The topography of a site is one of the most dominate aspects that impacts the suitability of that site for different types of production. Ideally, a gentle north facing slope should be sought (in temperate southern hemisphere climates), which will receive the most amount of sunlight to fuel growth of productive plants through photosynthesis.
Other advantages of the slope are that it allows water to drain away from the site, to capture and store water, allow frost to flow off the site and allow water to transfer nutrients between areas. Areas of steeper slope are best used for tree crops which will stabilize the soil in this type of terrain and be useful for production. Areas of flat or little slope can also be very productive for intensive crops or high yield animals (like dairy) but are also at risk of flooding.
Other advantages of the slope are that it allows water to drain away from the site, to capture and store water, allow frost to flow off the site and allow water to transfer nutrients between areas. Areas of steeper slope are best used for tree crops which will stabilize the soil in this type of terrain and be useful for production. Areas of flat or little slope can also be very productive for intensive crops or high yield animals (like dairy) but are also at risk of flooding.
Reading The Landscape
Below are a couple of videos that review the application of permaculture methodology to reading the landscape.
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Mapping Contour Lines
Below are a collection of resources - showing different approaches to mapping contours by hand on a farm.
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Readings
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Mapping NZ Landscapes Using LENS Framework
The LENZ is a classification of the terrestrial environment that can help address conservation and natural resource management issues. This data set classifies the landscape based on its environmental character. The LENZ uses 15 climate, landform and soil factors which are likely to influence animals and plants. This data set provides a classification that can be used as a surrogate for ecosystems. It considers the relationship between the environment and species distributions. It is based on the idea that similar environments will support similar groups of plants and animals relative to the extent of human modification. So the classification identifies sites with similar environmental and ecosystem characteristics.
It has an advantage over just mapping land cover as it identifies underlying characteristics of modified landscapes which could have been cleared or replaced by introduced species such as weeds and pests.
It is relevant to use in agricultural applications as well as biodiversity management.
For more information go to
https://www.landcareresearch.co.nz/resources/maps-satellites/lenz/downloads
Here you can down load a copy of the technical hand book , poster and brochure.
It has an advantage over just mapping land cover as it identifies underlying characteristics of modified landscapes which could have been cleared or replaced by introduced species such as weeds and pests.
It is relevant to use in agricultural applications as well as biodiversity management.
For more information go to
https://www.landcareresearch.co.nz/resources/maps-satellites/lenz/downloads
Here you can down load a copy of the technical hand book , poster and brochure.
LINZ Maps
LINZ topographic maps are available for all of New Zealand, its offshore islands, some Pacific Islands and the Ross Sea region of Antarctica. They produce our maps in a variety of scales from 1:50,000 to 1:4,000,000 and in a selection of formats. They also make available the data that we use to create them so that it can be used and reused in a wide range of applications.
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Digital Maps
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GIS Maps
I have not used GIS maps yet - but I am including it here as it seems to be the next generation of mapping storytelling as some pretty awesome capabilities.
A Geographic Information System (GIS) is a computer-aided system for the acquisition, storage, analysis and display of geographic data. A variety of systems are available, each labelled a GIS, but they can differ significantly in the way they represent geographic data and the emphasis they place on each of the key operations of acquisition, storage, analysis and display
The following websites contain good general introductions to the principles and application of GIS. On each site there are a number of different resources for you to try.
A GIS is often thought of as a single piece of software but is in fact an amalgamation of a series of components, described below:
The GIS uses overlays or layers on which the spatial distribution of attributes is recorded. By overlaying the layers the spatial relationships of the attributes can be analysed. For example, if a layer with information on the spatial distribution of erosion risk is overlain with the spatial distribution of farmland a risk map can be made that could guide decisions on priorities for erosion control. A second example might be areas of native forest, kiwi habitat and stoat numbers to identify high risk areas for kiwi mortality.
A Geographic Information System (GIS) is a computer-aided system for the acquisition, storage, analysis and display of geographic data. A variety of systems are available, each labelled a GIS, but they can differ significantly in the way they represent geographic data and the emphasis they place on each of the key operations of acquisition, storage, analysis and display
The following websites contain good general introductions to the principles and application of GIS. On each site there are a number of different resources for you to try.
- www.whatisgis.com
- www.slideshare.net/aGISguy
- www.landsat.gsfc.nasa.gov/education/tutorials
A GIS is often thought of as a single piece of software but is in fact an amalgamation of a series of components, described below:
- Spatial Attributes Database: This is the core of a GIS. It is a collection of maps, together with associated information, in a digital form. It contains data on earth surface features and has two distinct components. One is a spatial database of the geography of the Earth’s surface (shape and position of the surface) and the other is an attributes database containing information about the geographic units.
- Cartographic Display System: Around the core databases is a set of software that manipulates and/or outputs the data. The cartographic display system is the most basic of thes. The basic system is an electronic atlas for access and display only. More sophisticated systems support manipulation of the output, e.g. colour, layers, scale bars, etc. All of the cartographic display systems can output to high quality publication software such as CorelDraw, Adobe, etc.
- Map Display System: This converts paper maps to digital data using a digitising tablet and stylus or pick. The outline of features to be recorded is traced using the stylus. An alternative is to scan the paper image. Computer Aided design (CAD) packages can also input digitised map information.
- Database Management System: Traditionally these are used to input, manage and analyse attribute data. In a GIS the attribute data is associated with spatial data so the DBMS is accompanied by utilities that handle this relationship.
- Geographic Analysis System: So far the components described can digitise spatial data, attach attributes to areas or points in the spatial data, analyse the attribute data and output the result as a map. In addition the Geographic Analysis System is needed to analyse the spatial data that is analysing the data based on its location. For example, we may need to find out the areas of private land under native or exotic forest. It is this ability to manipulate spatial data that distinguishes a GIS.
The GIS uses overlays or layers on which the spatial distribution of attributes is recorded. By overlaying the layers the spatial relationships of the attributes can be analysed. For example, if a layer with information on the spatial distribution of erosion risk is overlain with the spatial distribution of farmland a risk map can be made that could guide decisions on priorities for erosion control. A second example might be areas of native forest, kiwi habitat and stoat numbers to identify high risk areas for kiwi mortality.