Unit 2 Lesson 5. Crops The first settlers leaving St. Louis headed west across the Great Plains. They began to farm the land and raise chickens, hogs,

COMMUNITIES ARE BUILT NEAR RESOURCES

WHY DO YOU THINK CITIES AND TOWNS ARE BUILT NEAR RESOURCES?

Unit 2 Lesson 5

Crops

The first settlers leaving St. Louis headed west across the Great Plains. They began to farm the land and raise chickens, hogs, and cows.

Crops are plants used by people for food or other needs.

Natural Resource

A natural resource is something found in nature that people can use.

Trees, water, animals, and soil are natural resources.

Growing Season

The months in which crops can grow are called the growing season.

Growing seasons depend on the climate of a place.

The growing season is short in places with long and cold winters. The growing season is long in places with short and warm winters.

Omaha, Nebraska

Omaha, Nebraska is in the Great Plains.

The city grew because there were many resources for farming.

Minerals

A mineral is a resource found inside the Earth.

Some examples are: silver, gold, or iron.

Minerals can be used to make metal tools, glass, or jewelry.

Fuels

Fuels are also found inside the Earth.

Some examples are: coal and oil.

Fuels can be burned for heat and power to make machines work.

Mines and Oil Wells

People dug mines and drilled oil wells to get the resources from the Earth.

They sold minerals and fuels to make money.

They built communities near these resources. Towns near places with underground resources grew fast.

Ghost Towns

When the minerals and fuels ran out in towns, people left and the towns turned into ghost towns.

Ghost towns had buildings but no people.

Agriculture

Agriculture is the raising of crops and farm animals.

Many people make their living in agriculture.