu: annually. and man-made terraces which provide a basis for agricultural development (Al-Shomrany. 1980. pp. 65-67). (See Figure 12.) In recent years. as the economy of Saudi Arabia has expanded because of the oil revenues. the role of the agricultural sector as a source of income has declined. Traditional agriculture has decreased as many former farmers have moved to major urban centers where less arduous jobs and high wages are a major attraction. 'The relative contribution of agriculture measured in terms of output has declined. In 1974/75 agriculture contributed only 3.6 percent of the total real GNP. and in 1977/78 this fell to 3.2 percent of total real GNP (E1 Mallakh. 1982. p. 79). Maithanactanisticui W Despite its reduced contribution to GNP and increased imports of food. agriculture continues to play a major role in the economic activity of the country. It is characterized by the following 108 Agricultural Land In Saudi Arabia Cultivated Land - Arable Land ----- Dry Valleys O 50 KENSOZOOIND lenses". 1070. p. 14 Source: Figure 12 109 conditions which. to some extent. prevail throughout the Arabian Gulf and the Peninsula: 1. Agriculture in Saudi Arabia consists of small farms. the average size of which is under eight hectares. The average area of land irrigated per holding is less than one hectare. ‘The smallness of these holdings is attributed to fragmentation caused by such factors as the limited agricultural land. the rugged topography. and the inheritance system. 2. Subsistence-level agriculture was the traditional mode»of production. This type of agricultural production has been declining owing to an increase in the nontraditional agricultural production. Domestic consumption has not remained dependent only on domestic production. for oil revenues have made it possible to import agricultural produce (Mughram. 1973. p. 277). 3. Agriculture in Saudi Arabia is carried out around village- type settlements. In 1970. there were about 7.805 agricultural villages in the country. with total land holdings amounting to approximately 1.4 million hectares. of which only about 525.000 hectares were under cultivation. Of the area under cultivation. 121.000 hectares were artificially irrigated and 404.000 hectares were rain-fed. The number of agricultural villages has since declined sharply to 3.084 in 1975. The main cause was low real incomes from agriculture and increasing opportunities for well-pain employment in the other sectors of the economy (Looney. 1982. p. 142). 4. Recent studies indicate that Saudi Arabia has about 4.5 million hectares of arable land. These huge tracts of arable land can 110 be easily cultivated if adequate water supply can be made available to them (El Mallakh. 1982. p. 80). S. The size of the land holdings is generally too small for economic cultivation. Modern agricultural machinery can hardly be used on these sized farms. especially in the Assarah region. because of physiographical factors. 6. ‘The total number of people engaged in agriculture was estimated to be 695.000 persons or 40.4 percent of total Saudi employed population in 1975. By 1980 this number had declined to about 600.000 persons or 35 percent of the country's labor force (El Mallakh. 1982. p. 80). 7. The decline of traditional agriculture has followed a corresponding decline in livestock grazing. Pastures and grasslands are almost nonexistent in Saudi Arabia because most of the land in the country is too dry to support more than intermittent livestock grazing. 8. Generally. the agricultural sector in Saudi Arabia has been less successful than other sectors of the Saudi economy. During the period from 1960 to 1970. the average annual growth of agricul- tural production was.1.6 percent of constant price. During the First Five-Year Plan (1970-1975). this figure rose to 3.6 percent annually. and during the Second Five-Year Plan (1975-1980). agricultural output rose at an average rate of 5 percent annually. These increases were outstripped by the oil revenue increases. and the share of agriculture in the nonoil GNP dropped from 12.1 percent in 1970 to 2.4 percent in 1978 (Looney. 1982; E1 Mallakh. 1982). ill 9. ‘The recent modern agricultural sector far from satisfies the domestic needs of the country's population. even at a subsistence level. and importation has proved the solution for the food shortages. In 1972. net imports of agricultural produce accounted for 45 percent of total food needs. In 1979 Saudi Arabia imported 4.98 million tons of food by sea alone. or about 60 percent of the total food require- ments. Almost the entire supply of sugar. tea. rice. oils. wheat. meat. milk. and fruit for the country is imported (Looney. 1982. p. 142). 10. ‘The development of agriculture and water resources has recently received a high priority in government policies. This interest in agricultural development is reflected in large increases in budgetary allocations of the agriculture and water resources. The government allocated SR 1.40 billion in 1975 in comparison to SR 8.25 billion in 1979 and SR 8.67 billion in 1980 (Looney. 1982. p. 142). MW QexelnnmsntJnJaudLAnabn Agricultural development to date has met with a relative lack of success. This has been due to diverse indigenous conditions. which include small landholdings. inefficient farming operations. dispersion of farms over an extensive land area. inadequate water supply. land tenure and water rights. poor use of technology. and a harsh climate. all of which have combined to hamper growth in the agricultural sector 112 W W The government has a number of policy options in responding to this relative lack of success in developing the agricultural sector in Saudi Arabia. The following are among the most important and merit discussion here because of the varied perspectives they provide for future planning: It is in such perspective that the role of agriculture in future development can best be understood. It is true that the country does not very badly need the agricultural commodities to be produced internally. because such commodities can be imported. Yet there are grave dangers in adopting such policies and bypassing the agricultural sector simply because needs could be satisfied elsewhere. . . . (Mughram. 1973. p. 278) The dangers or disadvantages of opting out of agricultural development efforts. because of the relative lack of success that has followed past efforts. may be summed up as follows: First. the traditional system of agriculture in Saudi Arabia is declining and will continue to decline until a point is reached where the traditional system will be lost completely. while there are no efforts made to acquire an alternative system to turn to when the oil revenues from the nonrenewable resource have become scarce. In comparison to other oil-producing countries. this prospect may be a long way off in the future. Yet the delay in the long-term investment in the agriculture of a relatively arid country. like Saudi Arabia. is unwise. Second. the abandonment of farming has led to the waste of the national agricultural wealth. like the soil resources. fields. trees. wells. ditches. dams. man-made terraces. and irrigational canals. which have to be maintained if they have to retain the 113 potential for production. ‘The abandonment of the human-made terraces in the area of this study provides one of the worse examples of national waste. The terrace soil that took a millennium to develop has been washed away in a few years because the terrace walls have been collapsing. accelerating excessive soil erosion owing to disuse and lack of maintenance. Finally. more important than agriculture being a national economic asset. the sector represents people whose welfare and quality of life is beyond quantification. Herding a rural people into cities has not always proved to be to their as well as the country's ultimate advantage (Mughram. 1973. p. 278). One policy option for agricultural development in Saudi Arabia is a long-term-objectives policy that aims at or implies the transformation of agricultural production patterns to a more up-to- date standard. with as little waste of the physical resources as possible. The economic and social cost of such efforts should be judged both in terms of short-term economic returns and long-term social and economic benefits (Mughram. 1973. p. 279). Another policy option for a situation like that of Saudi Arabia suggests that the most suitable agricultural development policy is (1) to allow the importation of food at a level at which a good standard of health and nutrition can be maintained and the basic need for agricultural products is satisfied. (2) to encourage the gradual substitution of the domestic produce for imported agricultural commodities as much as possible. and (3) to concentrate efforts on developing national agricultural resources to their highest potential. 114 This may result in building some comparative advantage in a few agri- cultural commodities that might be produced on a large enough scale to reach a surplus that may later be exported. Dates. oil crops. and intensive livestock rearing hold up some such possibilities. Such long term policies imply a heavy investment in human resources and in speedy and efficient technological change. Given the capital surplus and assuming that a farsighted. responsible and stable political leadership continued to pursue such policies. there is a good chance that they might succeed. (Mughram. 1973. p. 278) The medium-term objectives for agricultural development in Saudi Arabia present a fourth policy option. This policy option should concentrate on increasing agricultural productivity within the existing land and resource limitations and should include a vertical expansion of cultivation. Given the constraints of water. land. climate. and labor. it is apparent that horizontal expansion of agriculture in Saudi Arabia is limited in the short- and medium-term planning. ‘The medium-term vertical expansion would involve terracing hilly terrain and the long-run objectives could focus on gradual. eventual horizontal expansion (Looney. 1982. pp. 150-51). MW WW Given that the main objective of the government is to maximize the long-run wealth of the kingdom. it may be argued that one way to achieve this objective. at least partially. is to continue to transfer a relatively small. but expanded. part of its oil revenues to agriculture. The Saudi government has formalized its role in the development of agriculture through the well-defined policies contained 115 in the three Five-Year Plans. which are directed toward reducing the country's dependence on food imports and developing the rural areas: The policies provide for the government to: (1) encourage private enterprise in food production. processing and marketing while confining its own activities to those into which private entrepreneurs are unable or unwilling to enter; (2) aim at a reasonable balance between the economic and social rewards available from agricultural activities in the rural areas and the rewards available from other economic endeavours in the urban areas: and (3) recognize future as well as present needs and both consumer and producer requirements in implementing agricultural programmes. . . . (El Mallakh. 1982. p. 91) The government's strategy for achieving these national policies is based on the principles of: l. The wise use of water resources. 2. Maximum feasible self-sufficiency in the production of farm machinery. seeds. fertilizer. and other inputs. 3. Encouraging the private sector to develop the facilities and services required for food processing and distribution. 4. The same guarantees for foreign investors in agriculture as for foreign investors in industry. 5. Provision by the public sector of the physical infrastruc- ture and the safety and animal-health services required by the private sector in agriculture. 6. Expansion and distribution of the credit granted by the public as well as by the private sectors for the development of agriculture. including fisheries. forestry. grazing. and other agricultural activities. 7. Providing economic incentives and programs to stabilize prices or support farm incomes. 116 8. Protection of the environment from pollution due to agricultural activities (El Mallakh. 1982. p. 92). Given that the main objective of agricultural development is to increase agricultural production at a rate consistent with national economic growth. it was proposed that the traditional small-holdings mode of farming be changed. The government in this regard has participated in two ways: First. they have encouraged the formation of cooperative farming societies that could be intensified at both the production and marketing levels. Cooperative farming enables traditional farmers to produce on economic-sized holdings. to buy agricultural input more cheaply. to use agricultural machinery more intensively and efficiently. and to acquire new techniques of production. The success of these farm organizations depends on the land tenure system. the level of education of the farmers. their traditional beliefs. and dedication and commitment of the management of the cooperative societies. Second. it has invited private farmers or individual Saudis. who have agricultural management training or experience. to enter into large-scale agricultural operations. The success of this program depends largely on the availability of easily secured agricultural credit. The government already provides substantial incentives. which include price guarantees. regular supply of agricultural inputs at subsidized prices. and improved agricultural infrastructure (El Mallakh. 1982. pp. 92-93). In line with the objectives of its agricultural policy. the Saudi Government has involved itself in several broad areas which directly or indirectly will tend to influence agricultural production in the country. 'These include: comprehensive water planning and irrigations: a programme to provide physical infrastructure to enhance agricultural production: subsidy of 117 machinery. fertilizer. seeds and other agricultural inputs and price supports: provision of soft credit through the Agricultural Credit Bank; and finally. research and agricultural education. (El Mallakh. 1982. p. 93) In the beginning of the First Development Plan (1970). the Ministry of Agriculture and Water has reorganized. New departments were created for the first time for animal resources. subsidies. statistical studies. and agricultural development. These new departments. as well as the existing ones. were headed by Saudi graduates in agriculture and economics. At the same time. the country as a whole was divided into 14 agricultural regions. each headed by a director who enjoyed a high degree of autonomy in areas under his control (Figure 13): In terms of giving direction to the development of agriculture. the government. "after considering the strategic importance of crops and livestock production. the need for water conservation. the relative value of crops in total agricultural production and potentials for rapid increase in yield." has identified a number of farming activities which should receive special emphasis. The crops targeted for increased production over the 1980-85 period are wheat. potatoes. dairy products and vegetables. as well as animal forage. (E1 Mallakh. 1982. p. 94) In providing the physical infrastructure. the government has concentrated its efforts on rural road construction. New asphalt roads have been laid out throughout the countryside and have contributed positively to the agricultural production and marketing. These new paved roads have made it possible for farmers to export their farm commodities to the local and neighboring markets. The use of fertilizers is increasing. but the quantity supplied does not meet the quantity needed and demanded. Farmers have recognized the importance of fertilizers in agricultural production and have begun to use large quantities. which has resulted in 118 ORGANISATION OF THE MINISTRY OF AGRICULTURE AND WATER MINISTER Minister's Office 1 inspector General. A] assa Irrigation O & M Planning and and Drainage Project Budget Organisation (HIDO) Administration Faisal Settlement Project Organisation Deputy Minister for Deputy Minister for Agriculture and Water Desalination Agriculture Water Agricultural Research Administration TechnicaI Affairs. and Finance Projects and Development Department Department Department Public Lands Department Agricultural Extension and Services Department Training Department Source: EI-Khatib, Execution Projects Department Water Resources Department Water Conservation Department Water Services Department 19711. Figure 13 119 fertilizer shortages in the country. The shortages are believed to be related to the inability of the distribution network to respond effectively to the increased demand. An optimum use of fertilizers on irrigated agricultural lands has been estimated at 25.000 to 30.000 tons of nitrogen and a similar amount of phosphates. Government incentives are provided for inputs as well as for output. For the former. the incentives include subsidies on ferti- lizers. animal feeds. seeds. machinery. equipment. and transportation. For the latter. they include supports for wheat. corn. dates. vege- tables. and fruits. Incentives are also provided for the acquisition of land for agricultural purposes. The role of the Saudi government in developing the agricul- tural sector is essential in the establishment of agricultural credit. research. and education. The Agricultural Development Bank (ADB). established to aid in the development of that sector. was founded in 1965: the institution is now well established with a respectable operating history. By 1980 it had branches in 11 cities. operating 52 local offices. The Bank extends three types of loans: (1) short-term loans for inputs on a seasonal basis, (2) medium-term credits for equipment, and (3) longer-term loans for the purchase and improvement of land. Starting from a modest first year operation of 714 loans totalling SR 4.4 million. ADB made 20.298 loans amounting to SR 585.688 million in 1978. (El Mallakh. 1982. p. 95) The main objective of the Agricultural Development Bank is to encourage investment in the agricultural sector. This kind of investment will. it is hoped. lead to an increase in agricultural production and consequently to a greater degree of self-sufficiency. The Third Development Plan (1980-1985) emphasizes the development of the agricultural sector and provides for agricultural loans of SR 5 billion and subsidies of SR 2.5 billion. Individual farmers. 120 agricultural cooperatives. and nomadic herdsmen are all eligible for the loans. Credit and funds are also available for businesses and corporations that are planning to or have already established dairy farms. fisheries. agricultural marketing. processing plants for cold storage and dairy products. and other allied industrial and agricul- tural operations. Research and education are a prerequisite for the development of agriculture in Saudi Arabia. Intensive research is needed to provide information about soil. water distribution. pests. and the feasibility of adapting modern technology to Saudi conditions. Skilled agricultural manpower is needed to translate the plans of the Ministry of Agriculture and Water into reality for which training centers have been established by that Ministry to offer the needed services to Saudi farmers throughout the country. 'Two of these are already in operation in the Assarah highland region. one in Taif City in the north and another in Baljorashy City in the central region. The one in Taif specializes in range and forest management. while the Baljorashy training center's chief concentration is on fruit production. irrigation. and forest development. 89W The Assarah region. the study area for this dissertation. has a unique role to play in the national development of Saudi Arabia unmatched by any other region in the country. If the main object of agricultural development is to attain greater self-sufficiency in agricultural production and enhancement of the standard of living of 121 the farming population through the economic exploitation of the available land and water resources. it would seem that the best strategy for regional development is to concentrate on a region with the most natural agricultural resources. and in Saudi Arabia Assarah is such a region (Nasser. 1976. p. 88). (See Figure 14.) W W Even though Assarah has the best agricultural potential. the agricultural development of the region is handicapped by many limitations. such as (ll the fragmented agricultural holdings. (2) the lack of any sizable flat terrain of land due to the rugged topography. (3) the irregularity of water supply. (4) soil erosion and terrace abandonment. (5) the declining interest in farming as an occupation. (6) the exodus of the younger generation to the cities. (7) the lack of effective agricultural extension and research. (8) poor transportation. and (9) a lack of agricultural marketing facilities (Mughram. 1973. pp. 280-81; Al-Shomrany. 1980. pp. 103-106). No specific development program has been solely designated for Assarah. but Assarah has generally been in the development program for the southwestern region. The program proposes various projects for farming. water. forestry. grazing. fishery. soil. animal production. mining. industry. transportation. marketing. education. and health care. Under the proposed program. the Assarah region was divided into seven zones for administrative purposes. Then. the statistical data and general information about the topography. soil and climatic 122 Agricultural Land in The Southwest Region Jeddah ‘9 3 / r E Cultivated Land Arabia Land ——Pawed lead ' ' "' Unpaved Read 0 cm 0 Town 0 Village Source : Halarah Figure 1A 123 characteristics. vegetation. livestock. and agriculture were collected. during 1965-1970. by the Ministry of Agriculture and Water. The information collected about the agriculture included data about the farming areas. types of crops grown. prices of the agricultural products. export and import of food. the labor force. irrigation. agricultural machinery and equipment. and grazing land. The Ministry of Agriculture and Water then established various agricultural departments throughout the region in such locations as Taif. Baljorashy. Al-Alaya. An Nimas. and Abha. These departments provide free services to those farmers who seek their assistance. During the Second Development Plan (1975-1980). the Ministry created several Agricultural Development Banks which provide the farmers with loans. subsidies. and agricultural machinery and equipment. The development of water resources has been designated as the top development priority. and the three Five-Year Plans contain proposals for many irrigational dams. At the present time. some of these dams have been constructed. Three of them have been completed in the Al-Alaya Bashut district. the representative area selected for this study. A new highway which runs through the region from north to south was constructed eight years ago and has contributed signifi- cantly to the economic development of the region as a whole. Formal education and health care have been made available to the majority of the region's population. 124 Wheel W The Assarah highland region is characterized by a great density of man-made terraces. Literally millions of these terraces provide the base for future agricultural development. Through a lack of maintenance and virtual abandonment of them. especially because of the cheap imported food. thousands of them have been destroyed. and the cost of rebuilding them has become prohibitive. Among the most important functions: a well-maintained terrace (1) reduced soil erosion. (2) conserved water. and (3) segmented slopes into a series of flat surfaces suitable for crop cultivation. Interestingly enough. the farmers who are still working the terraces have always considered them an asset or a source of wealth. Another resource that can contribute to successful agricultural development in the region is the tens of thousands of hand-dug wells. although many of these have also been abandoned and the capital and labor costs of rebuilding them have become very high. Crops grown on the irrigable terraces depend. during the most part of the years. on the water pumped from these wells either by traditional means or by modern techniques. Increased water supply for domestic use. which is excessive at this time. also depends on the water pumped from these wells. ‘The weather in Assarah. too. is an asset to the farmers. but it makes the area attractive as a seasonal and recreational resort. making an additional demand on the water supply: The favourable climate is certainly outstanding. The relatively abundant rainfall makes some rainfed farming possible and enables a natural vegetation cover to grow. The cool summer weather will influence the future of Assarah most favourably. As the per capita income rises. more and more people from all over the 125 country will be able to afford either a permanent summer residence or a temporary stay (holiday) in Assarah. (Mughram. 1973. p. 281) Unlike many regions of Saudi Arabia. the Assarah region is characterized by its natural vegetational cover which subsists largely on rain. The demand for timber for domestic construction has been declining in recent years. owing to a shift to concrete materials. and provides the potential for afforestation of the area. In fact. the vegetational cover is an asset not only to the Assarah region but also for the country as a whole. since Assarah is the only region in Saudi Arabia where such a relatively thick natural vegetation is possible. In addition. the region has a mining potential: In recent years various mineral prospecting investigations have been carried out in many parts of the country. In Assarah there are many mining sites which have been exploited in the past. and new mineral ized areas have been found. The economic feasibility for reworking the old mines and exploiting the new ones. though not great at the present time. could be vital in the future. (Mughram. 1973. p. 282) Such mineral resources. when exploited in the future. will contribute to the national as well as regional development. diversifying the country's economic base. At the same time. new industries will be established locally in the Assarah region. providing job opportunities for the region's population and encouraging agricultural development because of the increased regional demand for agricultural produce. As has been demonstrated. agricultural development in the Assarah region depends on the physical. locational. and socioeconomic factors. Apart from these determinants. agricultural development depends on the overall national demand for the agricultural commodities produced in the region. on the domestic needs of the region itself. and on the government policy regarding the importation 126 of food items. However. the local and regional demand has been rising for such agricultural commodities as vegetables. fruits. dairy products. meat. eggs. and certain types of grain that cannot be imported: Assarah can no longer claim to be the best region for the production of cereals. but it can certainly claim to be the only region within the country where fruit such as apples. pears. soft fruit like peaches. apricots and plums can be efficiently produced. Other fruit such as grapes. figs. pomegranates are already established and renowned in Assarah. Nut trees are very successful in some areas of Assarah. the almond tree for example is part of the landscape. Experiments with other nut trees especially walnuts have proved successful. Such crops seem to have the highest potential in Assarah. In the second place. dairy farming may prove to be more advantageous here than elsewhere; with regard to vegetable and forage crops Assarah may be as good as any other agricultural region in the country. The advantage of more rainfall in this respect is partly cancelled out by the rugged terrain. (Mughram. 1973. p. 283) As an agricultural region. Assarah has a large population. believed to be about one million inhabitants. most of them farmers. The per capita income in Assarah is believed to be rising. and it will continue to rise in the foreseeable future. This rise in per capita income has led to a rise in the local consumption of and demand for agricultural commodities. Under the present socioeconomic conditions. Assarah cannot meet the bulk of its demand for agricultural commodities owing to an increase in the number of farms abandoned every year. Also. the young men who are needed to cultivate the land. now and in the future. are unwilling to work on farms in preference for better-paid jobs in the government sector. ‘This exodus is limited not only to the Assarah region alone. but has affected manay other regions also. and suggests a need for reordering government priorities. It must be understood 127 that the Assarah region is essential to the rest of the country as its economy is geared to the national economy. It is believed that the long-term. integrated rural development strategy concerning this region. both at the national and regional levels. would be a significant stride forward toward an end that matches the region's potential for agriculture with its demand for agricultural produce. In conclusion one can say that the role of Assarah will depend to a large extent on its particular physical attributes.. . . Thus its role will be to provide within the country the products and services which otherwise would only be obtainable abroad. It will most certainly be a summer resort for an. increasingly growing number of middle and working class people who cannot or do not want to go abroad. Its agricultural future will have to depend on horticulture and some kind of intensive livestock husbandry if such a future is to be practical. It will certainly cease to be a granary for itself or for the rest of the country although cereal production will continue to be sizeable. (Mughram. 1973. p. 285) CHAPTER V CHANGE AND DEVELOPMENT IN AGRICULTURAL LAND-USE One of the major themes of this dissertation is that. as a region. Assarah is undergoing many socioeconomic changes. The best approach to analyzing these changes would be to investigate the region as a whole. .A holistic approach would reveal overall patterns of change and point out where local differences exist. Such a task is. however. prohibitively difficult under the present state of knowledge. Logistically and theoretically. it is even more so when only one individual is available for the task. If more research and materials were readily available. such a task would at least be attempted. Because of these limitations,however. this discussion must be limited to the highland part of the Shomran and Bal-Oarn districts in the hope that this small area will serve. in some ways. as a sample for the whole region. ‘The highlands of Bal-Oarn and Shomran comprise the land occupied by two tribes. Shomran and Bal-Oarn. Specifically. it is now known as the Al-Alaya and Bashut districts. From the recent development in this area in particular. and in the Assarah region in general. it is apparent that the area is under- going transformation at a much faster rate than was previously possible. The change-over came slowly and gradually rather than abruptly and suddenly. If a particular period can be chosen to 128 129 signal the start of the new trends. then the 19205 seem to be the most suitable period because the Assarah highlands region became a part of Saudi Arabia (Mughram. 1973. p. 159). In other words. the 1920's are not a divide between two different periods. but rather the start of a transitional period. The modern patterns. as opposed to the traditional. are at the moment in the making and have not developed full shape as yet. Also in view of the fact that life here was and still is dependent on agricultural production... . emphasis [should] always be put on the agricultural aspect. (Mughram. 1973. p. 160) Up to 30 years ago. community norms and activities in the study area and the Assarah highland region had remained nearly the same for centuries. Neither major events nor important foreign influences reached the area to cause major changes. The purpose here is to evaluate and describe the changes and developments in agricul- tural land use patterns of the area's human-made terraces. It is this researcher's intention to evaluate the utility of these agricultural terraces to the rural communities of the study area. in particular. and the Assarah highlands in general. Land:lisa_Eattecns Interpretation of aerial photographs taken by the Ministry of Petroleum and Mineral Resources in 1953 illustrates that the major land uses in the study area in 1953 were crop lands. pastures. forests. and cluster-type villages. In 1978. this researcher examined agricultural land use patterns in the Bashut district and. after careful comparison with aerial photographs taken in 1953 and 1969. it was found that land uses in Bashut had hardly changed. except for the emergence of a few new clusters of houses and a new highway. Four years later (1982). the researcher found major changes and new 130 developments in agricultural land use patterns. The most important phenomenon that distinguishes agricultural land use patterns today from those in 1978 and prior dates is the fast expansion of villages. The expansion and sprawl of the villages has encroached on agricultural land. Some new houses have been constructed on prime agricultural land. but the majority of these new houses are built on marginal lands. The new type of settlement is less clustered than the old cluster villages. and few are based on urban planning. Another major development is the construction of paved roads which connect the villages to each other. especially those villages and towns which are centers for government offices. .A third change is that some localities have become important recreational areas. Owing to their natural beauty. they have attracted local as well as outside tourists. but they lack maintenance and public services. Other land use patterns. such as private forests. pasture lands. and prime agricultural lands. remain the same as before. Careful observation reveals that agriculture is declining. owing to many environmental factors that will be explained in the following chapter. (See Figures 15. 16. Plates 5. 6.) W The field survey carried out regarding the importance of agriculture in present land use patterns leads to the conclusion that agriculture is diminishing and that it is no longer considered the mainstay of the majority of the farmers in the study area or in the Assarah region in general. ‘The results of interviews with farmers 131 m. ...a_. «GO— .nepasa 3... tea 3:039.ch .2... cc veal. Jessie-e. n. vengesea / / . / ........ A... .. , /. / . /..//.. 2....kwwn . . . «M. V‘— i . .2012 .2228 22:8. 22.. 2:... 35.3.; M. .comtoh cocoa—:22 .88... :3... Bacon. eoeeo GunshOF O_nw>_=:0 002.; IIIEIIDE] 132 o. ocsm_u «no—£32:- c.e= new gaaauoucgn .etea eo tee-a Jason-ace. ha taco-esen "season 00°.oonw e_Iu¢ ...... . ./../ (e//./.. ..v» $454.. /...\/ / 0AA.“ /. . . ..flzay ./....//./, /. / / . . . //../ . ao.-.-: 41 wit/11...! .32.... 2:3. :3: seed 35.-an coats... ueeoveaa< .33.. En... .aaaou eaeen ouster eta-2:30 oo-E> IEIIIEID' . 1.33 (a) Cluster type of villages in the northern part of Assarah ‘— {lI-m _ rel“? -3 112:. . s (b) Dispersed type of villages in the southern part of Assarah Plate 5 1311 m—‘— ...-..., WW” ""HI‘P- ‘1 . g . ... -1 . ‘. e‘ ."3. (b) Preservation of the irrigable agricultural land Plate 6 135 indicate that in the 19505. the majority of the farmers (84.8 percent) were cultivating all of their farms (Table 2). Twenty years ago this proportion had declined to 60.7 percent. In the 19705. those who were cultivating all their holdings accounted for only 48.6 percent. In the present study. only 20.6 percent of the farmers interviewed are cultivating only half of their terraces. but at present at least 39.3 percent of the farmers were cultivating about half of their holdings. More interestingly. this study reveals that from 1950 to 1978. none of the farmers were cultivating less than 50 percent of their farms. Today there are at least 22.6 percent of the respondent farmers who are cultivating only 25 percent of their farms. and 1.2 percent have abandoned their terraces entirely. It was found that some farmers have reduced the acreage of their farms to 75 or 50 percent to be able to intensify agriculture. They have started to concentrate on cultivating three or four of their terraces and are intensifying agriculture by increasing inputs of fertilizer. labor. capital. and management. The majority of the farmers have. however. reduced the acreage of their agricultural land. not because they are intensifying agriculture. but because of the shortages of labor and water. low agricultural prices. lack of good transportation facilities. and physical hazards. These factors will be explained later. A comparison between farms under cultivation during the summer seasons of 1978 and 1982 reveals that during the summer season of 1978 only 1.8 percent of the farmers interviewed were cultivating all of their farms. In 1982. those who were cultivating all of their terraces accounted for 20.6 percent. Those farmers who were 136 No.00. mmN No.00. mmN No.oo_ 5mm No.00. mmN .muoh ”Ne— m a a as Naao — e e e a 0:02 NQeNN am so as so so as as :\— Nm.mm .o. wo.m mN Nm.m o. MN._ m ~\_ Nm.m_ N: wo._a no. wo.mm om wo.:_ mm axm No.o~ mm Nm.w: m~_ Nm.oo mm. N:.:m m_~ __< o>_um_um mus—omn< o>_um_um ops—cmn< o>_um_o¢ nus—omn< o>_um_ox ou3.0ma< mo_uco:ooca mo_uco:uucm mo_oeo:uucu mo_ueo:oocm co_uomcu «mm. ohm. oom— amm— .~mm_ ccm .onm. .omm. .omm— mc_c:c :o_um>_u_:o cope: moomccou mo mco_uumcuri.~ o-nmh 137 cultivating 75 percent of their farms during the summer seasons of 1978 and 1982 were 29.9 percent and 16.3 percent. respectively. Those who were cultivating 50 percent or less of their terraces during the summer seasons of 1978 and 1982 accounted for 68.4 percent and 63.1 percent. respectively (Table 3). A careful examination of Table 3 might indicate that agriculture in the study area in particular. and in the Assarah region in general. depends on rainfall. During 1978. the late spring and early summer rainfall was unusually late. and many farms were still uncultivated at the time the survey was conducted. A month later. monsoon rains came and all the fields not cultivated earlier were planted with wheat and barley instead of the sorghum and vegetables usually grown there. It was not possible to interview the farmers again. so the researcher had to depend heavily on his own observations. Table 3.--Fractions of terraces under cultivation during the summers of 1978 and 1982. Fractions I978 '982 Cultivated Absolute Relative Absolute Relative Frequency Frequency Frequency Frequency 100% 5 1.8 53 20.6 75% 83 29.9 42 16.3 50% 96 34.4 101 39.3 25% 93 33.5 58 22.6 0% 1 0.4 3 1.2 Total 278 100.0 257 100.0 138 Farming practice5.--Traditional1y, farming practices in the area of study, in particular, and in the Assarah highland region, in general, have been highly developed. Farming techniques have generally been the most modern possible, under the prevailing physical and cultural con- ditions. The iron share plough was already in common use. Ploughing, cross-ploughing, smoothing and levelling were commonly practiced. Ploughing was also used for uprooting some leguminous roots such as alfalfa, whose roots were regarded as a nutritious fodder, and for unearthing root crops like onions and garlic. Also, a late summer and early autumn ploughing was practiced on the fallowed fields to uproot the weeds and loosen the soil in preparation for the next crop. Broadcast sowing of wheat and barley was prac- ticed, especially before ploughing, while sorghum though still hand cast, was dropped grain by grain into the furrow by a man following the plough. (Mughram, 1973, p. 161) For trees and vegetable crOps, manual planting and cultivating methods were used by all farmers. Clearing the fields of stones before ploughing and weeding after cultivating were carried out thoroughly. Organic manure was used whenever possible. Soil fertility, conservation, and maintenance were taken into consideration by farmers all over the Assarah region. These terrace soils were man- made, by constructing artificial rocky walls and, as a result, men understood how to maintain and fertilize them and expanded and handed this knowledge down over the years. Double-cropping was often practiced, and three crops could sometimes be harvested in one year. This would not have been possible if the soil had not been in good condition. Mixed cropping and inter-planting were practiced with a wide range of crops. Barley and wheat, for example, were sown and harvested together more often than not. Varieties of sorghum were also sown, harvested, and consumed together. 139 These traditional methods of cultivation continued to dominate farming practices in the study area until the late 19605. when the tractor was introduced into the Al-Alaya and Bashut districts. though in other localities in the Assarah region it had been introduced earlier. In the Ghamid district. for example. the tractor was introduced in the late 19505. Bulldozers. too. were used to move. level. and reclaim land (Mughram. 1973. p. 204) In the area of study. the tractor was first introduced by the S. A. Department of Agriculture. which has its main office in Al- Alaya. Inlother local districts. like Ghamid. individual farmers were first introduced to tractors when they rented them from private firms in Taif. The establishment of an agricultural extension service unit in the area was itself a sign of improvement. although some farmers did not understand its role and function at the time. Even now. there are farmers who are reluctant to ask for help or advice from the agricultural agents and are unaware of their existence or function. When the tractor plough was introduced to the study area through the agricultural unit in Al-Alaya. it did not meet with as much acceptance as the bulldozer because it could not easily be used on small. uneven. rocky holdings that were widely scattered all over the area. A significant and very promising cultivation technique which was unknown in the region is furrow irrigation cultivation. This was first introduced in Baljorashy by farmers who had lived in Jordan. and simultaneously through the agricultural unit. The technique is superior. from the point of view of plant growth. to the traditional basin technique with regard to vegetable growing and it is being adopted for this purpose. (Mughram. 1973. p. 206) Irrigation has. by necessity. been an ancient practice in the study area. and the farmers in the area have come to depend. besides Mo rainfall. on the underground water from numerous man-made wells and on the runoffs channeled into their terraces. The latter depends entirely on rainfall. to the extent that the farms served by runoffs are classified as rainfed terraces. rather than irrigable lands. Actually. water is raised from the well to a high elevation and chan- neled into small canals to the field. where the terraces were laid out in small basins. These basins are then served by a system of small interconnecting channels. branching off from the main canal. that ran through the middle of a terrace. During the last 30 years. the traditional methods of irriga- tion have given way to new gasoline and diesel water pumps. While the basic irrigation method has remained dominant even until today. the first water pump in the Bashut district was installed at the earliest in 1957. In the district of Ghamid. the water pump was introduced by a farmer in 1955. The advantages of the water pump have been so convincing that the majority of the farmers who can afford them have installed one. Most of the early pumps were under ten horsepower. but in recent years. signs of increasing pump capacity are in evidence. The problem with the high-power water pumps is that they lower the water table much faster if water is pumped excessively and affect the variability of hydrological connections between wells. In some places. overpumping one well may easily dry up other wells. ‘These problems have not yet occurred. locally or regionally. because of the reductions in farming that preceded the pump installations. Indeed the main reason delaying such danger is the fact that the use of water pumps was preceded and accompanied by a general acreage reduction and agricultural contraction. not only because young men have migrated to the towns but also because lhl supplementary income has gradually become attainable from non- agricultural activities, this having the influence of rendering farming less essential to many a family. This has given a chance to those who are still totally or partially dependent on agri- culture to go drawing water with less competition. (Mughram, 1973. PP- 203'209) Types of crops.--The types of craps grown in the study area in particular and in the Assarah region in general include varieties of winter wheat and barley which are sown separately together. The varie— ties of wheat are the hard wheat types; some were drought resistant. The main summer crop is sorghum, which is characterized by its compact and covered head or seed cub. Vegetables are limited to someivihiannual plants, of several varieties, mostly growing as weeds among other crops. The varieties of vegetables used by a small number of farmers include tomatoes, potatoes, onions, and garlic. Fruit tree culture is more advanced than vegetable farming, and there are several varieties of white and black grapes, apricots, small green peas, pomegranates, peaches, and figs. Fruit trees are a part of the farm vegetation on the majority of farms. Alfalfa is the most important fodder crOp in most parts of Assarah. Nearly every family has at least a part of one of its terraces devoted to alfalfa at all times and restricted alfalfa acreage for its own domestic use. Only in the villages near the market is some yield sold in the market. In recent years, new varieties of grains, vegetables, and fruits have been introduced in the study area. American maize was introduced in the early 19705 as a summer irrigated crop interplanted with other crops or planted in small plots. Its advantage over sorghum is that its grain is wrapped in a protective husk, protecting it from birds. The sorghum acreage is not reduced as a result of maize introduction because sorghum is 142 still superior to maize in many respects. It is soft and easy to prepare. and it is well established in the local eating habits. The popcorn variety of maize was also introduced in the region. and it is gaining ground as a luxury cash crop. In recent years. new varieties of wheat have been introduced from North America and Australia and grown during the summer and are found to give high yields per acre. They are less drought resistant than the local varieties. but their grains seem to shed more easily during harvest. ‘These new varieties were introduced by individual farmers in the course of their own experimentation. Due to the general decline in the grain crops in Assarah. because of the competition from imported grains. the new varieties hve not been widely used. The conclusion that grain crops are on the decline is derived from the data collected by the researcher during the summer of 1982. Examination of Table 4 reveals that 98.8 percent of the farmers interviewed were food grain producers during the 19505. During the 19605 and the 19705. this proportion declined to 57.2 percent and 39.7 percent. respectively. In 1982. it was found that only L5 percent of the farmers still concentrated on the food grain production (Plate 7). Vegetable and fruit farming is more encouraging. ‘There is a high demand for these products in the local as well as the regional markets. although farmers are sometimes not pleased with the market prices. especially during the harvest seasons. In the study area. as well as in the Assarah region. there have been new varieties of vegetables and fruits introduced in recent years by private farmers and the government agricultural extension 143 No.00. umu No.oo. mmN No.oo_ mmN No.oo_ nmm .muo» wm.~o om_ Nm.:m _:_ NM.mm .o. .. .. o_a_._=z w_.o_ mu wm.o N Nw.o N w:.o _ mu_:cu w..m~ so N~.: N. w~.~ m Mm.o N mo_nmuumo> am._ s N~.mm No. N~.am as. Na.mm sma .=_..m coo. u>_um_om ups—omn< o>_um_o¢ nus—omn< o>_um_um uu:_0ma< u>_um_ux nus—omn< couscous mo_o:o:uocu mo_ocu:coca mu_uco:uocm mo_ucu:oocm menu. 0mm. .00. .Nmm_-omm_ .mucm >csum ecu c_ exocm macho mo moa>hrn.: o_nmh w. " marten”? m f erv— (a) Irrigable terraces devoted to vegetables and sorghum during the summer season I {v‘rI:--‘ trip-e , , , (b) Dry-field terraces devoted to wheat and barley during the winter season Plate 7 1115 services. The new varieties include okra. eggplant. molokhia. spinach. white turnip. cabbage. carrots. beans. leeks. radishes. and others. Table 4 shows that only 1.2 percent of the farmers interviewed were cultivating vegetables and fruits during the 19505. During the 19605 and 19705. farmers raising vegetables and fruits accounted for 3.5 percent and 5.5 percent. respectively. Since 1982. this proportion has increased to 37.2 percent. indicating considerable new interest in vegetable and fruit farming. Multiple crops grown include grains. alfalfa. vegetables. and fruits. None of the farmers interviewed was interested in cultivating multiple crops 30 years ago. Twenty years and ten years ago. 39.3 and 54.9 percent. respectively. of the farmers were cultivating multiple crops. .At present even more farmers (62.3 percent) are concentrating on multiple crop agriculture (Table 4. Plates 8. 9). Table 5 provides a comparison between the types of crops grown during the last 30 years and those crops grown today. Food crops were grown by the majority of the farmers (97.3 percent) during the 19505. 19605. and 19705. At the present time. grain crops have declined precipitously; only 0.8 percent of the farmers interviewed still grow grains. Vegetable and fruit agriculture was limited to a small number of farmers CL6 percent) during the last 30 years. and at the present time 36.2 percent of the farmers are involved in vegetable and fruit cultivation. Multiple crops of food grains. alfalfa. vegetables. and fruits were grown by only'l.2 percent of the farmers during the 19505 and 19605. During the 19705. an increase in the demand for vegetables and fruits spurred their cultivation. Currently. about 63 Percent of 1116 (a) Multiple cropping in the irrigable terraces during the summer season (b) Single cropping (sorghum) in the irrigable terraces during the summer season Nate 8 1117 (a) Cultivation of grape, fig, and peach trees in the Bashut district (b) Pomegranate cultivation in the Al-Alayah district Plate 9 148 the farmers interviewed are concentrating on vegetable and fruit production. Conclusions derived from Table 5 are that grain production has declined steeply. while vegetable and fruit production has increased. owing to stiff competition from imports and to other reasons previously mentioned. Table 5.--A comparison between the crops grown in the study area 30 years ago and the crops grown in 1982. Items Absolute Relative Absolute Relative Cultivated Frequency Frequency Frequency Frequency Food grains 250 97.3 2 0.8 Vegetables 2 0.8 67 26.1 Fruits 2 0.8 26 10.1 Multiple 3 1.2 162 63.0 Total 257 100.0 257 100.0 Crop types in terrace farming for the summer seasons of 1978 and 1982 are illustrated in Tables 6 and 7. During the summer of 1978. types of land uses included sorghum. which accounted for 27.9 percent of the total agricultural land: wheat and barley. grown on no more than 10.9 percent of the fields examined during field work; alfalfa. 2.9 percent: fruits and vegetables. 1.9 percent; private forest and mixed crops. 43.8 percent: and fallow fields. 12.6 percent. During 1978. a few farmers specialized in vegetable and fruit cultivation. while the majority were grain producers (Table 6). 149 Table 6.--Type5 of crops on the agricultural terraces. summer 1978. Types of Land Use Absolute Relative Frequency Frequency Sorghum 161 27.9 Wheat and barley 63 10.9 Alfalfa 17 2.9 Fruits and vegetables 11 1.9 Forests and mixed crops 253 43.8 Fallow 73 12.6 Total 578 100.0 Source: Al-Shomrany. 1980. p. 103. During the summer of 1982. agricultural land use types were vegetables. fruits. grains. and multiple crops. Table 7 illustrates the prevailing relationship between the types of agricultural land use and the types of terraces. Vegetables were grown only in irrigable terraces where soil is deep and fertile and artificial irrigation is easily achieved. Information derived from the primary field data indicates that irrigable terraces were allocated between different types of land use as follows: vegetables. 2.0 percent; fruits. 2.7 percent: grains. 19.8 percent; and multiple crops. 75.5 percent. Dry field terraces were allocated to: fruit trees. 5.1 percent; grains. 89.1 percent, depending on the precipitation; and multiple crops. 5.9 percent. Forest terraces were dominated by mixed crops of different varieties of wheat. barley. and sorghum. 47.8 percent; fruit. 17.2 percent: and multiple crops including lumbering juniper trees. 354) percent. 150 moomnauh unpack moumccoh c_o_mr>co moumacuh o_nmm~cc_ wo.oo_ mmu wo.oo_ nmu No.oo_ mmN .mDOF Noam om ”Rm 5 ”an; am. 232:: Nm.~: MN. N_.mm mum ww.m_ .m mc.maw N~.n_ :: N_.m __ Nu.~ n mu_:au we 0 No 0 &c.~ m mo_nmuumo> >oeozoocu >ocoaooau >ocoaoocm >ocoaaocu >ucoauocm >oco=uocu o>_um_um mus—omn< o>_um_o¢ ou:_0mn< o>_um_om mus—omn< “MamWMMH .~wm_ cessam .moomccou .mL:u_:u_cmm any :0 maoau so moe>h--.~ o_nmh 151 In summary, irrigable terraces were allocated to vegetables, fruits, and good varieties of wheat and sorghum; dry terraces were allocated mostly to grains; and private forest terraces were allocated to mixed crops. Tables 5, 6, and 7 reveal that vegetable and fruit cultivation is increasing, especially in the villages located near the market, due to demand for this kind of product. Nursery cultivation, though not entirely new, is gaining more importance as the shift toward tree and vegetable crops is increasing, both for the purpose of in-the-farm transplantation and for sale. For the latter purpose the agricultural unit played a leading and significant role. (Al-Shomrany, 1980, p. 206) Products sold from the farms.--Concerning products sold from the farms, it should be understood that the agriculture of the Assarah highlands region is subsistence farming. In the past, farmers have exchanged some of their farm products for other products from neighbor- ing regions. In recent years, some farmers have started to sell some of their farm products for cash in the local markets. The data col- Iected during field work indicate that in 1978, 28.4 percent of the farmers interviewed were selling some of their products (Table 8). Table 8.--Frequency of farm products sold in 1978. Category Absolute Frequency Relative Frequency Products sold 79 28.h Products not sold 199 71.6 TotaI 278 100.0 l52 By I982, this proportion had increased to 52.5 percent, indicating an increase of 2h.9 percent over what it was in l978. Products sold included vegetables, fruits, and lambs (Tables 8 and 9). The conclusion to be derived here is that subsistence agriculture is declining and commercial farming increasing. Table 9.--Frequency of the farm products sold in l982. Category Absolute Frequency Relative Frequency Products sold I35 52.5 Products not sold l22 h7.5 Total 257 l00.0 Farm animals.--Traditionally, each family in Assarah had to have some farm animals in order to form a viable farming unit. The kind and number of animals depended on the size of the household, the size of their land holdings, and other customary rights that they had. By and large, the average family had a milk cow, two oxen, a camel or a donkey, and a small flock of sheep and goats. Traditional farming in this region was mixed in nature; cultivation, terracing, afforesta- tion, and animal husbandry complemented each other as one integrated system. These components were so interdependent that improvement or decline in any one of them affected the others. ”1 recent years the number of animals has significantly decreased, due to several factors: (1) migration of some of the family labor force, so that the family 153 can no longer keep large herds of animals; (2) droughts have been experienced in the study area. which have affected agriculture and animal production; (3) the introduction of agricultural machinery had reduced the need for draught animals like cattle; and (4) general economic improvement in the lot of some families has made the keeping of animals economically less attractive. Table 10 shows that 97.3 percent of the respondents raised some»animals. a few sheep and a cow. on their farms. Those farmers who no longer raised animals accounted for 2.7 percent. Table lO.--Farmers raising animals versus those not raising animals. 1982. Category Absolute Frequency Relative Frequency Yes 250 97.3 No 7 2.7 Total 257 100.0 The kinds of animals raised by farmers interviewed during the summer of 1982 were sheep. 41.2 percent; goats. 3.1 percent; cattle. 54.1 percent; and chickens. 0.4 percent (Table ll). Table 12 indicates the reasons for raising animals. Some farmers raise animals for domestic use. mainly milk and meat (65.0 percent); other farmers raise animals for commercial purposes (25.3 percent). Those farmers who still used draft animals on the farm ISA accounted for 2.3 percent. and those who raised animals for other purposes accounted for 7.4 percent. Table ll.--Kinds of animals raised in the study area. 1982. Category Absolute Frequency Relative Frequency Sheep 106 41.2 Goats 11 3.1 Cattle 132 54.1 Others 1 .4 Total 250 100.0 Table 12.--Purposes for which the animals on the farm are raised. Use Absolute Frequency Relative Frequency Domestic 162 65.0 Commercial 63 25.3 Draft 5 2.3 A11 17 7.4 Total 250 100.0 The majority of the farmers interviewed indicated that they usually raise and graze their animals on their farms (71.6 percent); some have started to feed their animals at the farmstead. buying some grains and some alfalfa from the local markets (1.9 percent). Those farmers who still graze their animals outside their farms accounted l55 for l5.6 percent; those who graze their animals both on the farm and on the grazing land outside the village were 10.9 percent (Table 13. Plate 10). Table 13.--Places where the farm animals graze. Grazing Places Absolute Frequency Relative Frequency On the farm 181 71.6 Outside the farm 38 15.6 On both 27 10.9 At the farmstead > 4 1.9 Tbtal 257 100.0 Table 14 illustrates that 46.3 percent of those farmers who raise animals have sufficient veterinary care from the local Department of Agriculture unit. On the other hand. there are 53:7 percent of the farmers who have insufficient veterinary care for their animals. Indeed. some of them have never heard of the Department of Agriculture unit. while others still use traditional veterinary care and have no interest in more modern animal care. l56 (b) Sheep and goats grazing on private mcultivated terraces Plate l0 157 Table l4.--Veterinary care for the livestock. Veterinary Care Absolute Frequency Relative Frequency Sufficient 115 46.3 Insufficient 135 53.7 _ Total 250 100.0 In summary. cattle in general and dairy cows in particular are declining. but at a lesser rate than other animals. mainly because farmers still need them for milk and butter. In recent years. new grocery stores have been established in the large towns and villages. and milk and butter imported from other regions have been easily available to the local people. The introduction of refrigerators and refrigerated trucks has contributed to these new developments. Frozen chicken is also imported and sold locally. Saudi Arabia as a whole used to be self-sufficient in meat production with a surplus for export; Nowadays a large and ever- increasing number of live animals and meat are imported. It is interesting to note that meat production within Ghamid and Zahran still maintains a good surplus which is sent to Jeddah-Mecca-Taif areas and that is true of all the Assarah region south of Taif. The small number of nonlocal animals which are slaughtered are more than outweighed by the district surplus which flows to the towns. (Mughram. 1983. pp. 220-21) In recent years. an important development has taken place in poultry farming. A variety of poultry species have been introduced to the study area. Pigeons. rabbits. ducks. and turkeys have been brought to the region. New varieties of chickens were also brought for meat as well as for egg production. 'The real improvement to be l58 noted here is the adoption of the battery farm techniques. which have been established in many places in the region. like Baljorashy and Al- Alaya districts. 'This kind of development was encouraged by a high demand for chicken meat and eggs. In tracing the trends and changes in farming in the study area in particular. and in Assarah in general. it should be noted that they are both positive and negative. Positive changes can be summarized as follows: (1) an increase in commercialization of agricultural products. (2) a continuous rise in the use of various farm machinery. (3) an increase in intensive farming and a corresponding decline in extensive farming because of the decline of traditional agriculture as a source of income. (4) specialization in vegetable and fruit production owing to rising demands for these products. and (5) a rise of entrepreneurial agriculture such as agribusiness on a small scale. usually associated with hired labor and increased specialization and mechanization. The negative changes include (1) diminution of acreage for grain crops like wheat. barley. and sorghum due to the abandonment of marginal agricultural land (the high-slope and high-elevation terraces) and (2) a general decline in agriculture and in its value and importance as an occupation. Many farmers prefer to migrate to urban centers or stay in the villages and favor guaranteed nonagricultural income to labor and economic risk of agricultural work. Additionally. (3) soil erosion is on the rise due to an increase in the abandonment of terraces and their lack of maintenance. CHAPTER VI AGRICULTURAL LAND USE PATTERNS IN RELATION TO THE PHYSICAL. LOCATIONAL. AND SOCIOECONOMIC FACTORS IN THE ASSARAH REGION OF SAUDI ARABIA The Assarah region is one of the most important agricultural areas in Saudi Arabia. Despite the flow of money from the oil sector. the economy of the region is dependent largely upon the agricultural and livestock production. A wide variety of grains. fruits. and vegetables are grown in Assarah every year. This pattern of agricultural land use is the result of an interaction of a number of factors. which play important roles in determining and conditioning the type. distribution. and economy of the land use. These factors. indeed. constitute the physical. locational. and socioeconomic determinants of the pattern of the use of land in the region. This chapter presents a detailed analysis of the agricultural land use patterns in the highlands of the Bal-Oarn and Shomran regions (the Al-Alayah-Bashut districts). in particular. and in the Assarah highlands. in general. Furthermore. the effect of the physical. locational. and socioeconomic factors. mentioned in the foregoing passages. on the spatial patterns of agricultural land use is emphasized in this chapter. 159 160 W With regard to the physical environmental factors. Al-Shomrany (1980) pointed out: At the outset. it was recognized that the "geogrpahic factors" of climate. topography. and soil condition determine the spatial distribution of the land use patterns of a region. Topography forms the basis for the classification and evaluation of land. the slope angle generally determines the nature of use to which the land is put. The climate of a region--in the absence of a technology to compensate for its limitations--directly affects the capability of land for agriculture. Soil depth. fertility and texture determine the productive possibilities of both dry and irrigable land. Shallow soil is generally incompatible with successful agriculture unless the condition is suitably modified by technology and other means. (p. 94) The topography of the study area is rugged. and the altitude in most places exceeds 2000 meters above sea level. 'The typical inclination of the slopes in the Assarah region varies from 15 to 20 degrees. Some areas have a slope inclination of less than 5 degrees. while others have an average slope of more than 30 degrees. Morphologically. the soil of Assarah can be divided into two types--that is. the soil that formed under natural conditions and the soil that formed under the conditions of human exploitation of the land. It is observed that the depth of the soil is inversely related to the angle of the slopes. In the areas of gentle slopes. between 0 and 10 degrees. the soil depth sometimes exceeds 6 meters. The soil in the study area on slopes between S and 15 degrees is found to be between 2 and 4 meters in depth. whereas areas with steep slopes of 20 degrees and more have a shallow soil profile of less than 1 meter. The texture of the soil can largely be characterized as clayey. clayey loam. sandy clayey loam. and sandy loamy. The climate. especially the precipitation. temperature. humidity. and evaporation. 161 is controlled by the topography and the relief of the region. The annual mean temperature is about 15 degrees. and the annual rainfall recorded is about 400 muI(A1-Shomrany. 1980. pp. 23-75). These physical facts of life in the region play a determining role in the agricultural land use of Assarah (Figures 17. 18). This study attempts to bring into sharp relief the sharply pronounced effects of these facts. indeed. so much so that what the farmers grow on their terraces is determined by these physical factors. In fact. the characteristics of size. soil. slope. water supply. and location of the terraced farms are a direct result of the physical environment and other factors that will be discussed later in this chapter. BMW Agriculturallemces Man-made terraces form the most:conspicuous agricultural landscape of Saraht Bal-Oarn and Shomran in particular and the Assarah region in general. Indeed. stepped slopes are in evidence everywhere in the regions. In fact. terracing seems to be the only solution to the agricultural needs of the people and. perhaps. is the best alternative for a successful cultivation of crops and permanent farming activities in the topographically and climatically marginal landscape (Al-Shomrany. 1980. p. 107). The agricultural terraces of the study area can be further classified into lateral terraces. accounting for 23:7 percent of the total terraced areas; contour terraces. comprising 26.1 percent of the 162 Ollmeie Characterletlce Mean Maximum Temperalure C. Mean Minimum Temperature C’ O “I. L A __n Annual Rainfall mm. Annual Paili Evapatranspiraiian mm. Oeurae: AL-Ohemreey. 1000. e. H Figure 17 163 m. at=a_a 23¢ areaassaaaes .j. 238:8 axon 658C! 5 .9502 o s 98°m1wfi'danfi ., 1v° - o. 'I.-‘la. ..a» oraneqalaaea fl}; 4 3 Jo .A T .n O'--."-ll-‘|-°fi 2m. - mom. .3534 cm «cotsm .3523. .o. 05.32.53 35:63. coo: - .e .9... .uee.tecana( "easeo nun»: eequo Dene-we: eeeaeeg o:a€ OtOmdfis, ‘ll-l‘-ll-' (3.... Ola-la; £BEOQC .- I 1' a nos-z-e< ...M._.__._ acueco:em 68° (55": msm. - www. 931's... 4 Jv .ueeetec. -... . o 2.2-3 020u¢-lele ~ I. — in: O - _; L -l -L L--- lfil” l." a ---g--- -u ........ 8. ._0h Oloncasidlu s O -.-.. ,o ....... 00. ...E £6534 s 23.36 2:60.29. .6 =2£a¢ >230: coo! 16h total; and cross-channel terraces. constituting the bulk of the area with a total of 51.2 percent. (See Table 15a. Plates. 11.12).l Based on the examination of the major physical factors influencing the patterns of agricultural land use. it was found that there is a significantly definite relationship between the type of terraced agriculture and the physical environmental factors. which include the angle of the slope. soil characteristics. farm size and location. water supply. and the accessibility to and from the market (see Table 16). Furthermore. 78.6 percent of the farmers interviewed during the fieldwork have most of their irrigable terraces in areas of gentle slope with 0 to 10 degrees of inclination. 'The farmers who own irrigable terraces in the areas of moderate slopes of 11 to 20 degrees account for 21.4 percent of the interviewees. but none of them owned an irrigable farm of slopes above 20 degrees (Table 16a). However. most dry-term farms are found on moderate slopes ranging from 10 to 20 degrees. Almost 69 percent (68.9 percent) of the farmers reported that most of their dry farms were located on the moderate slopes. About 30 percent.(30i7 percent) of the dry terraces are found on gentle slopes. while only 034 percent are found on steep slopes (Table 16a). Privately owned forested terraces abound in the study area. and they are generally found along moderate and gentle slopes. About 1For more details about the terrace classification. see 5. A. Al-Shomrany. "Types. Distribution. and Significance of Agricultural Terraces in Assarah. Saudi Arabia" (M.A. thesis. Michigan State University. 1980). pp. 107-64. 165 Table 15.--Terrace classification according to the selected criteria based on the sample size of 578 terraces. Criteria of T s f T Absolute Relative Classification ype ° erraces Frequency Frequency a) Terrain Lateral terraces 137 23.7% Contour terraces 145 26.1% Cross-channel terraces 296 51.2% b) Slope angle Gentle-510pe terraces 475 81.8% (0°-10°) Moderate-slope terraces 62 11.6% (ll°-20°) Steep-slope terraces 38 6.6% (20° and above) c) Soil depth Deep-soil terraces 228 39.5% (less than 4 m) Moderately-deep-soil 240 41.5% terraces (2-3 m) Shallow-soil terraces 110 19.0% (1 m and less) d) Size in Small terraces (1-10 asa) 152 26.3% local units . . 2 Medium terraces 123 21.3% (1 asa 60 m ) (10-30 asa) . Large terraces 303 52.4% (more than 30 asa) e) Water supply Irrigable terraces 232 40.1% Dry-field terraces 342 59.9% f) Land use Mixed-farming terraces 240 41.5% Term-farming terraces 233 40.3% Tree-crOp terraces 105 18.2% Source: Al-Shomrany, 1980, p. 126. 166 “fair: . rim": ~ , \ . 2‘. ‘1. (b) Lateral and contour terraces of gentle and moderate slopes Plate 11 167 (b) Irrigable terraces of gentle and moderate slopes Plate 12 168 «c.oo_ hmu no.0c. saw «c.6c. “mu .euoh ua.o~ _m no.n~ mm no.°m cm. u.a_nnuuuec. «Nam SN 3.: am. «...? 2. . «3.382 3:33.32 E no.m~ mm um.a~ 4m uo.o_ .a aco_u_uu:mc_ 3.: mm. «13 8. no...» a: 2.32:3. 3&3 .82, 3 8.2 mm. 3.9. o: 2.: ..m SEEMSSWH w: .. . . .5. To . *0 MN mm ”N O“ MN— N” O” . MNN n0OM———> 5W0: CO—HNUOJ aflv um.o_ m: u_.m m. uo.o 0 Anne o_v v ..aEm an.oo mm. ue.~m .o. um..n .w Anne cmio_v Es.nux no.n~ mm um.~m mm um.oo ms. «was omx . emcee o~.m Auv Nm.:_ an no.:_ on uo.c o A5 _ AV zo._asm w~.mm m_~ uo.mm .- uo.oc_ ~m~ 1: .v v auuo ._0m an. um.m m. n:.o . uc.o o Aoc~.Av auuum u~._~ mm. wm.wo ms. u:..~ mm “.o~-9o_v ouacuco: no.m~ mm "n.0m an «o.os ~c~ Ago-noov u_ucuu ego—m any >ucuaaucu >ucuaaucu >ueuaaucu >ucuaaucu >ucuaaucu >ucuaoucu o>_ua_u¢ uu:_omn< u>_ua_u¢ eon-amn< u>_ua_u¢ eon—oma< nu_umwuuwmacazu mcouuau muuaccoh umuLOm muuaLLuh p.0.u->ca muueccub 0.3am.cc. _ _ ca .nuoaccuu .ac:u_:o_cma uo mu.um_cuuuecezu .au_m>;a-u.o_ u_aah 169 72 percent (71.2 percent) of the farmers interviewed had their forested terraces located on moderate slopes. while less than that number. 30 percent. had their forested terraces on slopes character- ized as gentle. Only 5.8 percent of the private forests are accounted for on steep slopes. mostly among the margins of the irrigable or dry farms (see Table 16a. Plate 13). Based on the data collected by this investigator and analyzed against different criteria. it was found that 81.8 percent of the Assarah terraces were built on gentle slopes. The moderate— and steep-slope terraces account for only 11.6 percent and 6.6 percent. respectively (see Table 15b). Based on the soil-depth criterion. it was found that all the farmers interviewed have their irrigable terraces only in pl aces of a deep-soil profile. Both dry and forest terraces. too. have a deep- soil profile. In fact. 86.0 percent of the respondents have their dry terraces in the deep-soil areas. though the forested terraces generally have a deeper soil profile than the dry terraces. About 85 percent (85.2 percent) of the farmers interviewed supported this conclusion. though shallow-soil profiles are characteristics of both dry and forested terraces. Fourteen percent of the farmers interviewed own shallow-soil dry terraces. and 14.8 percent of them own forest terraces on shallow soils (see Table 16b). Actual measurements of soil depth in the field by this researcher have revealed that 39.5 percent of the farms have a deep- soil profile of more than 4 meters. The fields which have a moderately deep soil profile of 2 to 4 meters account for 41.5 percent 170' (a) A private forest on the cross-channel terraces (b) A public forest of Juniperus Procera in the low slope areas Plate 13 171 of the terraces. Shallow-soil terraces were found to be only 19.0 percent of the total examined during the fieldwork. Furthermore. deep-soil terraces seem always to occupy areas along the valleys and at the gentle slopes at the foot of the hills and mountains. which usually have a moderate to a steep-slope inclination (see Table 15c). The agricultural terraces of the representative area in particular and the Assarah region in general can be grouped. according to their size. into small. medium. and large terraces. For the purposes of this classification. a large terrace is defined to have 30 or more asas in the area. while an averaged-sized terrace must average 10 to 30 asas and a small-sized less than 10 asa in area. Interviews with farmers of the areas have reveal ed that 68.5 percent of them own large irrigable terraces. 31.5 percent medium-sized irrigables. and none small-sized. Further. this study reveals that 62.6 percent of the farmers own medium-sized dry farms and 60.3 percent forested terraces of medium size. At the same time. large-sized dry and forested terraces are still found in the areas. The farmers who own medium-sized dry-farm and forest terraces account. respectively. for 32.3 percent and 23.0 percent. but small-sized dry and forest terraces occupy only a small part of the agricultural land. Only 5.1 percent of the farmers interviewed indicated that they owned small-sized terraces. and 16.7 percent private forest terraces (see Table 16c). An examination of Table 15d reveals that over half of the terraces (52.4 percent) in the study area are of large size; medium- and small-sized terraces occupy 47.6 percent of the total cultivated land. 172 of which the medium-sized terraces form 21.3 percent. while the small- sized terraces occupy 26.3 percent of the land under cultivation now. With regard to the location of the terraces from the villages. it has been found that 86.8 percent of the farmers interviewed own their irrigable terraces near their villages. The distances between the terraces and the vilages range from a few meters to a maximum of 2 kilometers. In the area the irrigable terraced land is characterized by gentle slopes. deep and fertile soil. and the availability of water for irrigation. The farmers who have their irrigable land located at more than 2 km from their villages form only 13.2 percent of the total farmers interviewed by this investigator. Most dry-field terraces are located at the margins of the irrigable terraces and generally occupy most of the hill and mountain sides. About 50 percent (50.2 percent) of the farmers interviewed have their dry terraces near their villages. and 49.2 percent of them have their dry terraces located in areas at least 2 to 3 km from their villages. 'The majority of the private terraces are located at greater distances from the villages. Seventy-seven percent of the farmers have their forest terraces at13 or more km from their villages; yet some farmers have their forest terraces adjoining their dry-field terraces (32 percent) (see Table 16d). Broadly. agricultural terraces of Assarah can be divided into irrigable and dry terraces. For the purposes of this study. irrigable terraces are described as depending on both precipitation and underground water supply used by modern water pumps or by traditional methods. while dry terraces depend solely on the precipitation and 173 run-off which always accumulate in small streams during the rainy seasons. Field measurements carried out by this researcher in 1978 revealed that 40.1 percent of the terraces are irrigable. while 59.1 percent of the agricultural terraces form dry fields (see Table 15e). This survey indicates that 84 percent of the farmers interviewed have sufficient water supply for their crops on their irrigable terraces. This is true because these terraces. as has been mentioned before. depend on underground water as well as precipitation. Those farmers who do not have sufficient water supply to grow crops on their irrigable terraces formed only 16 percent of the total farmers. ‘These shortages of water supply are attributed to the fact that some wells are not deep enough to store water for use. especially during the dry summer season. However. the water supply for dry-field terraces is sufficient for winter wheat. alfalfa. and barley. but the water supply for summer agriculture is inadequate owing to the fact that the rainfall in the summer is irregular and scarce. The majority of the farmers (75.1 percent) interviewed have indicated that they have sufficient water supply for their dry terraces. while 24.9 percent of them complained of insufficient water supply. Forest terraces have similar water problems to those found on dry fields except that forest trees can survive without water for a much longer period of time than agricultural crops because the soil of the forest terraces is always sufficiently moist to support the trees during periods of water shortages or drought. as the shaded forest soil is protected from rapid evaporation. Almost 78 percent (77.6 percent) of the farmers interviewed. who occasionally cultivate their 174 terraces, have indicated that they have sufficient water supply, while 23 percent have complained that their crops suffer from inadequate water supply (see Table 16e). One important environmental factor that needs to be emphasized is the fact that the irrigable terraces are poorly accessible to roads wide enough for tractors and trucks to reach them. Of the farmers interviewed, 49.4 percent located near the accessible roads indicated that their irrigable terraces are accessible only through the cooperation of their neighboring farm owners who let them pass through their properties. 0n the other hand, 50.6 percent of the farmers have no access to the main arteries of roads owing to the narrow connecting roads and a lack of cooperation between the neighboring farmers. However, dry and forest terraces are more easily accessible than irrigable ones, as they are located far away from the villages and near open spaces owned by the state. Those farmers owning accessible dry and forest terraces respectively account for 77 and 80.2 percent of the total farmers interviewed. Dry terraces as well as forest terraces with inaccessible locations, based on the information collected from the field, were respectively 23 and 20.3 percent (see Table 16f). The Role of the Physical Environmental Factors in influencing Agricultural Land Use Patterns The First Hypothesis Hypothesis 1: The physical environmental factors are more important in affecting agricultural land use than the locational factors such as distances from villages. The physical environmental factors, indeed, play a major role in determining what the farmers would grow on their farms. The 175 investigation regarding the importance of the physical environmental factors into the current land use patterns leads to the conclusion that the climate characteristics. water supply. and soil play a very important role in influencing what the farmers grow on their farms. An overwhelming majority of the farmers interviewed (91.4 percent) indicated that the climate has a very important role to play in the agriculture of the region. Farmers. for example. concentrate on the wheat and barley production during the winter and early spring sea- sons. Vegetables. fruits. and sorghum are sown in the early summer season and harvested in the early autumn. The soil and water supply play an equally-,1mporta_nt role in infl uencingthe- farmers to grow what they usually grow on their terraces. The farmers interviewed who consider water supply and sail a very important physical factor to their crops constituted 79 percent of the total. About 72 percent (72.4 percent) of them thought that distance and accessibility factors are not very important in influencing them in what to grow. Only 28.4 percent consider distance and 27.2 percent accessibility as very important. Host respondents indicated that slope. distance. accessibility. and soil are important factors in influencing them to grow what they usually grow on their farms. About 41 percent (40.5 percent) considered slope. 39.3 percent distance. 37.4 percent accessibility. and 26.8 percent soil important in their decision regarding what to grow on their terraces. Besides slope. distance. and accessibility factors were considered 111311111 W in influencing farmers to grow what they grow on their farms. Almost 57 percent (56.8 percent). 32.3 176 percent. and 35.5 percent. respectively. considered slope. distance. and accessibility to be W in their decision about what to grow on their farms. The means and the standard deviations of the factors mentioned indicate that the climate. soil. and water supply are the most important physical factors influencing the farmers to grow what they usually grow on their farms. while slope. distance. and accessibility have no major role to play in influencing the farmers to grow what they usually grow in their fields. These analyses of the responses lend a strong support and confirm the first hypothesis. 'The physical environmental factors do indeed appear to be more important in affecting agricul- tural land use than the locational factor from villages (Table 17). W Hypothesis 2: There is no significant relationship between the soil depth and the type of agricultural land use. The soil texture of the study area is generally clayey and clayey loam on terraces that occupy near-flat surfaces. More specifically. the western part of the representative area is characterized by the clayey and clayey loamy soil. while the eastern part is dominated by the sandy clayey loamy and sandy loamy soil. The soil of Bashut in particular and of the Assarah region in general is fertile. It contains a high level of exchangeable base materials. particularly calcium. magnesium. and potassium. ‘The level of nitrogen and phosphorus is low for such immature soils. The soil fertility is enhanced annually by adding organic manure made of animal. plant. and crop wastes (Al-Shomrany. 1980. pp. 39-47). 177 mo.o a co_um_>op vcmucmum ommcu>< m~._ u :muE ummcu>< woo. u >ucuaaucw u>_um_u¢ 5mm n c0353: o_aEam \>_a;a__m Nm.mm .m N:.nm om N~.n~ om owm.o mo~.~ >u___n_mmuou< N~.m .N Nm.~_ mm wo.m~ mo~ km“.o .mm._ >_aa=m team: am.~m mm Nm.mm _c_ m:.w~ mu cmm.o _~_.N vacuum—o Mm.em we. am.os so. u~.~ A _m~.o eme.~ mac—m wo.o o we.w Nu w:._m mmu omu.o mwo._ uumE__u Nw.o N No.m~ me N:.Nm om. moa.o :wN._ __0m >ucoaoucu >ucoaoucu >ocuaoucm >ucuaoucu >ocuaaocm >ucuaaucu o>_um_o¢ mus—cmn< u>_um_o¢ ou:_0mn< u>_um_u¢ mus—0mn< .>ua emu: weapon; ucmucoae_ qu ucmucoae_ ucmucoas_ >cu> .vum .maumccou .mc:u_:o_cmm c_u;u :0 30cm >uzu umcz 30cm cu mcchmw asa mc_ucua_wc_ c_ mLOuumm .mucusc0c_>cu _muwm>za peace—um use mo 0.0L ochnu.m_ u_nmh 178 According to field measurements of soil depths. the deepest soil development is found in basin-like areas on the man-made terraces. The soil is thickest at footslope terraces and becomes increasingly shallow toward the upper slope terraces. and here stoniness and rockiness are more pronounced. (Al-Shomrany. 1980. pp. 39—47) There is a significant relationship between the soil depth and the type of agricultural land use. Intensive mixed farming on irrigable terraces is concentrated in areas of deep fertile soil where water is easily available. Field measurements reveal that 63.2 percent of the intensive mixed farming is concentrated in fertile areas with soils more than 3 meters in depth. which sometimes exceeds 6 meters. By and large. major agricultural land use patterns are concentrated in the deep soil areas. Extensive dry-term farming. for example. is concentrated in areas of deep soil. forming 34.4 percent of the total. but 65.2 percent of the extensive dry-term farming is concentrated in areas of l to 3 meters in soil depth. This type of agricultural land use depends solely on the precipitation and runoff. which is usually diverted through artificial canals to the terraces. Tree farming. including private forests. is concentrated in localities of shallow soil and forms 61.8 percent of the total. This is true only of those forest or tree terraces that are located at the margins of dry-term farming areas along the side slopes of the hills and mountains. The private forests. which usually occupy cross-channel terraces. have highly fertile and very deep soil profiles of more than 3 meters. It is evident that there is a significant relationship between the soil depth and the type of agricultural land use. Hence. it is clear that the data do not support the hypothesis. which is consequently rejected. However. there does exist a significant 179 relationship between the soil depth and the type of agricultural land use (Table 18). Table 18.--The Assarah agricultural land use patterns with respect to the soil depth. Soil Depth/ Raw Types of Land Use <1 meter 1-3 meters >3 meters Total Intensive mixed farming 2 15 223 240 (irrigable) 1.85 13.0% 63.2% 41.5% Extensive dry-term farming 40 75 118 233 36.4% 65.2% 34.4% 40.3% Tree-crop farming 60 25 12 105 61.8! 21.71 3.4% 18.2% Chi-square 8 284.90801. with 4 degrees of freedom Significance level = .0001 Ihe_Ih1Ld_H¥nnthesis Hypothesis 3: There is no significant relationship between the slope inclination and the type of agricultural land use. There is a significant correlation between the agricultural land use patterns and the angle of the slope. Field measurements show that the agriculturally viable terraces in the study area are on the near- flat surfaces of O to 10 degree slopes. During the fieldwork. it was found that the average slope does not exceed 3 degrees for the majority of the irrigable mixed-farming terraces that occupy the level land of the basin-11 ke areas. Dry-term farming is concentrated in areas of concave slopes around the foothills. This type of land use has been observed to have an average slope of about 6 degrees. though some 180 terraced areas of 10 degree angle are well-pronounced in the Assarah region. Another type of dry-term terraces are found to occupy areas of moderate slopes of 10 to 20 degrees. By and large. this type is located along the side slope of hills and mountains. A third group of terraces. dry as well as forest terraces. is located in areas of steep slope of 21 to 30 degrees. Field measurements reveal that some of these terraces are abandoned. while some are still being actively cultivated (Al-Shomrany. 1980. pp. 124-31). Information derived from Table 19 indicates a very significant relationship between the type of agricultural land use and the angle of inclination of the slopes. Irrigable mixed farming of intensive cultivation is concentrated in the level lands of gentle slopes forming 50.5 percent of the total. More specifically. it has been found that 81.8 percent of all agricultural terraces under cultivation today are located in areas characterized by gentle slopes of 0 to 10 degrees. Dry-term farming is concentrated in areas of moderate and moderately steep slopes. Field measurements reveal that 56:7 percent and 73:7 percent of dry-term farming is concentrated in areas characterized. respectively. by moderate and moderately steep slope inclinations. Forest land use in respect of the slope inclination is concentrated in areas of moderate slopes forming 41.8 percent of the total and in pl aces of moderately steep slope inclinations forming 26.3 percent of the total. These findings reject the null hypothesis: There is a significant relationship between the slope inclination and the type of agricultural land use at a very high level of significance (see Table 19. Figure 19. Plate 14). 181 Lend-m Meme 01 e Slope Under m Uliiizetien 00‘ \\ ”‘ Eeeeeee Deere“ \\\\ " 80‘ .................. \\\\\ 5 \\\ \\\‘. ’ . Peuuvei use \ \\\ \ w to \\ \\\\\\\ s \. . ‘ “A o -- - .. ........ \ \\: \\\ \\ \\ £ 50' Mfmdhnpev \ \\\ \\ \\- 5 A \\\x\ \\\ \ uences-e \ \\ \ \\ \ \ \ gal \ \\ \ 80‘ NWT-mee- \ \ \\\ \ ........... \ \\\ \\\ \ \\\ \\ \\\\\\\ \ \\ 20‘ Ormi \\\ \\ \\\\\ \ no. n...';’v;?..'..-"'r-* \ \\\‘\ \\ \ \ \\ \ \\\ \\ . ”F" \\ \\ ‘ \\\ "M" \\\ \\ \\\\\ \ \\ o L‘I’ry‘gg‘. \ \ \ \ \\ \ \ \ \\\ \ \\ ”I \ x \\ \\ \\ \ \\\\ \ \\\‘\ \\\\\\ ‘\\\\\\\ \\\\ \ ‘\ \\\\\\\\\\\\ \\\\\ \\ \ . O D 000 u muzaeowoeomaoaommamaomao Sieee Leonel-Helen "Land-use Pattern: On a Slope Under Natural Condition mum in wall... 1.3 50‘ 01 ............. ”a 2m ---------- leach Foreanemerev. - , \ \ no: moan-um..- \ \ \ \ \ \\\\ \ \ \ J \\ QCQ\\\ \\ \\\\\\\ \\\ \ \\ \\ \\\\\ \_\ \\\\ \\\\\ \ \‘ \‘.\.\\ ”\r‘uwvx' ‘30:; Source: AL-Bhemreny. 1080. p. .8 Figure 19 I82 ~\. Qs~‘-‘,‘ \ the ‘ (a) Land-use patterns on a slope under man-made conditions (Bashut) (b) Land-use patterns on a slope Imder natural conditions (Bashut) Plate 14 183 Table l9.--The Assarah agricultural land use patterns with respect to the slope inclination. Slope/Land Use Gentle Moderate Steep Raw Total Mixed farming 239 0 0 240 50.5% 1.5% 0 41.8% Term farming 167 38 28 233 35.3% 56.7% 73.7% 40.3% Forest farming 67 28 10 105 14.2% 41.8% 26.3% 18.2% Column totals 473 67 38 578 81.6% 11.6% 6.8% 100.0% Raw chi-square = 94.92798 with 4 degrees of freedom Significance level = .0001 .Iha_Eaurth_flNnnthasis Hypothesis 4: The farmers' perception of the physical hazards arising out of the natural environment is related to their experience of recent events. The Assarah region. the study area selected for this disserta- tion. is characterized by a rugged terrain and a shortage of cultivable land; yet the land is rich in agricultural tradition which includes. for example. the art of terrace construction. conservation of the unique natural resources and water. divining underground water reservoirs. and planning. Despite all these efforts. farmers work long hours all year round to eke out a living. They are confronted with some formidable environmental hazards like drought. hailstorms and disease. A serious drought during the sowing season may ruin the crap. ‘This has made the farmers fatalistic and they tend to attribute such natural calamities as drought and disease to the will of God. However. this pessimism is counterbalanced by an unshakable faith. Despite temporary setbacks. the farmers always look forward to a 184 high-yield harvest. The farmer's attitude is summed up in the local saying "Law hassab Azzaraa ma Zara." that is. if they brooded over such natural calamities. they would have no time for farming their land. This explains why the Bashut farmer has survived a relatively harsh environment and has continued to retain his love for the land. (Al-Shomrany. 1980. p. 79) Individuals and populations tend to differ in their responses to a given environment. Different responses may be attributed to different abilities to respond to an environment. or to different perceptions of the environment. In other words. some individuals and populations achieve more in an environment. some achieve less; some adjust easily to the environmental extremes. others adjust only with difficulty (Sonnenfeld. 1974. p. 42). With regard to the farmers' perception about the physical hazards of the natural environment of the Assarah region in general and the representative area in particular. it has been found that recent hazardous events are perceived by the farmers as a source of serious problems to what they grow on their farms. It is found that a majority of the farmers. 80.2 percent of them. consider winter frost and cold as the foremost problem endangering agricultural development. Another severe problem is hail and heavy thunderstorms which damage crops. wash away the soil. and destroy terrace walls. During the fieldwork. interviews with the farmers revealed that the study area had experienced very bad thunderstorms accompanied with heavy quantities of hail just two months before the interviews were conducted. Seventy- nine percent of the farmers interviewed regarded hall and heavy thunderstorms as the most hazardous acts of nature endangering the agriculture of the region. while crop and plant disease was considered by 65.4 percent of the farmers as a severe problem. During the 185 fieldwork it was observed that many fruit trees and crops had withered and died because of disease. Many animals. especially cows. died of disease particularly during the summer and fall seasons of 1982. Water shortages and inaccessible locations were considered severe problems respectively by 49.0 and 54.5 percent of the farmers interviewed. Steep slopes by 46:7 percent of the farmers. rolling land by 43.2 percent. soil erosion by 42.8 percent. irregular rainfall by 41.2 percent. and shortages of fertilizers were considered moderately severe problems. Fifty-three percent of the respondents consider shallow soil. poor tilth. poor drainage. and short farming seasons no WW (Table 20. Plates 15. 16). Both the normal distribution of the responses of the farmers interviewed (Table 21) and the frequency analysis of their responses (Table 20) to the physical hazards indicate that storms. crop and plant disease. water shortages. irregular rainfall. and inaccessible location are the most severe problems facing the agricultural land use of the Assarah region. Other hazards fall below the average mean and are perceived as no or a slight problem to the agricultural development of the region. In fact. the perceptions of the farmers are consistent with the other physical hazards mentioned previously. 'That is. they perceived the most recently experienced physical hazard such as winter frost and cold. hall and thunderstorms. crop and plant disease. and shortages of water as the foremost problems endangering the agri- cultural land use of the representative area in particular and of the Assarah region in general. 1863 woo. woo. woo. woo. woo. woo. woo. woo. woo. woo. woo. woo. woo. woo. woo. smN nmu NmN mmw nmm nmu umN mmN ~m~ ~m~ smn NMN smu ~m~ mam wo.mn n:.mo uo.m. no.mm uo.mc n~.oo um.: no.mn um.am u..~. nm.o. an... no.o No.— an.m~ mom oo. o: om ow. com os :o. a: su om oo u~.o~ n~.om um.oa Nu..: uo.mn an.o. wo.m. »~.na N~.sm «n.oa no.5 uo.m. um..~ n..m. no.~a «m a. mo. oo. on m: o: ... so ow. ow o: mm m: o.. n:.o u..m no.- no.- u..~. u~.. u...o um..~ u..m n..o~ Nm.~. N~.- u..am an.mm no.o. om .n Rm. on n. no ma mm mm. mm. .: u:.o uo.o uo.o. u~.. “m.m N:.o N..m. u:.m u~.~ u..o. N~.eo no.0m um.mu MN.NN um.s. me e. on me. an. as as ea nELOuucuocagu as. ...: umeum.v ace.a use aoLu acou...uco. u.ceoco so nuoeucocm ..e.e.mc 5a.:mucc. nemmucozm Laue: v.09 one unocw Laue.) cannon oc.ELo. acorn uamumoca. on...a¢ >u...n.nnuuuee_ one.» auuum oomc.mcu coca ..On cu..u Loam ..om >e0un Lean ..On 33.2.... co.moLo ..om >uceauecu >ucuauoc. u>.ua.u¢ nus—ama< >ucuacocu >oeuaaucu u>.ua.u¢ uua.0mn< >ucaaaucm >ucuacucu u>.ue.u¢ 0.3.0ma< >ueuacucu >ucuaaocu u>.uo.u¢ oua.0mn< >ucuaaucu >ucusoocm u>.ua.u¢ uua.0nn< mucuuau .au.m>;a maoucmnoz .uao» 50.40.. eco>um 50.40;. uuecupOt eo_ao.a aga._m so.ao.a oz .0 mua>h .ucau.:u.cme o. aneucoua; «bayou. .ou_n>ca one .o co.uuuucua .mcuecauuu.o~ u.amh 187 "‘ “Maggi 5:: (a) Agricultural land-use patterns in irri ted areas with adequate water supply (Bashut§a I. . ,» ~ ., . .g 1 “A. A ‘ . 7 w..- :3 ”MM“; .. . “rim— hem—7:7}? : l 1 . . -».. (b) Irrigable and dry terraces uncultivated because of the shortages - water supply (Bashut) Plate 15 188 A 3) Excessive soil erosion on the abandoned agricultural terraces “1".u‘ru:-3.:et. We '5‘.” ”if" (b) Diminished soil erosion due to the management of land Plate 16 189 Table 21.--The means and standard deviations for the hazardous physical factors. Physical Factors Mean Standard Deviation Soil erosion 2.716 1.016 Shallow soil 1.922 0.697 Poor stony soil 2.000 0.696 Poor soil tilth 1.883 1.058 Poor drainage 1.646 1.009 Steep slope 2.708 0.869 Inaccessibility 3.440 0.716 Rolling landscape - 2.969 0.856 Short farming season 2.051 0.719 Winter frost 3.782 0.467 Water shortages 3.292 0.827 Irregular rainfall 3.097 0.797 Shortages of fertilizers 2.560 0.938 Disease 3.607 0.591 Hail and thunderstorms 3.778 0.452 Mean = 2.78 Standard deviation = 0.78 Wang W This section presents the Pearson correlation analysis of the data. 'This analytical technique usually provides a single number which summarizes the relationship between two variables. The correlation coefficient indicates the degree to which variation (or change) in one variable is related to variation (or change) in another. Such variations. the Pearson correlation coefficients. are presented in Tables 22 and 23. The coefficients range from -l.0 to 1.0. The correlation coefficient:l.0 (indicated by the letter n) represents a perfect positive correlationship. and -l.0 a perfect negative correlationship. If the r value is zero. no correlationship exists 190 mo.. n I c .o>o. oucmu.m.co.m mmu I z Asa... .mu... Asa... .o_N. ..oo.. o o.. m_o.- ..o. m_o.- mac. som. >u___a_.mauu< A..o.v .Noo.v .Nmu.v ..No.v m o.. as..- mm..- Nae. -_. >_aa=m coon: ..oo.o .mmm.. .Noo.. : o.. omm. ouo. ow..- uucoum.o ..a... ..oo.. m o.. moo. ~mm.u oao.m .moo.. N o.. .m.. ouae..o . . o _ __om o m m N _ >u...a.mmouu< >.aa:m Loam: oucmwm.o ego—m mums..u ..Om mu.nm.co> .um: ocm. .mcau.:u.cmm c. mcouumm .mu.m>£a ouuoo.om any .0 n.0c one no. x.cume co.um.occanu.- o.nmh 191 no.. I L uuceu...eo.m ~c~ . 2 _oc. a_c. NNc. _oc. .oc. a... «so. .s.. can. .cc. .co. can. cco. non. ascocmtoococc oo.. .53. on_. _N..- coo. e.~. oco. moc.- oco.- c~c.- «_N. .cN. coo.- mo_. «no. can ...: .c. soc. coo. _co. _oc. o... can. c... McN. .co. _oc. coo. coo. «o.. o..»..o cca_o oo._ ~c.. Nsc.- com. moo. occ.- ..o.- acc. Noo.- om_. co_. coo. sc.. c.c.- cc. coco ... o... c_c. ocm. co_. _co. m_c. _oc. c_o. «_o. coo. ..c. coo. oooccoc. oc._ cac.- c... _oc. soc.- _-.- cm..- ac~.- cm.. _a_. cc.. N... sco.- tau...c.oa .n. c_o. occ. coo. «co. .cc. can. _oc. .co. m.o. moo. oo.. ...cc... oo._ cm..- .c..- c~_. c~_. oNN. sac. .c~.- ~c~.- on..- c~..- ccc.- ...:oo... .N. .cc. c~_. occ. coo. -.. _oc. _cc. ..c. _oc. coo. oo.. “on. «so. soc.- ccc.- _hc.- com. com. n... NoN. -_. oocctoc. coco: ... .oc. cca. oc_. cce. .oc. _cc. oc_. .oa. ~mo. o_ou cc. cc._ co_. .cc. .cc.- coo. «o.. coo. cco. c_c. c... coat. coco.) .c. occ. _sm. ec_. coo. a... ~o_. c.o. oc.. common oo._ coo. _oc.- eco.- cac. n.o.- cco.- co... «co. oc.e.ac ctoco .o .oc. ~._. cso. coo. nco. .cc. oo._ mom. c... .cc.- ooo.- soc. coo. _oc. ocauccco. oc_._o¢ .o .oo. soc. c_o. _o_. .... ncc. oo._ can. cc..- on..- cmc.- scc.- coo. >c___c_..ouuoc. .. cm". a... c~_. nuo. _oc. oo._ co_. ..c. _so. :~.. ecu. «co.» aoocc .c .co. _co. _oc. _oc. oo._ cos. cou. c... NcN. ooac.o.o coco .c _oc. .oc. _oc. oo._ o... ~_c. coo. so... coca .: _oc. _oc. oo._ ohm. .NN. ..o. coca .m _oo. co._ com.. __o. :o_.occ .~ oc._ co..oto ..oo ._ c. c. m. N. __ c. o . c a c c a m N _ .o.co_.a> .um: new. .mcau.:u.com Ou mvcmnm; .mu.m>;a ouuuo.um ecu co. x.cume co.ue.ecc0uuu.m~ e.amh 192 between the variables. The better the fit. the larger the positive magnitude of r. The second rows in the correlation-coefficient tables show the levels of significance. ‘The level of significance in this study was .05. indicating that any relationship below'.05 is statistically significant. For this research. the Pearson correlation coefficient was used to analyze five variables in relation to each other (Table 22). Each one of these five variables was correlated with each of the remaining four. The variables included in the correlation analyses in Table 8 are: soil. climate. slope. distance. water supply. and accessibility. These five variables were chosen for two reasons: First. they are the most important physical factors that influence agricultural land use in the Assarah region; second. they provide the raw numerical (metric) data that can be analyzed by the Pearson correlation coefficient. The Pearson correlation coefficients (Table 22) indicate that the most significant correlations found among ther257 farmers interviewed are: l. A positive correlation between soil and climate (r = .T71) implies that the climate is a dominant factor in soil formation. It influences the formation of soil mainly by precipitation. Rainfall helps keep particles of silt together. ‘This compactness of soil makes the soil resistant to wind erosion. Chemical weathering in the soil C- horizon produces a thick soil profile. The only danger to the soil of the Assarah region comes always from erosion by runoff'(Al-Shomrany. 1980. pp. 50-51). 193 2. A negative correlation between soil and slope (r = .352) indicates that as the angle of the slope increases. the soil profile gets shallower. In other words. soil depth increases as the slope gradient and the runoff decreases. Field measurements indicate that about 82 percent of the terraces have been constructed in areas of gentle slopes ranging from 0.5 to 10 degrees. Here. the soil profile is thick enough for crops to grow. In the upper slopes between 10 and 15 degrees. thet soil profile is shallow and the soil begins to form under natural conditions (Al-Shomrany. 1980. p. 50). 3. A negative correlation between soil and distance (r = .180) implies that as the distance between the bottom of the mountains and their summits increases the soil profile gets shallower. In other words. the larger the slope. the shallower the soil profile along the side-slopes. The soil profile is very thick at the foot of the mountains. and it gets thinner as one travels along the mountains' side-slope upward to their summits. 4. A positive correlation between soil and water supply (r = .127) indicates that a thick soil profile of clayey or sandy clayey loamy texture always contains large quantities of water. In the area of study the water supply for irrigation and domestic use is derived from localities characterized by thick soil profiles which are usually 6 to 10 meters in depth. 5. A positive correlation between soil and accessibility (r = .204) implies that accessible locations. which usually are flat or level. have a good quality soil of thick soil profiles. Inaccessible locations of steep slopes always have a shallow soil profile. In the 19¢. Assarah region agriculture is practiced mostly in localities char- acterized by accessibility to main roads. especially during the sowing and harvesting seasons. 6. A positive correlation between slope and distance (r = .338) indicates that as the angle of inclination increases. the distance too increases. Terraces located in places of steep slopes. usually in the upper part of the mountain-side slopes. are cultivated no more than once a year because they are very far from the lower slope's most cultivable. irrigable terraces and the villages which are usually located at the foot of the slopes near their most fertile low- slope terraces. 7. A negative correlation between slope and water supply (r = .179) shows that as the angle of the slope increases the supply of water decreases. Large water supplies are available at localities characterized by gentle slopes between 0 and 10 degrees. In Assarah. because of its rugged topographic terrain. water is always concentrated in basin-like areas of gentle slopes. This water is stored either naturally or artificially by modern or traditional means. 8. .A negative correlation between distance and water supply r = .142) implies that as the distance from the valley course increases. the water supply diminishes. Large quantities of water are conserved in the alluvial soil of the valleys. and as one travels from the bottom of the valley toward the sumnHtLOf the mountains the quantity of water supply decreases. In the Assarah region there are thousands of manually dug wells along the valleys and in localities of basin-like areas characterized by deep soil profiles and gentle slopes. 195 The Pearson correlation analysis was used also to find the relationship between 15 selected physical hazards to determine their effect on the agricultural land use of the Assarah highland region. Stated differently. each one of these variables was correlated with each of the remaining 14 variables. which include soil erosion. shallow soil profiles. poor soils. poor tilth. poor drainage. steep slopes. inaccessible locations. rolling lands. short farming seasons. winter frosts and colds. shortages of water supply. irregular and unpre- dictable rainfall. shortages of organic and chemical fertilizers. crop and plant disease. and hall and thunderstorms. ‘These factors were chosen for reasons of their being the most important physical hazards that constantly hinder agricultural development in the Assarah region and the metric data being easily analyzable by the Pearson correlation method (Table 23). The information tabulated in Table 23 provides the most significant correlations (r) found among the responses of 257 farmers interviewed. which are summarized as follows: 1. A negative correlation between soil erosion and a shallow soil (r = -.335) implies that as soil erosion increases the soil profile gets shallower. 'The obvious danger to the soil in the Assarah region comes from erosion by runoffs. Many areas within the region have lost their surface soil. and the bedrock is exposed. At the foot of these areas deep gullies are formed. 2. A positive correlation between soil erosion and poor soil (r==.221) shows that as soil erosion becomes more severe the soil 196 becomes poorer. Organic materials and soil particles are washed away by runoffs. resulting in a shallow. stony. and poor soil. 3. A positive correlation between soil erosion and a poor tilth (r ==.227) indicates that as soil erosion increases. poor tilth also increases. In other words. increasing soil erosion by runoffs washes away large quantities of soil. leaving only a very coarse soil texture behind. which cannot be tilled or cultivated. 4. A positive correlation between soil erosion and poor drainage (r = .263) implies that as soil erosion increases due to excessive runoffs. poor drainage also increases. Heavy thunderstorms which usually come during a short period of time result in very destructive runoffs and provide the soil with the minimum amount of moisture. always considered inadequate for agriculture. 5. A positive correlation between soil erosion and steep slopes (r ==.264) indicates that soil erosion increases as the angle of the slope increases. In the Assarah region there are many places of rugged terrains with very steep slopes. Soil erosion. usually caused by runoffs. is a very severe problem in such areas and agriculture is less successful in comparison with places characterized as flat or semi-flat. 6. A positive correlation between soil erosion and the rolling lands (r1=.291) shows that soil erosion increases as the topography of an area gets more rugged. The Assarah region is the only rugged region within Saudi Arabia. and receives the highest amount of rainfall as compared to other regions within the country. It is no wonder. 197 therefore. if the soil erosion caused by the runoffs increases in Assarah due to its rugged terrain. 7. There is a positive correlation between soil erosion and the climate conditions during the winter season (r = .116). The Assarah region is believed to receive the highest amount of rainfall that lasts the longest during the winter season. which results usually in excessive soil erosion. Terrace walls collapse quite frequently during the winter season. and large quantities of terrace soil are washed away by the runoffs. 8. A positive correlation between soil erosion and shortage of water (r = .122) implies that as soil erosion increases the shortage of water increases. Soil erosion. caused always by excessive runoffs. results in a very low amount of water that sinks into the subsoil and consequently leads to shortages of water supply. 9. A negative correlation between soil erosion and shortages of organic fertilizers (r = -.087) indicates that as soil erosion increases the amount of fertilizers contained in the soil decreases. Soil erosion. caused mainly by runoffs. always has a negative effect on the fertility of the $041. Runoffs wash away organic materials from the soil either by carrying them away from the fields to uncultivated parts generally outside the region or by transporting new coarse materials on the top of the previous soil formations leading to low organic contents in the soil and consequently reducing the productivity of the soil. which leads to a low agricultural production. 10. .A positive correlation between shallow soil and a poor tilth (r = .412) shows that as the shallow soil becomes more 198 pronounced. tilth of that soil becomes harder. A shallow soil of a very thin profile always becomes hard to plow or till. There are many places within the Assarah region of millions of abandoned terraces where soil has been washed away and what is left is no more than a very thin soil profile. which is hard to plow. surrounded by ruins of terrace walls. 11. A positive correlation between a poor soil and a shallow soil profile (r 8 .578) implies that as the soil profile gets shallower the soil gets poorer. It is obvious that a shallow soil profile is poor in comparison with the soil quality of other soil profiles of greater depth. A shallow soil profile has neither enough organic materials nor a thick soil profile for the craps to grow. ‘This hazardous phenomenon is well-pronounced in the Assarah region. and it cannot be solved unless extensive efforts are undertaken to conserve soil and water for agricultural purposes. 12. A positive correlation between a shallow soil and poor drainage (r = .415) indicates that as the soil gets shallower the drainage becomes pooren. The Assarah region is rugged from a physiographic standpoint. and large areas within the region are dominated by very shallow soil profiles. It is obvious that if there is no deep alluvial soil. the drainage is very poor because the exposed bedrocks are barren with no soil cover. 'This phenomenon is seen as a major obstacle to agriculture in the Assarah region. 13. A negative relationship between the shallow soil and steep slopes (r = -.124) shows that as the angle of the slope increases. the soil profile gets shallower. too. In other words. the steeper the 199 slope. the shallower the soil. Steep slope areas are always exposed to heavy soil erosion by runoffs. which result in a very shallow soil profile having no significant contribution to the agricultural development of the region. 14. A negative correlation between the shallow soil and a short period of cultivation (r ='nJ35) implies that as the season of farming gets shorter. the soil profile gets thicker. With short farming seasons the soil is less exposed to tillage. which usually makes the soil particles very loose and prone to erosion either by runoffs or winds. _If the soil profile is well-maintained. it can get thicker. which is important for successful agriculture. 15. A positive correlation between a shallow soil profile and shortages of water supply (r -= .287) implies that as the shallow soil profile becomes more pronounced the shortages of water supply. mainly for agricultural purposes. increase. Within the region selected for this study there are areas of thick soil profiles concentrated mostly along the valleys and in the lower parts of the hills and mountains; some places. especially in the upper part of the hill and mountain side-slopes. have shallow soil profiles. The former are characterized by the adequacy of water supply. while the latter are characterized by being harsh with inadequate or scarce water supply. Agriculture. as a result. is concentrated in the areas of thick soil profiles and adequate water supply. while in the areas of shallow soil profiles. where water is scarce. agriculture depends only on precipitation. 16. A negative correlation between the shallow soil profile and irregular rainfalls (r - -.126) indicates that a shallow soil 200 profile gets shallower as the rainfall becomes more irregular. Sometimes the rainfall in the Assarah region is unpredictable and irregular. If accompanied by heavy thunderstorms. the rain washes away large quantities of soil in a short time. leaving behind a shallow stony soil profile. These serious soil wash-outs pose a serious threat to agriculture. 1%. A positive correlation between a shallow soil profile and shortages of organic fertilizers (r = .142) indicates that as the soil profile gets shallower the organic content of the soil depletes. This is why shallow soils have a low productivity against the thick. fertile soils of high productivity. 18. A negative correlation between a shallow soil profile and heavy thunderstorms (r =-5103) indicates that as heavy thunderstorms increase. the soil profile gets thinner. The study area quite often experiences very heavy thunderstorms that cause heavy soil erosion. resulting in the heavy strain on the productive capacities of the terraces. Hail accompanying the thunderstorms causes heavy damage to standing crops in the Assarah highlands. 19. A positive correlation between poor soil and poor tilth (r‘==.419) implies that as the soil becomes poorer its tilth becomes harden. A.poor soil implies a thin soil profile with a texture of very coarse materials. ‘Tilling this thin soil becomes very difficult. if not altogether impossible. unless a good soil-management program is undertaken to conserve it from being washed away by runoffs and by sifting it from stones and shrubs. 201 20. A positive correlation between poor tilth and poor drainage (ra=.295) indicates that as soil becomes poorer owing to a lack of organic materials and shallow soil profile. the drainage of that soil also becomes poorer. 21. A positive correlation between the poor tilth of the farm and the water shortage (r - .320) indicates that as water shortages increase. the soil tilth becomes harder or poorer. When soil moisture is completely lost through evaporation. the soil becomes harder to plow. This problem dominates only during the seasons of no precipita- tion. In the Assarah region. many farmers leave their terraces fallow for a season or even through a year owing to poor tilth caused by the lack of moisture in the soil. 22. A positive correlation between a poor soil and the water shortages (r==.143) implies that as the soil becomes increasingly poor. water shortages also increase. A soil is said to be poor if it has a very coarse texture. a shallow profile. and a shortage of organic materials. When these characteristics coexist in an area. it is evident that the water supply becomes very scarce. ‘This problem is found to exist in many areas of the Assarah region. especially in the eastern part where the soil texture is mostly sandy and sandy loamy. 23. A negative correlation between a poor $01 1 and irregular rainfalls (r -= -.138) indicates that the soil becomes poorer as precipitation becomes more irregular. 'The soil usually depends on the organic content that runoffs often carry with them from the adjacent areas. but when the rainfall becomes irregular or comes in the form of heavy thunderstorms it destroys terrace walls. washing away completely 202 not only the manure but also large quantities of the soil. It is commonly observed in the Assarah region that after the terraces have been artificially fertilized. within minutes thunderstorms have washed the fertilizers away. 24- A positive correlation between a poor soil and a shortage of organic fertilizers (r'=.156) indicates that as the amount of fertilizers decreases. the soil fertility decreases. too. In recent years the majority of the farmers have sold their farm animals. leaving their farms with no organic fertilizers. 'This shortage of organic manure has caused a decline in the fertility of the soil. which is easily measured in terms of the decrease in agricultural productivity of the farms. The supply of chemical fertilizers available is far below the demand. Besides. the farmers lack the knowledge to use chemical fertilizers without harming the crops. 25, A positive correlation between poor tilth and poor drainage (r = .704) implies that as the tilth gets more difficult. the drainage of the soil gets poorer. Poor soil tilth is associated with the soil of poor drainage. lhere are some areas within the Assarah region that have a clayey soil texture. yet others have shallow soil profiles and coarse soil texture. 'These two phenomena usually cause poor soil drainage. This is why there is a strong positive correlation between poor soil tilth and poor soil drainage. 26. A negative correlation between poor tilth and inaccessible locations (r = -.T33) indicates that as the location of the farm becomes more inaccessible the tilth of the soil gets less poem. The majority of the Assarah terraces were constructed in basin-like areas 203 characterized by gentle slopes. Unfortunately. these terraces are in one way or another inaccessible. owing to the lack of wide feeder roads suitable for agricultural machinery. Their soil texture is clayey loamy and sandy clayey loamy. The soil profile is deep. and it contains an adequate supply of soil moisture that facilitates a very easy tilth. especially when modern agricultural equipment is used. 21. A positive correlation between a poor tilth and winter frost and cold (r = .209) shows that as winter frost and cold increase. the soil tilth becomes poorer. Assarah. the region selected for this study. is characterized by its high altitude. which exceeds in many places 2.000 meters above sea level. This high altitude experiences a -1arge drop of temperature during the winter season. Sometimes the temperature drops down to zero. 'The region receives most of its moisture during the winter season. 'These climatic conditions produce a cold and wet soil. which makes the plowing hard. if not impossible. 28. A negative correlation between a poor tilth and irregular rainfall (r = -.262) implies that as the rainfall becomes more irregu- lar. the soil becomes less tillable. The absence of precipitation during even one season results in a poor tilth of the soil. An ade- quate supply of soil moisture is required in order that the soil may become plowable. The absence of rainfall in the Assarah region for a short period of time. even for one season. leaves all the dry-term terraces fallow during that season because the farms cannot be easily tilled and cultivated. 29. A positive correlation between a poor ti 1th of the terraces and the shortage of organic fertilizers (r - .141) indicates 204 that as the shortage of organic fertilizer increases. the tilth of the soil becomes harder. Organic fertilizers contribute to the fertility of the Assarah soil in three different ways: (1) they loosen the soil. (2) they keep the moisture trapped in the soil for long periods of time. and (3) they add to the fertility of the soil. In other words. a lack of organic fertilizers in the soil makes tillage extremely difficult. 30. A correlation between a poor soil tilth and hall and thunderstorms (r = .264) shows that as hail and heavy thunderstorms increase. the soil tilth becomes impossible. During the spring season of 1982. the study area experienced one of the worst thunderstorms ever in the last century. The terraces were covered with hail 3 meters thick. Crops were totally destroyed. and the terraces remained covered with hail for more than a month. ‘These occurrences bring agricultural activities to a standstill. 31. A correlation between poor drainage and water shortage (r==.326) implies that as poor drainage increases. water shortage increases. too. 'There are many places within the Assarah region where the land is rugged. slopes are steep. and the soil is shallow or clayey in texture. These factors combine to create a poor drainage. The moisture seeping into the subsoil is very limited. causing shortages of water needed for irrigation. 32. A negative correlation between poor drainage and irregular rainfall (r = -.264) indicates that poor drainage gets more severe as irregular rainfalls become unpredictable. Precipitation in the Assarah region is sometimes early and sometimes late. When it does come. it is 205 in the form of heavy thunderstorms. Precipitation of this type is of little value to agriculture. The amount of water seeping into the subsoil is limited. owing to poor drainage. In other words. poor drainage combined with heavy but irregular rainfalls lasting a short duration does not allow the soil to absorb an adequate amount of water that can be used in agriculture. 33. A positive correlation between poor drainage and hail and thunderstorms (r = .212) implies that as heavy thunderstorms increase in occurrence. poor drainage becomes more severe. Thunderstorms are usually accompanied by large quantities of hail. and a heavy rainfall causes very rapid runoffs. allowing little time for the soil to absorb adequate moisture. 34. A positive correlation between steep slopes and inaccessible farm locations (r = .32) indicates that as the angle of inclination increases. farm locations become more inaccessible. A majority of the agricultural terraces built on moderate and moderately steep slopes of 10 to 20 degrees are inaccessible to modern agricul- tural machinery. 35. A positive correlation between steep slope and the rolling landscape (r = .476) implies that as the terrain gets more rugged. the angle of the slope increases. Assarah is a rugged region as compared to other regions within Saudi Arabia. Some areas within the region form basins. 'The angle of inclination increases excessively when the topography becomes more rugged. 'There are places within the region that have slope angles of more than 35 degrees because of the 206 ruggedness of the terrain. These rolling lands always limit the arability of the lands. rendering them unproductive. 36 A negative correlation between steep slopes and shortages of organic fertilizers (r - -.264) indicates that as the steepness of slopes increases. the supply of organic fertilizers decreases. Organic fertilizers are made from humus and animal waste. Steep-slope areas are usually characterized by shallow soil profiles where few trees grow. Humus is found in areas known for their thick vegetational cover. Humus is carried by the farmers to their terraces. and some organic materials are transported by the runoffs. 37. A positive correlation between an inaccessible location and a rolling landscape (r = .309) implies that as the terrain becomes more rugged and rolled. the geographical location of the farm becomes more inaccessible. Man-made terraces were built mostly in gentle-slope areas for several reasons. among which accessibility is believed to be one of the determinants. After the full use of the level land. the farmers started to expand their holdings toward the moderate—slope areas. and the rugged terrains within the Assarah region were used only sparingly. Most of the abandoned terraces are found in such rugged areas. and today's farmer has no use for them again because of their geographic inaccessibility. 38. A positive correlation between a short farming season and winter frost and cold (ran.196) indicates that as the season of farming gets shorter. the frost and cold of the winter season become more severe. Frost and cold are two climatic hazards. detrimental to crops within the study area. Frosts and cold cause sudden drops of 207 temperature and kill crops during the summer season. The problem gets more severe when the winter season extends over a longer period of time. Wheat and barley are the two main crops grown during the winter season. but they do not grow well in cold weather and frost. The longer the farming season. the more successful agricultural production in that season. The opposite is also true: the shorter the farming season. the less successful agriculture owing to the cold weather and frost hazards. 39. A positive correlataion between the winter frost and cold and water shortages (r = .307) implies that as winter frosts and cold increase. water shortages also increase. A severe winter season. which is usually accompanied by frosts and cold. results in increasing shortages of water for agriculture. This is true only when the soil freezes. In the Assarah region. farmers always welcome the winter season because they look forward to winter precipitation for their winter crops. By and large. winter precipitation is adequate for winter crops. 1.0. A positive correlation between the winter frost and cold and crop and plant disease (r 8 .283) indicates that as winter frosts and cold get more severe. crop and plant disease becomes more hazardous to agriculture. This relationship between these variables is not strong. though the normal expectation is that disease would increase with severe frosts and cold. This researcher's experience points to the common observation that crop and pl ant disease is a physical hazard that destroys crops and plants any time of the year because of its unpredictability. The farmers of the region. based on their own 208 knowledge and experience. can easily distinguish different kinds of crop. plant. and animal disease. Some of these diseases are seasonal. while others are not. 41. A positive correlation between winter cold and frosts and hall and thunderstorms (rI-.214) indicates that hail and thunderstorms become more severe as the winter frost and cold become more hazardous. as very cold weather with a drop in temperature usually freezes raindrops into stones of hall or snow. Hail and thunderstorms are far more pronounced during the spring season than during the winter season. and their effect on crops and fruits is always very severe. LacatianaLEactaLs This section is concerned with the analysis of agricultural land use patterns of the representative area in particular and of the Assarah region in general with relation to the locational factors. especially distance. In this section. an attempt has been made to see if there is a similarity between the actual land use zones of the typical villages of the study area as determined by this study and those identified by the Von Thunen model. In particular. this investi- gation will focus on the importance and significance of the role played by distance from the local markets and villages--more specifically. with respect to the agricultural land use patterns. Wheels Hypothesis 1: The geographical distribution of the agricultural land use patterns around the villages generally shows a similarity to the Von Thunen agricultural land use model. 209 The Van Thunen model is not limited to the modern technological agriculture of the market-oriented societies. but it is discernible equally in the traditional agricultural systems. as well. Indeed, the subsistence agriculture with its homogeneity of transportation facilities. crops. and agricultural techniques shows the effects of the distance factor on the land use patterns even more strikingly than the modern technological agriculture. Put in its simplest form. Von Thunen model assumptions are: (1) completely rational economic behavior and perfect competition. (2) an isolated state. (3) a single central city. (4) a village-type settlement. (5) an ethnically homogeneous population. (6) a uniform topography. (7) uniform soil fertility and climatic conditions. and (8) a relatively primitive transportation system (Barlowe. 1978. p. 276). In the Assarah region. which forms a high. rugged terrain. agriculture is still essentially subsistence agriculture.4and some of the Von Thunen assumptions are easily valid for the area. The area is indeed a village-type settlement and has relatively primitive transportation; the population is homogeneous and the climate uniform. However. the topography. soil fertility. and one-central-city environment of the area are totally different from what Von Thunen assumed for his model. In other words. the Assarah region as a whole does not completely fit into the illustrious model. ‘This study. based on interviews with the farmers. interpretations of the aerial photographs. and personal observations and investigations. reveals that some agricultural land use patterns at the village level do lend themselves to a reasonable comparison with the zonal patterns 210 demonstrated by the Von Thunen model. Yet it must be understood that not all villages display zonal patterns of agricultural land use consistent with the zones of the Von Thunen model. The theoretical land use zones that this study has assumed to exist surrounding each village in the area of this study are: (1) horticulture and market gardening. (2) grain production. and (3) livestock raising. However. the actual land use zones. found by this research in the majority of the villages in the study area. are: (l) a zone of fruit trees and flowers. (2) irrigable land of intensive vegetable and fruit production. (3) irrigable lands largely given to intensive grain farming. (4) areas devoted to extensive dry-term grain cultivation. (S) a zone dominated by private forests and mixed grain production. and (6) a large zone of pastural lands for animal grazing. The information tabulated in Table 24 provides an excellent insight into the land use patterns of the area: The majority of the farmers interviewed have strongly supported the first hypothesis. Ninety-six percent of the farmers agree (strongly agree and agree) that the first zone around their villages is dominated by fruit trees and flowers. Those farmers who agree (agree and strongly agree) that the second zone is devoted to irrigable intensive vegetable agriculture account for 56.5 percent of the farmers interviewed. Those who disagree with the agricultural land use patterns of the second zone constituted 30 percent of the total farmers interviewed. The farmers (99.6 percent) unanimously agree (strongly agree and agree) that the intensive grain-producing irrigable land forms the third zone. The majority. 96.1 percent. of the interviewees agree that zone 4 is 21 l mo.o I co.ce.>ep uence-cm c... .. coo: . . . . vee.ec:ocea uc.oo. smN «a . n no 0 N am c~ cc ac .s me. one co.uu:vOca xuouue>_. o eco~ . . . eo.uu:uoLa >egxc.eco tee uo.oo. om" «c.m. mm no cm «a an mm co u. s. cc . nuance. cacao >.eoe>.ca m oco~ a 8.8. 5 so a a... o a...“ a. a... o.. 8:38. . c.eco u>.neuuxe Ecuu->co : eco~ co co: co uo.oo. “co u..o _ uo.c c uo.cn .. cc.oc o.. . co e.eco u>.nc0ue. u.aao.cc. n ecaN . eo.ue>.u.:u u.ano N°.°°— NMN ”0.”. mm N°.°M RN N3.NM @@ N..@— a.— ivmn’ 0).“p—OUC‘ u—DQU-LL. N ocON oo~...> on“ menace ocezuco ..uue 8.8. E 3.. .. as c on: 3 «no. cm. .35.... .3: 38...... :3. . uco~ >ucuaoecm >ucuaoucu >ucuaoucu >ucuauecu >ueuaaucu >ucuacuc. >ucuaoucu >ucuaoocu >ucuaaucu >ucuacucm o>.ue.u¢ o.:.0«a< u>.ue.u¢ uu:.omn< u>.ua.u¢ uca.0mo< u>.co.u¢ ecu—cmn< u>.un.u¢ eon—cmn< um: ten. .eunw.au.co< .ou0h uucomc.o >.ococcm oucoom.o ouco< 00.04 >.oco.um .o n p .uooo_..> .ouo. use 20.. euceom.v ago a. co..n_ec o..: um: pea. .ocao.:u.coe co eo.u:n.cum.u .eu.:aecmouuun.a~ u.on» 212 devoted largely to less intensive (extensive) grain production. About 50.6 percent of the farmers interviewed agree that the privately owned forests and grain production dominate the fifth zone. while 35.8 percent disagree. Zone 6. which is characterized as pastural land used for grazing animals. is strongly recognized as the next zone by a majority of 71.6 percent of the farmers. and 26.5 percent of those interviewed simply agree with the 71.6 percent. but 2.7 percent of them either disagree or strongly disagree with the majority conclusion. An investigation of the major land use patterns in the A1- Alayah and Bashut districts revealed that the majority of farmers own milk cows for domestic use. It is typical of the two districts to provide for the dairy products for domestic use in this fashion. This is why the fallow fields and adjacent rough lands of the two districts supported herds of cattle. During the wet seasons. peasants usually use alfalfa and other green dry forage to feed the animals when the herds cannot go out to graze. The majority of the villages. especially those of the Bashut district. are surrounded by grape groves and orchards of peach. apple. and fig trees. Farmers usually grow flowers for commercial and domestic use on their terraces that are located near the villages. Flowers sell well in the periodical markets. and what is not used commercially is consumed at home. All around the fruit orchards and groves run irrigable fields. which are cultivated twice a year. At times. some terraces have as many as three crops a year. However. most of these terraces have been diverted to vegetable cultivation in recent years for the local markets. Yet wheat and sorghum are still the dominant crops of these terraces. At the margin 213 of these agricultural terraces are found terraces that are dry. yet arable. They yield only one crop. generally barley. that grows during the winter months only. ‘The fringes of these dry terraces are occupied by private forests followed by community forests. Most rugged and rough lands and abandoned terraces are being used as pasture lands. a new pattern of agricultural land use. In conclusion. it must be added that the geographical distri- bution and the agricultural land use patterns around the majority of the villages of the study area have shown a general similarity to the zones of agricultural land use of the Von Thunen model. ‘The first hypothesis was. therefore. found valid and supported by the majority of farmers interviewed (Table 24). Whole Hypothesis 2: The intensity of cultivation is inversely related to the distance of a farm from the village; that is. the greater the distance from the village. the less intensively and more extensively a farm is cultivated. The agricultural production can be increased by a more intensive use of the land currently under cultivation and by the reclamation of new agricultural land. If the agricultural land is efficiently used. in the economic sense. an optimal production level per unit area. cost. and labor can be achieved. where marginal cost equals marginal revenue. Intensification of agricultural land use may involve the use of improved agricultural technology and practices. that is. the use of fertilizers. irrigation. and possibly double-cropping (Al-Shamrany. 1980. p. 116). When applied to land use. the term intensity refers to the relative amounts of capital and labor combined with units of land in the 214 productive process. People speak of those types of land use that involve high ratios of capital and labor inputs per land unit as intensive uses. Those enterprises involving large land areas relative to the amounts of capital and labor used are described as extensive uses. (Barlowe, 1978. p. 155) Information from Table 24 reveals that the spatial distribution of agricultural land use frequently changes with the distance from the village. Most of the intensive irrigable land (53:3 percent) is located within less than 1 km from the villages. Fruits. vegetables. alfalfa. and grains are intensively cultivated on this agricultural land. An input of labor and capital per unit of land on these terraces is higher than the input in extensive dry-term farms. which are located within 2 km of the village. In other words. an irrigable terrace of an area of 2250 m2 usually requires no less than 1500 hours of labor each season of three months. ‘The amount of organic fertilizer used is hard to measure in any given unit of weight. The cost can be estimated and is about 1500 Saudi riyals a year. Usually. the farmers use organic fertilizers on their irrigable terraces only once a year. It is estimated that a maximum of 700 Saudi riyals is spent on energy for a unit of land annually. The farmers usually irrigate their terraces at least five times during the summer season and twice during the wet winter season. Irrigable terraces are cultivated at least twice a year and sometimes three times (Table 25). During the winter season. the irrigable terraces are given to wheat production. while during the summer season the majority of them grow vegetables. fruits. and sorghum. The income per unit of irrigable land (2250 m2) is high only on input-intensive farms. During the fieldwork this researcher found wo.oo. mmN uo.oo. mmN No.oo. NmN .mHOh w:.o . No.. : w~.m. :m moe_u oucch wo.m. mm Mm.mm am. wo.om mu~ moe.u 03h 5 ..2. No.om .NN um.om mm o o oe.u uco >ucoaaucm >ocoauocu >ucusaocm >ocoaoucu .>oco:ou.m >ucoaoucu u>.uo.um mus—omo< o>.um.o¢ eon—omo< o>.um.o¢ mun—cmc< >..o:cc< czoco mooco mo >ucoaoocu moumccoh umocou moooccoh Ecuhu>co moumccuh o.noo.cc_ .mouoccou umuLOm ocm .Ecuuu>cc .u.noo.cc. ecu co cuum>.u.:u moccu ago .0 >ucoaoocw ecu co comma am: can. .mcau.:o.cmo .maccm on» .0 >u.mcouc_uu.m~ u.noh 216 some farmers who make as much as 20.000 Saudi riyals a year from a farm of a unit of 2250 m2. The input per unit of labor and capital on a unit of a dry-term farm is much less than on the mixed-farming irrigable terraces. Organic fertilizer. the only source for fertilization of the soil. is used at least once every three years. The total hours of labor required for a dry terrace with an area of about 1886 m2 is estimated to be 650 per season. The only source of water supply is precipitation. The annual rainfall is about 400 mm. and in some localities it exceeds 500 mm (Al-Shamrany. 1980. p. 62). The major crops grown on dry-term farms are wheat and barley. These terraces in general are cultivated once a year. Sometimes they are cultivated twice a year. depending on the season and the amount of rainfall. The income from a dry-term farm is low in comparison with the income from an irrigable field. Privately owned forest terraces are located within a distance of'l to 3 km from the villages. The majority of the farmers (80 percent) usually cultivate these terraces once a year only because the majority of them are located far away from the villages. In comparison to dry-term terraces. the forest terraces are more fertile. more accessible. larger in size. and have an adequate amount of soil moisture (Table 25). In the context of the layout and the topography of the study area. it is logical and proper to view distance as an important factor in the study of the intensity of agricultural land use. Based on the interpretation of aerial photographs and field measurements. it was 217 found that the greatest intensity of agricultural land use is located in areas close to villages. Farther from the villages. the intensity of land use generally declines. Data created from the interpretation of the aerial photographs reveal that about 95 percent of the agricultural land located within 1 km to the west of the Barn Ben Shair village in the Bashut district is under very intensive cultivation. This segment of the land is under mixed farming all year round. Wheat is cultivated during the winter season. sorghum and vegetables during the summer. and alfalfa and fruit trees all year round. This intensity of agricultural land use is attributed to (l) the fertility and depth of the soil. (2) the availability of a good reserve of underground water for artificial irrigation. (3) the size of the cultivable farms. and (4) the short distance between these fields and the villages enabling the family members to participate all through the year. Term farming is practiced only in 5 percent of the land and is located at the margin of the irrigable terraces (Table 26). One km to the east of the village. four different types of agricultural land use characterize the land. Thirty percent of each farm is devoted to intensive mixed- and term-farming and pastures. Irrigable terraces of intensive agriculture. with a deep and fertile soil. are located in the center. Water supply from the underground reservoirs is adequate for artificial irrigation. especially during the summer season. At the margin of this center. term fields of less intensive agriculture dominate. Pastural land and abandoned terraces are dispersed in areas of high topographical relief at the margin of 218 om.o O O mumocom >u.caeeou N no u om.o o~.. can. _ocaumoa a m o m om.o mm.o can. .ocsummm u om.o m~.o monoco. >u.::EEOQ umom m : mm.o mm.o can. .mcaumoa mo.o sm.o monocom >u.::EEOo umom cum oo.o ow.o ocm. .ocsumom umou MIN o:.o oo.o moumccou umocow ouo>.cm om.o m~.o oco. _ocaumoa om.o m:.o mouoccou umoco. ouo>.ca ummm Nu. o~.o om.o mc.Ecom Ecoun>co om.o mm.o can. .ocaumma o..o m..o mc.Ecmm umoLOm ouo>.ca umm om.o m:.o .c.mcv mc.Ecmw Ecouu>co u .uo om.o m:.o o:.Ecoc u.oom.cc. cox.z om.m mo.o mc.Ecmm Ecouuxco om.:m ~:.. oc.Ecom o.noo.cc. oox.z umoz .uo no... .30.. of A .5. c3 no.2 on... _oc.... ...... a: ooo...> mo ommucoocoa muos.xocoo< .ocau.:o.cm< co moa>h any 60.. oocoum.o .uo.cum.o uazmom one c. omn...> c.;om com ccoo on» .0 >oaum ammo o .omm...> one scum oocoum.o use ou co.uo.o. c. accouuoo amniocm. .ocou.:o.cm cocm614< Econ. 09.320 0. c0222... £25 on: new; “.0 33:25 use we; 22] _~ 0.33... «.0. Jeanne... an 0030.230 "002.00 :03“. 3.2:... I «canto... cocoa—23¢ use o..o.— .a.:.eom D goon. Soc. 056....“— Ecoh B .Ex .... mucosa _oc.:cho /// 31:01.; 05.5.... no.2! . . . OO:¢~O.O Q . . . / / / / / /n . . .Lw / / / . . 2 . d a J u 3 m m... 1 B . O0 W. 00 009 «mm. 3.230 Samoa 5 oooz; cocoo|4< :3: 02.320 on catfiom 5.3 cm: o..o.- *o 3.33:... can on»... 222 since grazing has now become nonexistent. there is a possibility that vegetation will be thicker and soil erosion by runoff will diminish (Table 26; Figures 20. 21). An analysis of Tables 25 and 26 and of Figures 20 and 2l reveals that the intensity of agricultural land use is inversely related to the distance of a farm from the village. signifying that as distance of a farm from the village increases. the intensity of agricultural land use diminishes. The seond hypothesis was also tested. based on the data collected during the field work. A cross-tabulation was made to determine whether there is a relationship between the patterns of agricultural land use and the distance of a farm from the village. The findings in general did not support the hypothesis for one reason or another. It is believed that fragmentation of agricultural land use is the maJor factor contributing to such a conclusion--that is. the rejection of the hypothesis. When the farmers were asked to respond to question 53--How far is your farm from your village?--the majority of the farmers interviewed emphasized only the distance between the village and their irrigable fields as the most important factor. ‘They opined that the distance between their villages and their dry terraces was of little importance to them. as the cultivation of these farms was more extensive. In this regard. Table 27 provides some valuable insights that ('l) the majority of the farmers (62.7 percent) specializing in the production of vegetables concentrate their production on the irrigable fields located no more than 1 km from the village. The same thing can be said for the 223 mum_. u _o>o_ oocmo_m_cm_m souoocm mo moocmou m no.3 mmoo:.m u economu_;o 3mm No.2: m: N: a “33 m: and or ...PMMW a No.0 0 Nod o No.2: N “ca 0 ”3%.“: fig: 3 NM: _ $5M m :3 t 33.... fig: 3 N04 N ”mg; MN #3 2 $33.95 gum S. Mm; m No.8 8 2.3 R 2:93 Boa .vocm .Uocm .uocu .Uocu .Uocu .uocu .ooeu .aocu o>_um_om ops—0mn< o>_um_o¢ own—emn< o>_um_om mus—0mn< o>_um_ox ou:_0mn< _muoh. 3mg Ex {an Ex NI- Ex N\— 0m: unan— oucmum_o .omm___> ocu sec» cocoon—u ecu Ou co_um_oc :_ on: can. _mcau_:o_cm m NN.No ow. N..em _m Nm.N N. NN... m. no.o. N. NN.N. NN .cwum. .oocu .cocu .cocu .cucu .ao.u .30.“ .00.; .005“ .vocu .00.; .00.; .uueu o>_ue_u¢ vac—emn< u>.ue_o¢ uua.0ma< o>_ua_o¢ nun—cma< o>.um_o¢ oua.0m3< u>_uu_o¢ 0u3.0mn< o>.ue_o¢ ou3.0nn< _ooo» z»: . a: o. A ex o.-o 2. N-m 5. :-N a. N v on: can. oocoum_o .muoxcme _moo_ as» so». cocoon—v osu ou co.um_u. c. on: one. _e.:u_:o_cm<-u.m~ o_nmh 227 in Saudi Arabia until very recently. but since the discovery of oil in the eastern part of the country the importance of agriculture to the Saudi economy has declined considerably. Assarah as an agricultural region was. until the 19705. completely isolated from the rest of the country. and its inhabitants were for many centuries solely dependent on agriculture as the main source of their livelihood. The subsist- ence type of production was its major agricultural system. At present. agriculture in the Assarah region is declining. and incomes from it in comparison with other sources of income are low. The findings of this research reveal that 49.8 percent of the farmers interviewed usually have no surplus of the farm products to sell at home or at the local markets. Their produce is all consumed by the producers themselves. These farmers who have a surplus to sell form 50.2 percent of the total farmers interviewed. The majority of them (63.9 percent) have an income of no more than 15.000 Saudi riyals from the sale of their produce at home and in the local markets (Table 29). Income from sources other than agriculture is usually much higher. An analysis of Table 29 reveals that only 12.5 percent of the farmers interviewed have no source of income other than from agriculture. The majority (87.5 percent) of the farmers usually have other sources of income in addition to their income from agriculture. These sources of additional income are (l) governmental subsidies for agriculture. (2) old-age benefits (social welfare). (3) remittances from the farmers' children. (4) employment. and (5) sel f-employment. business. and crafts. A substantial number of the farmers (41.5 228 Ammv m_m>. _uamm m.m uaonm I .m__ou oco moo.30m .osuo secm 0500c. oL:u_:o_.m< 50.. 0500:. No.oo_ mmN No.oo_ mmN _muOh N9... mo. Nod MN ..m 80.8 5...: 9.9. ~N.® _N Nm.: __ mm ooo.o~nooo.m_ No.0. mm wo.n cu «m coo.m_uooo.o_ Nm.:~ mm Nw.m_ _m mm ooo.o_n_oo.m NN.m m “m.m :N am coo.m can» mmoa Mm.u_ Nm Nm.m: w~_ ocoz >ucoaaocu >ocosoocu >ucoaomcm >ucoaoocm o>_um_o¢ mus—cmn< o>_um_o¢ mun—cmn< m_m>¢ “csmm c. 0500:. _macc< .moocaom cacao cam o.:«.:u..mm eccm moeooc_ may we c0m_.maEOo <1:.m~ o_nmh 229 percent) make more than 200,000 Saudi riyals a year from sources other than agriculture, like jobs in the private sector or businesses. The farmers who have an additional income of 5,000 to 15,000 Saudi riyals receive their money from remittances by their children or old-age pension funds. The farmers who have less than 5,000 Saudi riyals of additional income form only 3.2 percent of the total. Their additional income comes usually from governmental subsidies for agriculture and some minor jobs (Table 29). The farmers who had no farm produce to sell were asked to respond to a set of selected socioeconomic factors considered among the most important reasons why they do not have any surpluses to sell. These factors are: (l) subsistence production, (2) low market prices, (3) small farm size, (A) too old to farm, (5) abandonment of terraces, (6) low income from agriculture, (7) alternative jobs, and (8) a lack of modern agricultural technology (Table 30). The number of farmers who responded to the above questions were 128 (#9.8 percent). Ninety- eight farmers of the ones interviewed (38.1 percent) were strongly of the opinion that agriculture involves hard work and that the returns in comparison with other sources are very low. At the same time, 99 farmers (38.5 percent) of those who had no farm produce to sell believed that the market prices for their agricultural produce offered no incentive to produce. Producing only for one's own consumption, age (too old to farm), having an alternative job, and lack of modern agricul- tural technology were regarded by the respondents as having had a serious effect on their being unable to produce sufficient produce to sell the surplus commercially. Abandonment of terraces and the size of farms 230 Aucoocoa ~.omv m~_ n mommo u._m>c_ Aucoocoa w.m:v mu. I mommo v__m> >mo_oczoou Nn.m~ _w w_.m_ m: w~.m o. Nm.o N _m.:u_:u_.mm ccovoe mo xom. No.oN mm N:.N _ No.0 N. NN.m_ mm mac. o>.omctoo.< N..mm mm Nm.m sN NN._ m NN.. m atao.=o..mm seem mecca. so. MN; m Noé m. um. .N mm 3.9 _m moumccou mo ucoscoucmn< w~.- mm Nm.__ mN -.m 9. No.0. ow Eco; cu v.0 och No.5 m. Mm.m :N Nm.m_ N: w_.n_ a: on_m Eco» __mEm Mm.mm mm w~.w _N N5.N N wa.~ o moo—co auxcme so. N:._N mm Mm.:N no N_.m w Nm.o N use; an nosam lace conveca —_< ,l.uo.u .ooeu .oocm .aocm .oocu .oocu .oocu .oocm o>_um_o¢ ops—cma< o>_um_o¢ ova—cmn< o>_um_ox mus—cmn< o>_um_o¢ mus—cmn< mLOuomu ucmucoas_ ucmucoae_ acmucoae_ acmucooe_ o_EOcoooo_oow >co> >_oum.ouoz >_ucm__m uoz .ooacOLQ Ecmm L_o;u __om cu >u___nmc_ .mcoEme use .0» o_n_mcoamo. mLOHomm o_Eo:oooo_oOm venue—omnn.om o_nmh 231 had a slight effect on their ability to produce a surplus (Table 30). Based on the information derived from Tables 29 and 30. Hypothesis 1 was accepted. W." Hypothesis 2: The migration of farmers is directly related to high wages paid for jobs in the urban centers. The migration of the farmers to urban centers has resulted in a continuous decline in agricultural production due to shortages of labor. Many terraces now are abandoned. their walls have completely collapsed. and the soil which had formed for millions of years has been washed away by runoffs in a very short period of time. All of this is essentially due to the lack of maintenance. This survey found that 75.5 percent of the farmers interviewed ‘4- ...—m4 have members of their families residing customarily away from the ”.....N——fl—-flr"”“”““‘““’*W‘~ .._ . , .. village in the urban centers. though some have returned to their original home after a temporary stay away from home. To determine the causes of the rural migration to the major cities within Saudi Arabia. the farmers were asked to indicate to what degree each of the following reasons is not important. slightly important. moderately important. and very important: (1) better jobs and wages in the urban centers. (2) lack of economic opportunities in the village. (3) lack of education in the village. (4) lack of medical care in the village. (5) economic inadequacy of farming. (5) family feuds and disputes. and (6) attractions of the city (Table 31). 232 >u_o on» N..o _ Nm._ m NN.N_ .m Nm.sm o.. .o .co..u....< mouaam cm Ns.o . N:.o _ NN.N. mm No.mm oN. menu. ”w.uma x mc.E.m o >umau M N:.:: ... NN.eN mo NN.N N NN.N N -weocw ”_eocouu com > o u :. memo Nm.o N N:.N N. Ns.mm _m No.Nm mm .“wu.eue cw xum. . . . . com > o u c N. NN .N No NN mm NN m. as NN N ON co..~thw .ogxumw f omm___> osu . No.m; 0N. Nm.sN mm Nm.. m NN._ m c. mu...c=u.oaao o_EOcooo mo xom. mcoucoo Nméo mt “ma 2 am... N NNN N emf: a. memo: cam mnOH couuum .aocm .oocu .oocu .oocm .aocu .oocu .aoLm .cocu o>_um_o¢ mun—cmn< o>_um_o¢ own—cma< o>_um_o¢ ou:_0ma< o>mum.om own—cmn< acmucoae_ acmucoae_ acmucoae_ acmucoae. mLOuomm >co> >_oum.ovoz >_u;m__m .co_um.m_e _m.:. mc_uo0mmm weapomuun._m o_nmh 233 The information contained in Table 3l reveals that the major- ity of the farmers (69.3 percent) perceive "better jobs and wages in the urban centers" as a very important reason for the rural migration. Further. they perceive the lack of economic opportunities in the village and economic inadequacy of farming as the two major causes of rural migration. The lack of medical care in the village. attractions of the city. and family feuds and disputes were perceived by the farmers as not important for their migration to the cities (Table 31). It is evident that the major cause of the rural migration to the urban centers in the study area was and still is better jobs and wages in the urban centers. Further. this migration is spurred by a lack of economic opportunities in the village and adequate economic returns from farming. The findings support the hypothesis that the migration of farmers in the area is directly related to better jobs and wages in the urban centers. Wheels.» Hypothesis 3: Poor transportation facilities discourage the production of cash crops. A transportation system plays a major role in influencing the farmers to grow what they grow on their farms. In fact. the majority of the farmers of the study area are highly conservative in their views and believe in growing mainly wheat and barley during the winter season and sorghum during the summer. and so on. There are some farmers who are willing to produce cash crops on their farms and 231. maximize their profits by input-intensive farming. but unfortunately they are inhibited by the poor transportation facilities in the area. The farmers told the interviewer that a majority of them do not grow cash crops because they do not own their own means of transportation. the cost of public transportation is high. the feeder roads are very poor. and their farms are isolated and inaccessible. and are located far away from the new paved highway that runs north- south through the region. Most farmers with these complaints consti- tuted over 50 percent of the total number of farmers interviewed. What is more. 98.1 percent of the interviewees strongly agree that agricultural feeder roads are very poor. Because of the high cost of transporting agricultural produce from the farms to the market. the majority of the farmers (90.2 percent) agree that it is a major obstacle to their production of cash crops (Table 32. Plate 17). The relationship between the patterns of agricultural land use and the lack of good transportation facilities was determined. .A majority of the farmers (70.6 percent) who are grain producers agree (strongly agree and agree) that the lack of good transportation facilities is the major factor inhibiting them from growing cash crops. and are sticking to the traditional crops. 0n the other hand. those who are vegetable (26.3 percent) and fruit (10.2 percent) producers disagree and believe that they have good transportation facilities to transport their produce to the local markets and perhaps it is the perception that makes them go on growing cash crops (Table 33). 235 too. on» vasec- uce coo: ..ou emu “Esau >5 “N.o mN_ um.N_ o: w_.N_ a: um.e_ on On >mzzm.; :0: we mmoccmu: No 0930004 nacho sane zocu memo. canoe» um._ m .. .. um.o. N: MN..o o_N _m.:u_:u.cum coon o» use «no.0 ammo zoom u.coo u..m m. um.m m. N:._m NM. um.Nm mm co.umu.oamcmcu gm.: ou one «coco smmo seem u.:oo no_a__.umm co_uou.ca NNN N N53 8. 3.3 ....N. N9. m -22. 2.55 .9. .2. .o enamoon «coco sumo 30.9 «N.w_ we uo.mo No. NN.m_ an «N.. m mumOo eo_ueucoamcmcu 30. No unsouon mocco sumo recu mo.u__.umu 3.: ..m fig: 8 NW: NN N3: ..N 523.82.: Boa .o omamuoa maocu :mcu raga «one; uo>mn oz» w..mm mm um.n. we um.m_ o: N:.@N MN emu: noumuo_ a. Eco» >5 unamoon mocco ammo zeta >ocoscocu >oeoauocu >ucuaaucm >ocoaoocu >ucoacu.u >oeuscucu >ocoacucu >ocoacocu u>_uc.o¢ uu:_0mn< o>_um_o¢ uu:.omn< o>.um_u¢ «us—emn< o>_um_u¢ dun—ona< exocu uoz ocs3 meanmux uncomm.o >_m:o.um uocmmm.a oocm< >_meocum .mu_um_couum.o:o :o_umu.oamcmchua.Nn 0.5m» 236 (a) The new highway running through the Assarah region from Taif City in the north to Abha in the south , "in; , . (b) The type and the nature of housing construction that seems to have been influenced by the new highway Plate 17 237 coco. I .o>o_ oocmo.u.cm_m seven.» to moucmov m :u.) NmmNN.NN I economn_zu uo.oo_ mmN no.N m nw.wa 3N. N_.N: cN_ u:.N o um.c N no.c o ua.oc_ N uo.o o No.o o NN.o_ 0N No.0 o N_.MN m um.wN oN no.0 o um.oN so No.0 o uo.c o uo.mm om um.: m MN.N0 om. N_.n m um.um co. um.NN e: um._ m .muou sea—cu nuuavoca o_a.u_:z ay.:cu mo_nmaomo> mc_m.m coo; >ocoaeocu >ocoacucm o>_um_o¢ uu:_0mn< >ucoacocu >ucuauocu u>_um_u¢ sun—emn< >ucoaaucu >ucoacoeu o>_un.u¢ nus-oma< >ocuaaueu >o:o:oo.u o>_um_u¢ can—cmn< >ucuaaucu >ucoaaocu o>.um_o¢ «us-cma< _muop 3oz oocm< >_m:0cum oucm< oocmmm.o oucmmm.a >_ac05um mo_u_._umu co_umu.oamcm.h mo xoma on: new; we mua>h .mo_u.__umu co_umucoamcmcu mo xom. any 0» co.um_u. c. mccuuuma on: ocean-.mm oNth .-..ll'l « 21.3.. 3.1.. . . I.‘.'I 3:... a. I: 238 However. since the majority of the farmers (70.6 percent) have strongly agreed with the statement that the farmers do not grow cash crops because they do not have good transportation facilities. the hypothesis is accepted at the computed significance level (Table 33). WW War-Th9 Pearson correlation coefficients are presented in Table 34 in easily interpretable form. The Pearson correlation coefficient form ranges from +1.0 to -l.0 where the limit +1.0 indicates a perfect positive relationship. and-fiho. a perfect negative relationship. If the value of r is zero. no relationship is indicated. The better the fit. the larger the positive magnitude of r in the range. The second rows in the correlation-coefficient table show the levels of significance. 'The level of significance in this study was computed to be .05: that is. any relationship lower than .05 was statistically significant. The Pearson correlation coefficient was used to analyze seven variables in relation to each other. In other words. each one of these variables was correlated with each of the remaining six variables. The variables included in the correlation analysis are shown in Table 34. The most significant correlations (r) found from the responses of the 257 farmers interviewed are: l. A positive correlation between a cash-crop farm located near the paved roads and the availability of good transportation facilities (rI-.651). implying that if cash crops are grown more 239 mo_.w u . oocmo_w_cm_m oc_momoc ecu >3 co 5.mm >5 :0 ..oo.. ._oo.. ..oo.. ..oo.. ._oo. ..oo.v 2.8Q use on «estate on. __om . 00.. mm..- mmm. Nm:.u NoN. cum. mom. can seem >5 >n mes. >ms;m_; so: ozu umzmooa mac.o nmmu so.m . AN. . . . . . coca >.o> ecu memo. o ._ Awwo. Ammw.v Ammw.w AMM“.W Amow.w .ouoom _me:u_:u_cmm omamoon o N w macho smmo scum uo: on . Aw. . . . . ;m_; oou ecu . Ammo.v A_om.v A_oo.v A_om.v mumoo co_umu.oamcm.u omamoua oo _ N Nm 1 :9N T on u mocco zmmo seem uoc cu . Amy . . . mo_u___omw co_umu.oamcm.u oo._ A_wm.w A_oo.w Ammo.w coca :30 ac: cc _ omamooa o owe o mocco ammo seem no: on _ Nev A_oo.v A_oo.v so. m_ umoo :o_umucoamcm.u oo._ mum. N_m. omamoon mocco sumo socm _ Amy . mo_u___omm . A_oo.v co_umucoamcm.u coon o>mc oo _ _mm _ omamuon mocco :mmu scum _ NNV coo. uo>ma oc._ m .moc coumoo_ m. seem >5 omamuon mocco smmu scum _ A_V N m m a m N _ mo_nm_.m> ANmN n z. .mucmc_5.ouou co_umu.05mcm.u couoo_om co» x_.um5 co_um_o..0uuu.:m o-amh 2h0 intensively on a farm located near the paved roads. the possibility of the farmers' owning good transportation facilities increases. 2. A positive correlation between cash crops grown on a farm located near the paved roads and a low transportation cost (r 8 .312). implying that as distance between the paved road and a cash-crop farm decreases. the cost of transporting the farm produce to the market decreases. too. 3. A negative correlation between a farm located near the paved road and the lack of good transportation facilities (r ==-u659). indicating that as the distance between the farm and the paved road increases. the cultivation of cash crops decreases owing to poor transportation facilities. 4. A negative correlation between the transportation cost and the cultivation of cash crops (r = -w370). showing that as the transportation cost goes up. the interest in cultivating cash crops declines. 5. A positive correlation between the cultivation of cash crops and the location of the farm from the new highway (r ¥=.605). indicating that the closer the farm to the new highway. the greater the interest in the cultivation of cash crops. 6. A positive correlation between the cultivation of cash crops and the transportation cost (r = .379). implying that as transportation facilities become more readily available to the farmer. the transportation of the produce to the market becomes easier: 7. A negative correlation between the cultivation of cash crops and the lack of good transportation facilities (r - -.666). 2h] indicating that as good transportation facilities become more scarce the cultivation of cash crops drops; 8. A positive correlation between the availability of good transportation facilities and the location of a farm from the new highway (r = .374). implying that as a farm gets closer to the new highway. the cultivation of the cash crops increases owing to this availability of good transportation facilities. 9. A negative correlation between the transportation cost and the cultivation of cash crops (r = -.362). indicating that as the cost of transportation decreases. the cultivation of cash crops increases. 10. A negative correlation between the proximity of a farm to the new highway and the cultivation of cash crops (r ==.452). indi- cating that as the distance between the farm and the new highway increases. the cultivation of cash crops decreases. 11. A positive correlation between the proximity of a farm to the new highway and the transportation cost (r==.365). implying that as the distance between a farm and the new highway increases. the cost of transporting the farm produce increases. Wests.» Hypothesis 4: Farmers engaged in traditional farming are unwilling to use modern agricultural technology. One of the best solutions to the problem of labor shortages in Saudi Arabia is the introduction of agricultural technology to increase output per unit of labor. The technical implements vary from simple hand-powered devices to very sophisticated machinery. Although 2h2 tractors have generally proven to be well adapted to large-scale commercial farming in many areas of Saudi Arabia, their role in the development of small-scale agriculture--a characteristic of the Assarah region--has been less effective for a variety of reasons: First, the region is rugged, and flat plains are nonexistent; second, the farms are small owing to fragmentation; and third, the majority of the farmers do not know how to use modern agricultural machinery. This study reveals that the majority of the farmers (9h.2 per- cent) are willing to use modern mechanized farming methods on their ter- races, and those who are not interested in this technology form only 5.8 percent of the total. The majority (57.6 percent) of the farmers use agricultural machinery such as tractors and other equipment, but about 7 percent of them who want to use agricultural technology do not know how to use it. One-fourth (25.7 percent) of them, however, would like to use it but cannot afford it. Yet a very small minority (3.1 percent) of the farmers who want to use mechanical farming methods complain of the shortage of trained operators in the village. This interviewer did not find a single farmer among the 257 interviewed who did not want to use the modern agricultural implements because his farm was too small. Finally, 3.5 percent of the population have more than one reason for not using the modern equipment. Those farmers who do not want to use modern technology because they prefer traditional methods of farming form only 3.1 percent of the total (Table 35). To show the effect of modern agricultural mechanization on the patterns of agricultural land use of the study area, a crossr tabulation between the two variables was used to see whether there is 2A3 No.oo_ NmN Nm.m m Nm.Nm m:— No.o o N_.m m N_.m m NN.mN mm No.N m: _mHOF a. m:_m: yo: .0» cemmo. oco cmzu v.05 use .0» New: m:_5cmu vo~_cm;ooe om: co co_um~_cmcuoe .0. __m5m OOu moomccoh chEme we mvocuoe _mco_u_cmcu comoca "cu ucms u.coc omm—__> ecu c. o_am__m>m n.0umcoao no:_m.u 0: one On aces u. enemmm acccmu use cu ace: ca 30: socx uo: on use acoea_:oo _mc:u_:o_.mm ccocoe om: cu New: >ocosoocu o>_um_o¢ >ocosuocu pun—cmn< momcoamox .mcoecmm .>mo_oc;oou _m.:u_:o_cmm ccocoe we om: ecu uno£m mco_uqoo.oa .m.05.¢u-n.mm o_nmh 21:14 a relationship between them or not. Findings tabulated in Table 36 indicate that 43.1 percent of the farmers interviewed who are grain producers are currently using modern agricultural equipment. like tractors. Further. 35.6 percent of the grain-producing farmers are willing to use agricultural technology but they cannot afford it; The farmers who are vegetable producers constitute 26.3 percent of the total. and a majority of them (83.6 percent) use modern agricultural technology at present. The fruit-speci a1 izing farmers form 10.2 percent of the 257 farmers during the field survey. and the majority of them. 80.8 percent. use modern agricultural equipment today. Those preferring traditional methods form 5 percent of the total and grow only food grains. It is evident that the majority of the farmers (94.2 percent) are willing to use modern agricultural technology. of which 62:7 percent of those interviewed produce grains. 26.3 percent vegetables. and 10.2 percent fruits. The majority of grain. vegetable. and fruit producers (more than 90 percent) do use modern agricultural equipment. These findings reveal that the fourth hypothesis is unsustainable (Tables 35. 36). We." Hypothesis 5: The cost of farm input exceeds the revenues from the farm output. It is true that the majority of the farmers from the representative area in particular and the Assarah region in general depend directly on agriculture for their livelihood. For many 2‘15 0000. I .0>0_ 00000.;_0o.m 500005; 50 0005000 m. 05.3 camwN.Nc I 050305-509 8.8. SN 5.. ... 3.5 N... 2.5 o NNN N 5.3 3 N..N ... gnaw No.o N No.o o No.om . no.o o No.o a No.o o Na.om _ ”Hunmwnu NN.o_ 5N N5.N _ No.oa .N no.o o N5.N . NN.N N N5.n . ...s.5 NN.oN No «o.o o N0.No om No.o a N5.. _ N5.o. N «5.. N «o..-aomos NN.No co. uo.m o N_.na mo no.m a N..m m No.mm Nm »_.0 n. u0.m5u .005; .005; .005; .005; .005; .005; .005; .005; .005; .005; .005; .005; .005; .005; 0>.50.0¢ 050.050< 0>550_0¢ 05:.om0< 0>550.0¢ 053.0m00 0>_50.0¢ 05:_Ona< 0)....05 u.s_o.a< 0>550.0¢ 053.0mn< 0>_50.0¢ 050.0m0< ..5o5 3.5 000000 000 000k 050: 50; 00: 05 500: 5.000 00.550; 00m. -00000: 00: on .5055»: .aco55 -5005» 50505; .05 5003 5.000 050: .0000050; 000.05» 02 use 00: 05 5003 20.5 9;O&b( HOP-COD ~30 On: On “:03 on: on ___4m 00: $004 005 0>0x 5.000 .05:._:o_5m< use 00: ca 500) 050050.05. 000 .>500_000z .50050.:0w .>mo_00000> .05:u_:u_5m< 05000: 50 00: .>00.000005 _05au.:u_500 ;0 0a: 005 05 00.50.05 0. 00505500 0a: 000. _0N:u_:u_5o<-n.on 0.00h 2116 farmers. at present. the farm is more a symbolic than a real source of income. They need other sources of income to live. Of the 257 farmers surveyed in 1982. 142 (55.2 percent) have indicated that their farm input of labor. fertilizer. irrigation. and personal time was well compensated for by the output. 0n the other hand. llS farmers (44.8 percent) said that their farm input is not compensated for by the output. The 55.2 percent of the farmers who cl aimed that their farm input was well compensated for by their output were asked to give an approximate annual net return from their farms. It was found that only 24.9 percent of them earned a net return of less than 5.000 Saudi riyals annually. 16 percent 5.001-10.000 Saudi riyals. 3.1 percent 10.001-15.000 Saudi riyals. 1.2 percent 15.001-20.000 Saudi riyals. and 8.2 percent more than 20.000 Saudi riyals a year from their farms (Table 37). Table 37.--Approximate annual returns from farming. Approximate Net Returns Absolute Relative in Saudi Riyals Frequency Frequency Less than 5.000 Saudi riyals 69 24.9 5.001 to 10.000 Saudi riyals 41 16.0 10.000 to 15.000 Saudi riyals 8 3.1 15.000 to 20.000 Saudi riyals 3 1.2 More than 20.000 Saudi riyals 21 8.2 One dollar 8 3.5 Saudi riyals 257 The relationship between the income characteristics of a farmer and his farm input-output relationship is examined in this section. It has been found that 81.5 percent of the farmers who grow enough farm produce to sell have their farm input equal or exceed output. 0n the other hand. 73.8 percent of the farmers who do not grow enough farm produce to sell do not have their farm input equal to the farm output. Those farmers who do not grow enough farm produce to sell but have their farm input equal to their output form 62.3 percent of all interviewed. Finally. the farmers who usually grow enough farm produce to sell but for one reason or another their input is not compensated for by their farm output are only 18.5 percent of the total (Table 38). Since the majority of the interviewed farmers (55.2 percent) have asserted that their input of labor. fertilizer. irrigation. and personal time is compensated for by the output. the hypothesis that the cost of farm input exceeds the revenues from the output of the farm can be sustained. WW5." Hypothesis 6: It is cheaper for the farmers to buy imported food than to produce it on the terraces. Assarah as an agricultural region was able to produce all the needed food grains. milk. meat. oil. vegetables. fruits. flowers. coffee. wood. leather. etc.. for its needs and sometimes was able to 2&8 0000. u .0>0. 00000.».0m.m 5000050 ;0 005000 . 00.s momN_.m> u 05030mn.00 wo.oo_ NmN NN.:: m.. Nm.mm N5. .muou 503.05 . 0m 05 03 0530 Ne: NN. 5.: cm NN 5N N. 52...... :8... 5.... 8 . . . 0m 05 Nm Nm mm. Nm 5. mN N5 .0 o.. “3.55:. gasocw.mzo5a >0003005; >0003005; >0003005; >0003005; >0003005; >0003005; 0>.u0.0m 053.000< 0>.50.0¢ 053.000< 0>.50.0¢ 053.Omn< 05000. 000 053050 .0505 300 530030 0 5300. 030530 n 0300. .u30u30uu300. 550. 005 000 05000. 0003500 0.0000.50.0¢--.mm 0.00» 2(19 sell its surplus to the neighboring regions. In recent years. the demand for cosmetic and luxury commodities has far exceeded the supplies locally available because (1) many farmers have abandoned their terraces and have migrated to the urban centers; (2) the population has increased. creating a greater demand for agricultural produce: (3) the income of the majority of the farmers from nonagri- cultural sources has increased to create a demand for more agricul- tural commodities: and (4) the shortages of organic fertilizers have contributed to low fertility. leading to a decline in agricultural productivity. Most farmers have in recent years come to depend on imported food. Imported food grains. vegetables. and fruits are within their means. .Asked about them. an overwhelming majority of the farmers interviewed (94.9 percent) said it was cheaper for them to buy imported food than the locally produced food. A majority of these farmers (7657 percent) indicated that imported food is cheaper than even the government-subsidized locally produced food because the government subsidizes even those people who import food grains from abroad to sell them to the public at low prices. Sixteen percent of the farmers argued that because of the shortages of farm labor. the prices of the locally produced agricultural commodities have risen by only'l.9 percent. and they attribute the decline in the locally produced food to a very high transportation cost. This argument does not make sense as the high transportation cost should have affected imported food more severely and made it more expensive in the local markets (Table 39) . 250 Table 39.--Farmers' perceptions about imported food. Farmers' Responses Absolute Relative Frequency Frequency (A) Farmers' Perceptions About Imported Food Imported food is cheaper than the locally produced food . 244 94.9 Imported food is not cheaper 13 5.1 (8) Farmers' Reasons Why the Imported Food Is Cheaper Than the Locally Produced Food Government subsidies for the imported food 197 76.7 Shortages of farm labor 28 10.9 High wages for hired labor 13 5.1 High transportation costs 5 1.9 Other 2 0.8 It is evident from the survey that imported food is cheaper than the locally produced food because of the high costs of labor. fertilizers. and irrigation. The evidence substantiates the hypothesis that imported food is cheaper than the locally produced items. Hypothesis 7: Farmers perceive that low agricultural productivity is directly related to the fragmentation and smallness of holdings as well as to poor agricultural extension services and shortages of labor. The final spatial shape of any agricultural holding is directly related to its physical. sociocultural. and operational factors. This group of three factors is believed to lie behind the problem of fragmentation and smallness of agricultural holdings. The effect of the physical factors is directly related to the angle of the slope. Assarah is a rugged region. and its terrain is decimated by a series of ravines that break up the continuity of the land formation. ‘This physiographic characteristic. of course. works against farming a vast expanse of level land which might have been cultivated as one large tract. In fact. the steepness of slopes is perceived as a major problem affecting the availability of flat arable land. To meet the challenges of the physiography of this terrain. man-made terraces were constructed to conserve the soil and water and to provide level surfaces for agriculture. These terraces cannot. by their nature. merge into one agricultural tract of land. The geographical distribution of the natural resources of soils. trees. water. etc.. has contributed to fragmentation because each inheritor after the death of the father wants a part of each type of terrace. which cannot be found in one simple plot (Mughram. 1973. pp. 295-96). The sociocultural factors for the fragmentation and smallness of holdings stem from the customs. values. and the system of owner- ship. The ownership of agricultural land in particular and 252 nonagricultural land in general in Saudi Arabia is predominantly private. There are three ways of acquiring land as personal property in Assarah: (1) through inheritance. (2) through purchase or gift. and (3) through a property exchange. The Islamic Laws of inheritance set very elaborate conditions by which the relatives of the deceased person get specific shares in the legacy. These shares vary according to the priorities and postulates contained in the laws. It is becoming customary for many writers to attribute the extreme fragmentation and small size of farms to the Islamic Law of inheritance. This is a gross over- simplification for although Islamic Law may have an effect on the problem. certainly it is not by itself a primary cause. The primary and universal causes of the problem lie in the low land- man ratio and in the lack of alternative sources of livelihood. besides the other physical and operational factors. (Mughram. 1973. pp. 296-97) The operational factors play a major role in the fragmentation of agricultural land. There are three types of these operational factors: (1) the access routes that connect the terraces with each other. (2) the divides or boundaries that the individual constructs to separate his farm or terrace from his neighbor's. and (3) the dividing lines that the owner himself creates in order to break his terrace into smaller parcels for different uses. The effect of all these factors is that the physical. sociocultural. and locational factors cause a waste of land and time. create mechanization problems. and render the productive farms uneconomic. The 1982 survey revealed that 99.2 percent of the farmers believe that the agricultural productivity of their terraces has declined with time. ‘The interviewees were asked to respond to some selected factors by indicating how important each of these factors was in contributing to the decline of agricultural productivity on their ., 971‘ “a ...!i - «.3 .... “a :11! 043‘ '71:.flalmap Mi $013“ ,, - v 1 1 a - T 10": l ‘ '1 '4’; l‘luv‘.;‘ (I .I'wil‘ib“. . .J.’ 9'0"!”9; 1*:- I'vgt-lj-J»? {430% - . “" ~_.:I‘ ' ‘_ . 2'4 r 253 farms. The overwhelming majority of the interviewees (92.6 percent) attributed the problem of low agricultural productivity to the shortages of labor and regarded this factor as very important. Those who attributed the problem to fragmentation of agricultural land and to poor agricultural extension services formed. respectively. 64.6 and 65.4 percent of the total. The lack of modern agricultural technology. scarcity of water supplies. and shortages of organic fertilizers were considered moderately important in contributing to the low agricultural productivity. High prices of energy were perceived as not an important factor (Table 40). The effect of fragmentation. poor agricultural extension services. and shortages of farm labor on agricultural land indicates that the majority of the farmers interviewed have perceived these factors as very importantly contributing to the diminishing agricultural productivity. and thus their perception supports the fourth hypothesis. Wm The Ministry of Agriculture and Water Resources is the main body responsible for agricultural development in the country. 'To encourage agricultural enterprises. the government of Saudi Arabia offers subsidies--the subsidies on land and labor for wheat. sorghum. rice. sheep. and camels. Further. the government subsidizes the purchase of farm machinery. fertilizers. animal feed concentrates. poultry and dairy farms. and transportation of 200 or more dairy cattle. Besides. the Saudi Arabian Agricultural Bank extends interest-free credit to farmers. 2511 NmN I z um.m ”N.mm um.m. N0.Nm NN.NN u:.mo ”0.00 0. N0. mm mMN Nm mo. 00. NN.. n0.mn na.Nn um.m ”0.0m u..0N n0.NN om mm m. me. No 0m no.0N «a..N w0.mm ”N.— un.m. u0.N um.m mm mm cm N. a. 0N um.:> um.n no.0. ”5.0 N..m ”0.. um.m _m. 0. 0m 000.50 >05000 00.: 0535.30.500 5o; >.0030 50503 00 >5.05000 0500.5.550; 0.00050 ;0 000055000 5000. 550; 50 000055000 >00.000005 .0535 u.30.500 050005 ;0 0000 00.>500 00.0 -005x0 .0535.30.500 5000 000. .0535 -.30.500 50 00.505005005; >0003005; >0003005; 0>.50.0¢ 053.000< 50055005. >50> >0003005; >0003005; 0>.50.0¢ 053.000< >0003005; >0003005; 0>.50.0¢ 053.000< 50055005. >.050500ox 50055005. >.50m..m >0003005; >0003005; 0>.50.0¢ 053.000< 50055005. 502 050500; 00500.00 .>5.>.5030050 .0535.3o.5m0 so. 05 00.530.55000 00 050500; 00500.00 005 00 000.5000500 .050550;u-.0a 0.00h 255 The 1982 survey revea1 ed that 92.2 percent of the interviewed farmers have received some form of financia1 assistance from the agricu1tura1 bank. which has its main office in A1-A1ayah. In the main. the assistance has consisted of agricu1tura1 equipment and machinery to 85.6 percent of them. i nterest-free 1oans to 10.8 percent. subsidies for farm operations to 3:1 percent. and cash subsidies to 3.1 percent. The researcher's investigation revea1ed that these subsidies are not used for the purpose for which they are meant by the majority of the farmers. Most of them co11ect the subsidies in the form of a tractor. an interest-free 1oan. etc.. and use the cash for other businesses or nonagricu1tura1 purposes. W In the study area. the terraces are farmed by the farmer and his fami1y members. The survey revea1ed that the average fami1y size consists of at 1east six peop1e. It has been found that 2 percent of the farmers have a fami1y of the size of three persons or fewer. 12.1 percent of four to six persons. but the majority of them (86 percent) have a fami1y of six persons or more (Tab1e 41). Tab1e 41.--The frequency distribution regarding fami1y size. Fami1y Size Abso1ute Frequency Re1ative Frequency Less than 3 5 2.0 4 to 6 31 . 12.1 More than 6 221 86.0 Tota1 257 100.0 1 .1: 3:001” in m -. man. a. ovsui wand 1 (mm, '2. ”in“: 256. A study of the 1abor force indicates that 40.5 percent of the farmers interviewed have fewer than three workers. 49.4 percent between four and six workers. and on1y 10.1 percent have more than six workers. 'These workers inc1ude ma1es. fema1es. chi1dren. and hired hands. A1most 90 percent (89.5 percent) of those interviewed said that a11 they have had are the fami1y members and hired hands. and 'HLS percent have had some hired he1p besides the fami1y members (Tab1e 42). Tab1e 42.--The frequency distribution regarding the farm 1abor force. Farm Labor Force Abso1ute Frequency Re1ative Frequency Less than 3 104 40.5 4 to 6 177 49.4 More than 6 26 10.1 Tota1 257 100.0 Hired 1aborers are very few in the area. 0n1y 7 percent of the farmers indicated that they have one hired hand. 3.1 percent no more than two. 1.2 percent three. 0.4 percent four. and 0.8 percent five hired 1aborers (Tab1e 43). Those farmers who use hired 1abor were asked to indicate when they usua11y hire he1p. About 11 percent CFLB percent) of them said that they hired he1p a11 year round. Those farmers who hired 1abor during the sowing and harvesting seasons formed 0.4 percent of the farmers. The average wage a hired worker earns is about 50 Saudi 257 riya1s a day. It shou1d be maintained that the majority of these hired workers are non-Saudi a1iens. Tab1e 43.--The frequency distribution of hired farm 1abor. Number of Hired Laborers Abso1ute Frequency Re1ative Frequency 1 18 7.0 2 8 3.1 3 3 1.2 4 1 0.4 5 2 0.8 W: W In ana1yzing the socia1 characteristics of the farmer. se1ected criteria were deve1oped to fu11y i11ustrate and comprehend the nature of the farmer's socia1 characteristics. These criteria inc1uded the farmer's age. his educationa1 1eve1. his position within the fami1y. and the duration of his residency in the vi11age. With regard to the farmer's ro1e within his fami1y. this study found that 93 percent of the farmers interviewed were the heads of their fami1ies. and on1y 7 percent were on1y members. It must be mentioned here that the farmers interviewed were a11 ma1e. and no fema1e cou1d be interviewed owing to cu1tura1 reasons. The frequency distribution of farmers' residency in the vi11ages revea1ed that 3.1 percent of them had been residents in their vi11ages for no more than 5 years. 3.9 for S to 10 years. 3.1 percent for 11 to 15 years. and the majority (89.9 percent) had been A .35.; L: wit V1 .' :Yr'éfll “i «Aw-1: h A ‘ '1". 7:":7' . “:2 “:1; ji§ugw ' " 2%: ”Wflk‘ . ‘ ... ' 'f- in. . $.17“; ‘40—. "jar-5'1] .. , - . 258 residing in their vil1ages for more than 15 years. In other words. the majority of the farmers might have resided in their vi11ages for even 1onger than 50 years (Tab1e 44). Tab1e 44.--The frequency distribution of the farmers' duration of residency in the vi11ages. Duration Absolute Frequency Relative Frequency Less than 5 years 8 3.1% 5 to 10 years 10 3.9% 11 to 15 years 8 3.1: Over 15 years 231 89.9% Tota1 257 100.0% With regard to the 1eve1 of education of the farmers. it was found that (1) 41.6 percent of the interviewees cou1d neither read nor write. (2) 10:1 percent cou1d on1y read. (3) 30:7 percent cou1d both read and write. (4) 1.9 percent had completed primary school. (5) 10.5 percent high schoo1. and (6) 5.1 percent had had some co11ege educa- tion. The 1ast group consists 1arge1y of teachers who work part-time on farms (Table 45). With regard to the average age of the farmers. this survey found that 2.3 percent of the farmers interviewed were 1955 than 20 years o1d. 24.5 percent were between 21 and 40. 48.2 percent were between 41 and 60. and 24.9 percent were more than 60 years old (Table 46). The relationship between age and the educational level of the farmer was statistically computed. The correlation between these two 259 Table 4S.--The frequency distribution regarding the educational level of the farmers. Educational Level Absolute Frequency Relative Frequency Neither read nor write 107 41.6% Read only 26 10.1% Read and write 79 30.7% Comp1eted primary school 5 1.9% Completed high school 27 10.5% Completed some college 13 5.1% Total 257 100.0% Tab1e 46.-~The frequency distribution of the farmers by age. Farmers' Age Absolute Frequency Relative Frequency Less than 20 years of age 6 2.3% Between 21 and 40 years of age 63 24.5% Between 41 and 60 years of age 124 48.2% More than 60 years of age 64 24.9% Tetal 257 100.0% factors was found to be significant at .0000l (Table #7). The younger the farmers, the more educated they happened to be than the old farmers. For example, all those who had had some college education were between the ages of 21 and 40. Also, the farmers who had completed high school were between the ages of IS and ho. Those 261) 0000. I .0>0. 00000.0.0m.m 600005. .0 0005000 m. 05.3 as..o.n~. I 050:00u.0u 50.00. 500 50.00 00 50.00 00. 55.00 50 55.0 0 .0505 000.00 0 5..5 5. 50.0 . 0 50.0 0 50.00. 5. 50.0 0 co.wuuneuuuowhhmw . . . . . _oogun 00.0 50 0. 50 55 5 . 50 5 0 50 05 0. 50 0. 5 00.0.0000 . . . . . .0000. 55.0.50 50 . 5 50 0 0 50 00 0 50 00 0 50 00 . 00.0.0000 55.05 05 5..0. 0 50.00 00 50..0 5. 50.0 0 05.5: 000 eoo0 5..0. 00 55.05 0. 50.55 0. 55.5 0 50.0 0 5.00 0000 50..0 50. 5..00 50 50.00 05 55.0 0. 50.0 0 05.5: to: 0005 5005.02 >0000005u >0000005u >00000050 >00000050 >0000005. >0000005u >0000005m >0000005u >00000050 >0000005u 0>.50.0¢ 050.000< 0>.50.0¢ 050.000< 0>.50.0¢ 050.000< 0>.50.0¢ 050.000< 0>.50.0¢ 050.000< .0>00 .000.50000u 0.0 050»> 0.0 0500» CO 3 . 5 5 00 00 0005 050: 00 0.05 0005 0.0 .50.» 00 o. .0 0.0 .500» 00 00 .0 .505500 005 00 .0>0. .000.500000 005 000 000 005 0003500 0.0000.50.05 00h--.na 0.000 261 farmers (46 percent) who could neither read nor write were between the ages of hi and over (Table A7). The farmers were asked to indicate whether they would encourage their children to become farmers or not. An overwhelming majority of them (91.0 percent) said ”yes.” Those who do not want their children to become farmers formed 8.6 percent of the total interviewees. The latter are young farmers who have alternative jobs and consider agri- culture a secondary occupation. It is important also to indicate that an attempt was made to determine if there was any significant relationship between the land use patterns and the farmers' age and educational level. The land use vari- ables chosen for the analyses were food grains, vegetables, fruits, alfalfa, and multiple crops. The chi-square analyses of land use patterns with regard to the farmer's age and his educational level were shown to have no significant relation. For example, the educational level vis-é-vis land use patterns was shown to be a chi-square - 10.33091 and the significance level of .7982. At the same time, age with relation to land use patterns had a chi-square - 10.37955, at the significance level of .277]. Farmers' Reaction to the Major Difficulties FEcing Agricultural Development in the Study Area The farmers' responses to an open-ended question were classified as follows: (1) shortages of water supply for agriculture, especially during the summer season; (2) poor agricultural extension services; (3) lack of trained and skilled professionals; (0) crop and animal disease; (5) poor transportation facilities; (6) a lack of wide 262 paved agricultural feeder roads; (7) soil erosion by runoffs and the lack of capital to rebuild the abandoned terraces; (8) low prices for agricultural produce due to the absence of a good marketing system; (9) fragmentation and smallness of agricultural holdings; run a lack of irrigational dams and water conservation; (11) a lack of land use planning; (12) delays in agricultural assistance from the local department of agriculture; and (13) shortages of farm labor. The farmers were also asked to suggest solutions to the difficulties enumerated above. and their responses were summarized as follows: The Ministry of Agriculture and Water Resources should concentrate its efforts on (1) constructing irrigational dams. pro- viding the farmers with good-quality seeds. establishing departments of agriculture in each district. constructing agricultural roads and feed- ers. and providing effective agricultural extension services; (2) ini- tiating agricultural land reforms. (3) providing cash subsidies to build abandoned terraces. (4) encouraging cash crops. (5) providing nonformal education to the farmers. (6) establishing a good transporta- tion system; (7) encouraging farmer cooperatives; and (8)6 1*: (0 m -m m u u an «H >8 " f." ‘6 La 8. o—8. HO. (DE E —E OE .— N M 4" 25. Soil 26. Climate 27. Slope 28. Distance 29. Water supply 30. Accessibility 288 Below are listed all the possible physical hazards to agri- culture. Please rate below how much of a problem each one of them is to what you grow on your farm: 0 E E “E E 0 U0) (DU 00 — _c— L— L.— .D 01.0 0.0 0.0 O "’0 '00 >0 20- mg :0- mn— '- N M a 3i. Soil erosion 32. Shallow soil 33. Poor and stony soil 34. A poor tilth 35. A poor drainage 36. Steep slope 37. Inaccessible location 38. Rolling land 39. Short farming season 40. Winter frost and cold 4|. Water shortage 42. Irregular rainfall 43. Shortage of organic fertilizers 44. Crop and plant diseases 45. Hail and thunder- storms -*1ai 31.' 6. i-m V. ‘1 T D \- .i l. 75 .u .... ... w b rt : ,7 .sq:pndw 289 Locational Factors Geographical distribution Please indicate by putting an (X) in the appropriate blank space against each of the following statements concerning the physical distribution, the degree of agreement or disagreement with them. >~ 0 >0 0') L O'IL C0 0 m cm 00 0) CO 040 LL L In LUI um o: .- u— m< < O we —- N m 4' 46. The area around the village is dominated by fruit trees such as grape, fig, peach trees and others. 47. The second zone is an irri- gable land which is devoted to intensive vegetable agriculture. 48. The third zone is an irri- gable land which is dominated by intensive grain produc- tion. 49. The fourth zone is an area which is devoted to less- intensive grain production (dry farming). 50. The fifth zone is dominated by private forests trees. 51. The last zone is devoted to , animals grazing and live- stock production. 290 Distance to the market and the villagg 52. 53. What How far is your farm from the local market? I) less than 2 kilometers 2) from 2 to 4 kilometers 3) from 5 to 7 kilometers 4) from 8 to ID kilometers 5) more than l0 kilometers How far is your farm from your village? I) less than I kilometer 2) from I to 2 kilometers 3) from 3 to 4 kilometers 4) from 5 to 6 kilometers 5) more than 6 kilometers percentage of your farm acreage have you allocated for each of the following craps? 54. 55. 56. 57. 58. Farm 59. 60. (l) 20% (2) 402 (3) 60: (4) 80% (5) 100% vegetables fruits alfalfa grains pastures 8 forests characteristics What is the average size of your farm? l) less than 3000 square meters 2) 3001 to 6000 square meters 3) 600i to 9000 square meters 4) 9000 square meters and more How many terraces do you own? I) less than l0 terraces 2) II to 20 terraces 3) 2] to 30 terraces 4) 30 terraces and more 29I 6l. Are all of your terraces located in one area? I) all of them 2) some of them 3) only a few of them 4) none of them Change and development of land-use 62. What part of the cultivable area on your terraces have you had under cultivation thirty years ago? I) all of it 2) 2/4 of it 3) I/Z of It 4) I/4 of it 5) none of it 63. What part of the cultivable area on your terraces have you had under cultivation twenty years ago? i) all of it 2) 3/4 of it 3) I/Z of it 4) l/4 of it 5) none of it 64. What part of the cultivable area on your terraces have you had under cultivation ten years ago? I) all of it 2) 3/4 of it 3) l/2 of it 4) l/4 of it 5) none of it 65. What part of the cultivable area on your terraces do you grow now? I) all of it 2) 3/4 of it 3) l/2 of it 4) l/4 of it 5) none of it 66. 67. 68. 69. 70. 292 What was the main crop you grew on your farms thirty years ago? food grains vegetables fruits alfalfa multiple What was the main crOp you grew on your terraces twenty years ago? food grains vegetables fruits alfalfa multiple What was the main crop you grew on your terraces or farms ten years ago? food grains vegetables fruits alfalfa multiple Which of the following crops did you grow the most during the last thirty years? food grains vegetables fruits alfalfa food grains and vegetables Which of the following crops do you grow the most now? food grains vegetables fruit alfalfa food grains and vegetables -.i-' . _..,, ... .. -1'(‘ .n‘w‘ ,1-2: 293 Socioeconomic‘Factors Income characteristics 7l. Do you grow enough farm produce to sell? I) yes 2) no 72. If your answer to the above question is "yes,” what is your approximate annual income in Saudi ryals? 1) less than 5000 ryals 2) 500l to l0,000 ryals 3) l0,00l to l5,000 ryals 4) l5,001 to 20,000 ryals 5) 20,000 to 25,000 ryals 6) 25,000 and more If your answer to question 71 Is ”no," what is/are the reasons? Please indicate whether each reason is very important, moderately important, slightly important, or not important to you. >. H U —U U C >~C Q): C CO “'0 an m u an mu H O 0 H8. 0-8. to. L0. OE '—E 25 ME 2.- mo.- 0- >0— '— N m J 73. I produce food only for the consumption of my family. 74. Market prices for agri- cultural produce are not encouraging. 75. The size of my farm is too small to produce enough for the market. 76. I am too old to farm without help. 77. Most of my terraces are abandoned and I can't bring them back under the plow. lul' (171-: btvla~95§ f. 4 4"” .. 4 ”9|- : -i—. o ‘ L L chri- ‘ we - J J .' E». : ,"-_0 ’ibifi’i' 1:; 'T _- ‘_ , 294 > H H —-U U C >~C Q: C (U —m “W m H H“ mu U L :8- LL L 0 DO 00 >0 HQ 0-0. 'UQ LO- OE —5 £5 OE 2.. me— 0— >0- '— N M a 78. Agriculture is a hard occupation and its income in comparison to incomes from other jobs is low. 79. l have another job, and agriculture to me is only a secondary occu- pation. 80. Profitable agriculture nowadays depends on modern technology, which I can't. Emigration 81. Have you or any member of your family been residing customarily away from the village in urban centers? l) yes 2) no If your answer to the above question is ”yes," what is/are the reasons for the change of residence? Please indicate whether each one of the following reasons is not important, slightly important, moderately important, or very important. >~ H U I—H U C >~C ”C C m "'45 am to u an mu 4: L £L LL L 0 0‘18 00 >0 HQ .- UO. LQ OE PE OE OE 20- mo. 20- >0- 0. N M a. 82. better jobs and wages in urban centers 83. lack of economic opportu- nities in the village -..-.. \ -....F. . .l.__ . “.24“ “.5 ": 25:1 «41; { ..rm aha-1w mg a .l I .. ' 84. 85. 86. 87. 88. 89. 90. 9I. 295 >. «H «H —U H C >~C 0: C CD —-I‘D “'0 I'll u .444 mu u L _CL LL L 0 DO 00 >0 HQ 0-0. '00. L0 OE —E DE GE 2.- mh :0- >.- -— N M 4' lack of education in the village lack of medical care in the village economic inadequacy of farming family feuds and disputes attractions in the city Do you have another source of income besides agriculture? 1) Yes 2) No If your answer to the above question is "Yes," would you please indicate the sources of this additional income? 1) governmental subsidies for agriculture 2) old-age benefits (social welfare) 3) remittances from my children 4) employment 5) others Since you have other sources of income besides agriculture, please indicate your approximate annual income from that source(s). l) less than 5000 Saudi ryals 2) 5000 to l0,000 Saudi ryals 3) 10,00l to 15,000 Saudi ryals 4) 15,00] to 20,000 Saudi ryals 5) 20,000 and more 296 Transportation characteristics Listed below are seven statements concerning farms. Please indicate the degree of your agreement or disagreement with each statement. >~ o >~o —- o ._ o o: L 01L c 0 m U) c U) o o o m o m LL L in LCD (u ow om ._ -u-— cn m c< c: cn-u F' N M 4' 92. I grow cash crops on most of my farm because my farm is located near the paved road. 93. I grow cash crops on most of my farm because I have good transportation facilities to transport my farm produce to the market. 94. I grow cash crops on most of my farm because the transportation cost is low. 95. I do not grow cash crops on my farm because I do not own transportation facili- ties. 96. Transportation cost is very high, which discourages me to grow cash crops. 97. Agricultural and feeder roads are very poor, which discourage the cultivation of cash crops on my farm. 98. I grow cash crops on my farm because it does not cost my anything to trans- port them to the local or regional markets; the new highway runs near my farm, and I sell the produce to the people on the road. 297 Modern agricultural technology 99. Would you like to use modern mechanized farming l00. methods on your terraces or farms? I) Yes 2) No Please indicate which of the following statements represents your situation concerning the use of agricultural machinery: l) I want to use modern agricultural machinery, but I do not know how to 2) I want to, but I cannot afford it 3) I want to, but there are no trained operators available here 4) I do not want to, as I prefer traditional methods of farming 5) I do not want to, as my farms (terraces) are too small for mechanization 6) I do use mechanized farming 7) Most of the above reasons Farm input-output relationship lOl. l02. Are your inputs of farm labor, fertilizers, irrigation and your personal time compensated for by the output of your farm? I) Yes 2) No If your answer to the above question is "Yes,” please indicate your approximate net returns per year. I) less than 5000 Saudi ryals 2) between 500i and 10,000 Saudi ryals 3) between l0,001 and l5,000 Saudi ryals 4) between I5,00l and 20,000 Saudi ryals 5) above 20,000 Saudi ryals 298 Imported food l03. Is it cheaper for you to buy food for your consumption from the market than to produce it on your terraces or farms? I) Yes 2) No l04. If your answer is ”yes,“ please indicate the reason why it is cheaper to buy food from the markets. I) because of government subsidies for imported food 2) because of the shortages of farm labor 3) because farm labor is very expensive 4) because the transportation cost is very high 5) because imported grains are better than locally produced grains 6) most of the above reasons Fragmentation l05. Do you think that agricultural roductivit of your terraces has fallen during your lifetime? I) Yes 2) No If your answer to the above question is "Yes,” please indicate how important is each of the following factors in contributing to the decline of agricultural productivity on your farm. >. U H l-IU H C >~C ”C C to —m um m u 444-: mu u Cl “8. "'8. '08. LO. OE '-E 2E ”E z.— mou- .- >0. '— N m 4' l06. Fragmentation of agricultural land l07. Poor agricultural extension services 108. Lack of modern agri- cultural technology 299 Not important I. l09. Shortages of farm labor 2. Slightly important 3. Moderately important ll0. Shortages of organic fertilizers lll. Scarcity of water supply for agriculture ll2. High energy prices Governmental assistance important 4. Very ll3. Do you receive any assistance from the department of agriculture in your district to help increase your production? lI4. If Yes No "Yes," what kind of assistance do you receive? agricultural equipment and machinery interest-free loan subsidized farm inputs cash subsidies other assistance Farm animals IlS. Do ll6. If you raise animals on your farm? Yes No "Yes,” what animals do you raise? sheep goats cattle other animals ;‘ :I'tv - "f. - Tfi'n‘d'l‘t'r t“~'”‘4‘°;’1”. se-ol mil- 1:”;th ' nuqnl an” knit! 117. 118. 119. 300 Why do you raise livestock on your farm? 1) for domestic use 2) for commercial use 3) for farm management 4) all purposes Where do you graze your animals? 1) on my farm 2) outside the farm 3) others Do you have sufficient veterinary care for your livestock? 1) Yes 2) No Farm labor characteristics 120. 121. 122. 123. 124. How many members are there in your family? 1) less than 3 2) 4-6 3) more-Ehan 6 How many peOple work on your farm? 1) less than 3 2) 4-6 3) more EFSh 6 Are they all members of your family? 1) Yes 2) No If your answer to the above question is ”No,” how many hired are normally used to work your farm(s)? 1. 2. 3. 4. 5 When do you usually hire farm labor? 1) during the harvesting season ____ 2) during the sowing season ____ 3) during sowing and harvesting ____ 4) all year around ____ 5) only when it is needed ____ 125. 301 What is the average wage you usually pay to a hired worker on your farm per day in Saudi ryals? 1) less than 40 ryals 2) from 40 to 60 ryals 3) from 61 to 80 ryals 4) more than 80 ryals Social characteristics of the owner 126. 127. 128. 129. 130. Are you the head of the family? 1) Yes 2) No How long have you been living in this village? 1) less than 5 years ___- 2) 5 to 10 years _ 3) 11 to 15 years ____ 4) over 15 years ___. What is your educational level? 1) I can neither read nor write 2) I can only read 3) I can read and write 4) I have completed primary school I I 5) have completed high school 6) have completed some college ____ How old are you? 1) less than 20 years old 2) between 21 and 40 years old 3) between 41 and 60 years old 4) more than 60 years old Do you encourage your children to become farmers? 1) Yes 2) No 131. 132. 133. 302 In your opinion, what are the major difficulties facing agricul- tural development in your area in particular and in the Assarah region in general? I) 2) 3) 4) 5) 6) In your Opinion, how can the major agricultural difficulties in particular and in Assarah in general be overcome? l) 2) 3) 4) S) 6) Do you have any comments to offer on your answers? 1) 2) 3) 4) 5) 6) BIBLIOGRAPHY 303 BIBLIOGRAPHY Books Abler. R.: Adams. J. 5.; and Gould. P. - ' . Englewood Cliffs. N.J.: Prentice-Hall. 1971. Avery. T. E. W. Minneapolis. Minn.: Burgess Publishing Co.. 1977. Barlowe. R. MW. 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