The aim of this study was to conduct basic surveys and classify villa areas into typologies in order to compare the environments of villa areas. First, information was collected on the development ...period, area, number of buildings and area of buildings in each villa area, as well as information on topography and vegetation. Then, the existence of large villa areas, villa areas with a small number of buildings, and the composition of vegetation in each villa area were clarified. Finally, using these data, the 20 targeted villa areas were classified into nine categories.
The uncertainty of the global food supply has increased, and land abandonment has affected food security. Based on nationally representative farm households in 1995, 2002, 2008 and 2020, this paper ...systematically reveals the extent, drivers, and production loss of farmland abandonment in China, providing a scientific basis for the comprehensive management of land abandonment. The extent of farmland abandonment has been increasing since 1995; 1/5 of farmers have abandoned their farmland, and 1/10 of farmland has been abandoned. The number of counties recording farmland abandonment increased from 34 (11.15%) at the beginning of the study period to 224 (73.44%) by the end, and these counties were mainly distributed in the hilly and mountainous areas along the Yangtze River as well as in Southeast, Southwest, Northwest, and Northeast China. Farmland abandonment is the result of a combination of multiple factors, including basic farmland conditions and socio-economic and ecological factors, among which the low agricultural comparative income caused by agricultural labour shortages and poor-quality farmland conditions is the root cause. In 2020, for example, the ratio of farmland abandonment in major grain-producing and non-grain-producing regions was 7.38% and 16.94%, respectively, resulting in a total loss of 49.23 million tons of grain, which is 7.36% of the total national grain output. The production loss experienced by China could feed 123 million people based on the per capita annual food consumption estimates of 400 kg. Currently, farmland abandonment poses a threat to China's food security, and the government should gradually improve the quality of farmland through comprehensive land management, improve rural infrastructure and develop small-scale machinery suitable for hilly and mountainous areas.
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•A new framework is proposed for delineating farmland consolidation priority areas.•The approach takes the consideration of the applicability of agricultural machinery.•The model proved effective in ...farmland consolidation works.•The proposed framework can be used in preparing strategies for policymakers.
Delineating priority areas for farmland consolidation is an important way to realize the optimal allocation of limited resources and ensure maximum utility. Traditional approaches lack consideration of the applicability of agricultural machinery, which is extremely critical for improving agricultural mechanization levels in hilly and mountainous areas. To fill the gap, this study assesses the potential of farmland consolidation suitable for mechanization (PFCSM) at the parcel level, and combines it with the ant colony optimization (ACO) model to construct a framework for the delineation of priority areas. This was applied to Fengkai, a typical hilly county in China, and the results showed that farmland in priority areas lacks directly accessible roads for agricultural machinery and has an irregular shape; however, it has better natural conditions and shows spatial characteristics of local aggregation, and the framework can reasonably delineate farmland consolidation priority areas under various constraints and hypothetical scenarios, and effectively prevent zoning fragmentation. The marginal contributions of this study are mainly twofold: (1) constructing a potential assessment index system of farmland consolidation suitable for mechanization, which consists of road accessibility (RA), height difference (HD), minimum transit cost distance (MTCD), shape index (SI), flatness level (FL), and area index (AI) from two aspects of the accessibility and operational efficiency of agricultural machinery; (2) establishing a framework for delineating priority areas with extensive scenario analysis abilities, which can provide multiple interfaces for delineation with different goals or policy preferences.
The rational and efficient use of cropland is a crucial way to stabilize the balance between food supply and demand, ensure sustainable agricultural development, and guarantee national food security. ...However, there has been a tendency for non-grain planting of cultivated land in recent years. Investigating the driving factors of farmers' non-grain planting in hilly and mountainous areas is meaningful. This study extended the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) by introducing the variable of risk-carrying capacity, and the results supported that the integrative model was more efficient in explaining non-grain production behavior. Farmers' risk-carrying capacity and subjective norm were the most critical determinants of their planting behavioral intention. Besides, attitude, subjective norm, and perceived behavioral control mediated the paths of risk-carrying capacity to farmers' non-grain crops growing intention. Most importantly, there were differences in the behavior mechanism of farmers of different ages and working statuses. These findings provided a clear evidence understanding of farmers' non-grain planting behavior and could help program planners design policy interventions.
In order to meet the terrain adaptability, flexibility, and stability requirement of the agricultural power chassis when driving in complex terrain and narrow fields in hilly and mountainous areas, ...an arch waist power chassis suitable for a narrow plot with strong ground adaptability is designed. On the undulating road surface, the longitudinal pitch of the track can be used for active and passive ground copying to exert the maximum driving force. Through the theoretical analysis of the whole machine, it is obtained that the minimum turning radius of the chassis is 568.5 mm between the two rear wheels, which is about 34.12% of the length of the whole machine. The longitudinal uphill slip angle
α
φ
is 26.9–42.84°, and the longitudinal downhill slip angle
α
φ
′
is 29.28–43.7°. Finally, the performance test of the whole machine is carried out. The test results show that the arch waist power chassis has a minimum turning radius of 1230.7 mm in field driving, which has good steering maneuverability and can adapt to the narrow operating environment in hilly and mountainous areas; the longitudinal downhill slip angle is 32°, and the longitudinal uphill slip angle is 28°. The longitudinal downhill slip angle is about 1.14 times the longitudinal uphill slip angle, and the lateral slope slip angle is 27°, which meets the requirements for stable operation in hilly and mountainous terrain.
The aim of this study was to conduct basic surveys and classify villa areas into typologies in order to compare the environments of villa areas. First, information was collected on the development ...period, area, number of buildings and area of buildings in each villa area, as well as information on topography and vegetation. Then, the existence of large villa areas, villa areas with a small number of buildings, and the composition of vegetation in each villa area were clarified. Finally, using these data, the 20 targeted villa areas were classified into nine categories.
Subsistence smallholder agriculture in East Asia was highly recognized by Dr. Franklin Hiram King in his book Farmers of Forty Centuries or Permanent Agriculture in China, Korea and Japan though it ...has been abandoned due to industrialization and urbanization since the end of the 20th century. This reprint consists of research on the transformation of agricultural systems and the mechanism behind these phenomena in China and Japan. We believe that this reprint is practically important, and we appreciate your understanding of the imperfections and hope you enjoy this reprint.
