Agricultural Landscapes in Spain: Wet and Peninsular Zones
The Diversity of Agricultural Landscapes in Spain
Agricultural Landscape of Wet Spain
It comprises the north and northwest peninsular. The agrarian structure is characterized by:
- A large population, which the field could not provide enough income for, so it was forced to migrate. Today, a predominantly dispersed, aging population is settled in the area.
- The property system is characterized by smallholders. Farmers are owners of small parcels surrounded by hedgerows and far apart, reducing their profitability and making mechanization difficult.
- Land uses are mainly for farming.
Agriculture occupies a small area. In the coastal zone, the fields are located at the bottom of the valleys; in the interior, agricultural use is very low. It is a rainfed agriculture.
In the past, polyculture was practiced. Horticultural crops were grown in small gardens near the homes for household consumption, as well as corn, potatoes, fruit trees, and vines, the latter especially in Galicia. In the worse land, barley or rye was planted, and the family economy was completed by raising cattle. Currently, polyculture agriculture is disappearing and is specializing in garden crops and fodder for livestock.
Livestock is the most important economic activity. It is favored by the weather, urban demand for milk and meat, and the rural exodus.
In Galicia, small and medium-sized family farms continue to predominate. On the Cantabrian facade, farms have been modernized in size and equipment.
Membership of the EU poses greater EU competitiveness and the problem of surplus, which involves the imposition of quotas and the decline in production, which in turn hinders modernization.
Logging is another important activity. It is destined for the furniture industry or pulp production. Rural tourism is an option, and it can be a complement.
The Agricultural Landscape of the Peninsular
It includes both uplands and the depression of the Ebro.
The agrarian structure features:
- The population has emigrated. The settlement is concentrated in villages, small in the valleys of the Duero and Ebro, and large and far between in the southern half of the peninsula.
- The property system is varied: small farms overlook the valley of the Duero and Ebro. Irrigation of large properties is characteristic of Salamanca, Burgos, Castilla-La Mancha, Extremadura, and Aragon, and drylands.
- Land uses are varied.
Agriculture occupies 44% of the surface and shows clear differences between the areas of rainfed and irrigated land. Rainfed agriculture dominates the countryside. Crops are devoted to featuring the Mediterranean trilogy: cereals, grapes, and olives.
In the past, cereals, mainly wheat, were rotated with fallow or were associated with legumes and grazing sheep farming in the stubble. The dry lands were occupied by woody crops, including vines and olive trees, followed by almond and carob trees.
Currently, wheat has been replaced largely by barley, and complete fallow has replaced medium fallow. This trend contrasts with the reform of the CAP. Cereals dominate Castilla y León, while in Castilla-La Mancha, Aragon, and Extremadura, olive groves and vineyards have made important inroads. The latter stands out in La Rioja and Navarra for its quality and extension.
- Irrigation allows more intensive use. Traditionally, only small areas were irrigated in the river valleys and near the villages, producing vegetables for home consumption.
It has now increased thanks to irrigation, water use, and groundwater reservoirs. This has allowed the diversification of production: industrial plants, such as sugar beet, hops, and snuff; fodder for livestock feed, such as alfalfa or maize; and fruits and vegetables, which are the basis of an outstanding cannery industry in the Ebro Valley lands of La Rioja, Navarra, and Aragon.