Monoculture


	Monoculture
	Advantages Specialised harvesting techniques: one type of machine can collect all of the crop Highly selected strains: varieties of plants with desireable characteristics can be 'matched' to the conditions Mineral/water requirement: scientists can work out exactly what the crop needs, and farmers can make sure they use it	Disadvantages Poor wildlife foods: very little cariety of 'weeds' for insects and birds Spread of disease: plant oathogens, such as the potato blight fungus and tobacco mosaic virus, spread easily Loss of genetic variety: may mean that any change in environmental resistance could damage or kill all of the plants Damage to soil: the same minerals will be drained awa by many copies of the same plant. As the crops are harvested and taken away the minerals will be lost from the soil.
	Evaluation

Specialised harvesting techniques: one type of machine can collect all of the crop
Highly selected strains: varieties of plants with desireable characteristics can be 'matched' to the conditions
Mineral/water requirement: scientists can work out exactly what the crop needs, and farmers can make sure they use it

Poor wildlife foods: very little cariety of 'weeds' for insects and birds
Spread of disease: plant oathogens, such as the potato blight fungus and tobacco mosaic virus, spread easily
Loss of genetic variety: may mean that any change in environmental resistance could damage or kill all of the plants
Damage to soil: the same minerals will be drained awa by many copies of the same plant. As the crops are harvested and taken away the minerals will be lost from the soil.

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