Functional and Structural Changes of Agricultural Landscapes: How Changes are Conceived by Local Farmers in Two Danish Rural Communities

Abstract

The subject of this paper is the views of farmers concerning their local landscape. In two contrasting Danish case study areas previously analysed in the 1990s, a small number of farmers have been interviewed regarding their views of the landscape and recent changes in their respective area including landscape changes. One of the areas (Hvorslev) is characterized by good conditions for agriculture, intensive husbandry production and a relatively stable landscape history. The other (Nees) has more marginal conditions and major changes in land use characterize the recent landscape history. We analyze the way in which the landscape is perceived by farmers and compare their views of the changing landscapes with the actual recorded changes on the one hand, and with other significant changes on the other. Farmers in both areas emphasized the same type of structural changes in agriculture and in the villages as significant, whereas only farmers in Nees indicated that the landscape had changed. When asked to characterize the landscape, farmers in Nees replied with a greater degree of detail and were more locally focused compared to farmers in Hvorslev who mainly referred to (well known) sites located a few kilometres outside the area in question. Long-term experiences with landscape changes and collective actions concerning landscape issues are suggested as the main reasons that farmers in Nees share a well developed awareness of their local landscape. We conclude by discussing some implications of this study for landscape research and policy.