AP Human Geography Quiz: Von Thunen Model
20 questions · exam conditions
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Von Thunen ModelQuestion 1 of 20

In a simplified agricultural region with one market, farmers compete for land. A secondary source excerpt explains bid-rent theory in the von Thünen model: each land use has a maximum rent it can pay at each distance, and the highest bidder at a location determines the land use. According to the von Thünen model, which of the following best explains the agricultural pattern described?

Land use at each distance is set by the activity willing to pay the highest rent there after accounting for transport costs.
Land use is determined only by tradition, so rent competition plays no role in where crops are grown.
The model predicts that land uses are fixed by law, so rent bidding is unnecessary for explaining spatial patterns.
The model predicts ranching will outbid all other uses near the market because it requires daily delivery of fresh products.
The model is based on industrial location least-cost theory, so factory inputs and labor pools determine the agricultural layout.
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AP Human Geography Quiz

AP Human Geography Quiz: Von Thunen Model

Practice Von Thunen Model in AP Human Geography with focused quiz questions that help you check what you know, review explanations, and build confidence with test-style prompts.

What this quiz covers

This quiz focuses on Von Thunen Model, giving you a quick way to practice the rules, question types, and explanations that matter most for AP Human Geography.

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Try each quiz question before looking at the correct answer. Use the explanations to review missed ideas, then come back to similar questions until the pattern feels familiar.

All questions

Question 1

In a simplified agricultural region with one market, farmers compete for land. A secondary source excerpt explains bid-rent theory in the von Thünen model: each land use has a maximum rent it can pay at each distance, and the highest bidder at a location determines the land use. According to the von Thünen model, which of the following best explains the agricultural pattern described?

  1. Land use at each distance is set by the activity willing to pay the highest rent there after accounting for transport costs. (correct answer)
  2. Land use is determined only by tradition, so rent competition plays no role in where crops are grown.
  3. The model predicts that land uses are fixed by law, so rent bidding is unnecessary for explaining spatial patterns.
  4. The model predicts ranching will outbid all other uses near the market because it requires daily delivery of fresh products.
  5. The model is based on industrial location least-cost theory, so factory inputs and labor pools determine the agricultural layout.
Explanation: Bid-rent theory is central to the von Thünen model, where different agricultural activities compete for land by offering the highest rent they can afford at each distance from the market. Each activity's bid-rent curve slopes downward with distance due to increasing transportation costs subtracting from potential profits. The land use at any point is determined by the activity with the steepest curve or highest remaining profit, leading to zoned patterns. Choice A correctly captures this by stating that the highest bidder after transport costs sets the land use. This competitive process explains why intensive farming dominates near the market. Understanding bid-rent helps illustrate how economic forces shape spatial organization in agriculture.

Question 2

A secondary source explains that in the von Thünen model, land-use patterns result from competition over land rent that declines with distance from the market. According to the von Thünen model, which of the following best explains why two different crops might switch locations if fuel prices rise sharply?

  1. Higher transport costs steepen the decline of bid-rent with distance, so goods that are costly to ship may move closer to the market and outbid others. (correct answer)
  2. Fuel prices do not matter because the model assumes shipping costs are always zero for all products.
  3. The ring order cannot change because the model treats the initial arrangement as a fixed law of nature.
  4. Rising fuel prices make distant land more profitable for intensive crops because land is cheaper far from the city.
  5. Rising fuel prices cause the CBD to decentralize into edge cities, as predicted by the sector model.
Explanation: The von Thünen model demonstrates how changing transportation costs can reorganize the entire agricultural landscape through bid-rent competition. When fuel prices rise sharply, transport costs increase for all products, but the impact varies by commodity - bulky or heavy products face steeper cost increases than compact, valuable ones. This differential impact changes the slope of each crop's bid-rent curve: activities with high transport costs per unit value see their bid-rent curves decline more steeply with distance. As these curves shift, their intersection points change, potentially allowing a crop that was previously outbid near the city to become competitive there. For example, if grain transport becomes very expensive due to fuel costs, grain farming might move closer to the market and displace other activities that are less affected by fuel prices. Answer A correctly explains how transport cost changes can reorder the rings through bid-rent competition.

Question 3

A secondary-source description emphasizes assumptions behind von Thünen's model: a single market, uniform terrain, and equal transport conditions in all directions. In a real region, a large river makes shipping cheaper along one corridor, and farming zones stretch outward along the river rather than forming circles. According to the von Thünen model, which of the following best explains the agricultural pattern described?

  1. The corridor pattern results from violating the isotropic-plain assumption; unequal transport routes distort rings into elongated zones. (correct answer)
  2. The corridor pattern is required by the model because it assumes transport is cheaper along rivers than across land.
  3. The corridor pattern occurs because bid-rent is constant at all distances, so land uses do not sort by transport cost.
  4. The corridor pattern is best explained by the Burgess concentric zone model of urban neighborhoods.
  5. The corridor pattern proves the von Thünen model is a literal map of reality and should match every landscape exactly.
Explanation: The von Thünen model explicitly assumes an isotropic plain with equal transport conditions in all directions, creating the ideal conditions for concentric rings. When a river provides cheaper transport along one corridor, this assumption is violated, fundamentally altering the spatial pattern. Lower transport costs along the river effectively bring distant locations "closer" to the market in economic terms, stretching the agricultural zones outward along the river corridor. Instead of circular rings, elongated zones form because farmers along the river can profitably produce goods that would be unprofitable at the same physical distance over land. This demonstrates how transport infrastructure shapes agricultural patterns by modifying the effective economic distance to market. Choice A correctly identifies the violation of the isotropic plain assumption as the cause of the corridor pattern.

Question 4

A secondary source excerpt argues that the von Thünen model remains relevant despite limitations because it provides a baseline logic: land users balance accessibility to markets against land costs, even if modern technology and multiple markets distort rings. In a region with refrigerated trucking and several supermarkets, farmers still pay higher rents near the metro area for direct-to-consumer produce stands, while commodity crops dominate farther out. According to the von Thünen model, which of the following best explains the agricultural pattern described?

  1. The pattern shows that accessibility still affects what land users can profitably produce and how much rent they can pay, even without perfect rings. (correct answer)
  2. The pattern occurs because von Thünen's assumptions are always true in modern economies, so technology cannot change outcomes.
  3. Direct-to-consumer produce should be farthest away because it is least time-sensitive, while commodity crops should be nearest the city.
  4. The pattern can be explained without considering rent or transport costs because all farmers receive identical profits at all distances.
  5. This pattern is best explained by the Harris-Ullman multiple nuclei model of urban land use.
Explanation: Despite modern complexities like refrigerated trucking and multiple markets, the von Thünen model's core principle remains relevant: land users balance market accessibility against land costs. Direct-to-consumer produce stands pay higher rents near metro areas because proximity to consumers provides value through freshness, convenience, and reduced transport costs for frequent small deliveries. Even with refrigeration reducing spoilage concerns, being close to customers offers marketing advantages and allows premium pricing for local produce. Commodity crops dominate farther out where lower land costs offset the expense of shipping to distant markets or processors. The model's baseline logic of rent gradients and transport cost considerations still influences agricultural location decisions. While technology and infrastructure modify the specific patterns, they don't eliminate the fundamental economic trade-offs. Answer A correctly recognizes that accessibility continues to affect profitability and rent-paying ability despite technological changes.

Question 5

A secondary source excerpt emphasizes that in the von Thünen model, transportation costs largely determine how intensively land is used: activities with high value-to-weight ratios or high perishability cluster near the market to reduce shipping costs. In a region with one major city market, farmers who grow strawberries and leafy greens cluster close to the city, while wheat production is farther out. According to the von Thünen model, which of the following best explains the agricultural pattern described?

  1. Perishable, high-value crops locate near the market to minimize transport costs and spoilage, allowing more intensive land use. (correct answer)
  2. Perishable crops locate near the market because the model assumes farmers do not respond to prices or profits.
  3. Wheat should be closest because it spoils fastest and is most expensive to ship.
  4. Transport costs do not matter because all land uses can pay the same rent at every distance.
  5. This pattern is best explained by the Burgess model, which predicts urban social zones arranged in concentric rings.
Explanation: The von Thünen model emphasizes how transportation costs shape agricultural location decisions, particularly for perishable and high-value crops. Strawberries and leafy greens cluster near the city because they are highly perishable and lose value quickly during transport, making proximity to market essential for profitability. These crops also tend to have high value relative to their weight, which allows farmers to pay higher land rents near the city while still maintaining profits. In contrast, wheat is less perishable and has lower value per unit weight, making it more economical to produce on cheaper land farther from the market despite higher transport costs. This spatial sorting by perishability and value-to-weight ratio creates intensive agriculture near cities and extensive agriculture at greater distances. Answer A correctly explains how minimizing transport costs and spoilage drives perishable, high-value crops to locate near markets.

Question 6

A geography teacher summarizes the von Thünen model as a simplified way to predict agricultural land use around a single market. The summary emphasizes the model's assumptions: an isolated state with one central city, a flat and uniform plain, equal soil fertility, farmers seeking to maximize profit, and transportation costs that increase with distance using the same routes in all directions. According to the von Thünen model, which of the following best explains the agricultural pattern described?

  1. Land-use patterns are primarily determined by cultural preferences for certain crops rather than economic calculations.
  2. Because the model assumes uniform land and a single market, differences in land use arise mainly from distance-related transport costs affecting profitability. (correct answer)
  3. The model assumes multiple competing cities, so farmers locate based on commuting patterns and suburbanization.
  4. The model predicts that livestock ranching will always be closest to the market because animals can walk to market without cost.
  5. The model is designed to map industrial location using agglomeration economies, similar to Weber's least-cost theory.
Explanation: The von Thünen model is a foundational theory in human geography that explains agricultural land-use patterns around a central market based on economic principles. It assumes an isolated state with uniform land, a single city as the market, and farmers aiming to maximize profits while facing increasing transportation costs with distance. The key idea is that these assumptions create spatial variations in land use primarily due to how distance affects the profitability of different crops through transport costs. For instance, perishable goods that are costly to transport will be produced closer to the market to minimize expenses and maximize returns. In contrast, choices like cultural preferences or multiple cities contradict the model's core assumptions and do not explain the patterns it predicts. Therefore, the best explanation aligns with how uniform conditions highlight the role of distance-related transport costs in shaping agricultural zones.

Question 7

A secondary source excerpt argues that, despite its unrealistic assumptions, the von Thünen model remains relevant because it clarifies the relationship among distance, transportation costs, land value, and agricultural intensity. A student observes that even with highways and refrigeration, land near a city is still more expensive and tends to host higher-value production. According to the von Thünen model, which of the following best explains the agricultural pattern described?

  1. The model remains useful because it highlights how accessibility affects bid-rent and land-use intensity, even when modern factors distort the rings. (correct answer)
  2. The model remains useful only if it perfectly predicts identical ring boundaries in every modern city-region.
  3. The observation contradicts the model because it requires low-value extensive ranching to be closest to the city.
  4. The model remains useful because it is primarily a theory of industrial agglomeration and factory supply chains.
  5. The observation is best explained by ignoring rent and transport entirely; only climate determines land values near cities.
Explanation: The von Thünen model's enduring utility lies in its explanation of how distance and transport costs drive land-value gradients and agricultural intensity. Even with modern advancements like refrigeration, proximity to markets still confers advantages for high-value production, maintaining higher land prices near cities. The observation of expensive, intensive land use near urban areas aligns with the model's bid-rent logic. Choice A properly highlights the model's relevance in clarifying accessibility's role despite distortions. This makes it a foundational tool in economic geography. Students can use it to interpret contemporary patterns beyond its original assumptions.

Question 8

A teacher argues that the von Thünen model remains relevant despite limitations because it highlights a core idea: land users weigh market access and transport costs against land rent, shaping spatial patterns even when rings are imperfect. The teacher gives a modern example: high-value specialty crops cluster near major metro areas, while extensive grazing occurs in more remote zones. According to the von Thünen model, which of the following best explains the agricultural pattern described?

  1. The model is irrelevant today because modern agriculture eliminates any relationship between distance, rent, and land use.
  2. Even with modern complexities, the model helps explain why transport-sensitive, high-value production often concentrates near large markets. (correct answer)
  3. The model is mainly used to predict the location of skyscrapers and central business districts in urban morphology.
  4. The model explains land use by assuming all farmers receive identical subsidies that equalize profits at all distances.
  5. The model predicts that the farthest lands will always be the most intensive because they have the lowest rent.
Explanation: Despite its simplifications, the von Thünen model remains relevant today as it underscores the enduring influence of market access and transport costs on land-use decisions. For example, high-value, transport-sensitive crops like specialty produce often cluster near large urban markets to minimize costs and maximize freshness. In contrast, extensive uses like grazing persist in remote areas where land is cheaper and transport less critical. This core idea helps explain modern patterns even amid complexities like globalization. The model does not predict urban structures or assume equalized profits; it focuses on spatial economics in agriculture. Thus, it provides valuable insights into why certain productions concentrate near markets.

Question 9

A secondary-source explanation highlights von Thünen's bid-rent logic: each land use has a maximum rent it can pay at each distance from the market, and the land use with the highest bid at a location occupies it. In a simplified region, vegetable growers can outbid grain farmers close to the city but not farther away. According to the von Thünen model, which of the following best explains the agricultural pattern described?

  1. Because soil fertility is always higher near cities, vegetables must locate there regardless of costs.
  2. Vegetables locate near the market because their bid-rent stays higher at short distances due to high value and transport sensitivity. (correct answer)
  3. Grain always occupies the innermost ring, followed by vegetables, because grains are more perishable.
  4. The pattern is explained by central place theory, which predicts hierarchical spacing of towns and their market areas.
  5. The pattern shows land uses do not compete; each crop occupies land randomly with distance.
Explanation: The bid-rent curve is fundamental to understanding how the von Thünen model works. Each agricultural activity has a maximum rent it can afford to pay at any given distance from the market, and this bid-rent decreases with distance as transport costs increase. Vegetable production typically has high value per unit area and high transport costs due to perishability and bulk, giving it a steep bid-rent curve that starts very high near the market but drops quickly with distance. Grain farming has lower transport costs per unit value and a gentler bid-rent curve. Where these curves intersect, vegetable growers can no longer outbid grain farmers, creating the boundary between rings. The land use with the highest bid at any location wins that location through market competition. Choice B correctly identifies this bid-rent mechanism as the explanation for why vegetables locate near the market.

Question 10

A secondary-source critique highlights limitations of the von Thünen model: real regions have multiple markets, varied soils and topography, government policies, and modern transportation networks that distort ring patterns. In a metropolitan area, specialty crops appear in distant pockets near highways, while nearby land is used for low-intensity grazing due to zoning and land prices. According to the von Thünen model, which of the following best explains the agricultural pattern described?

  1. The pattern is still perfectly explained by the model because it assumes identical transport routes and no regulations.
  2. Highways, zoning, and multiple influences violate the model's simplifying assumptions, producing non-ring, patchy land-use patterns. (correct answer)
  3. The model predicts grazing closest to the city and vegetables farthest away, so the observed pattern matches the ring order.
  4. The pattern is best explained by plate tectonics, which determines where farming occurs through continental drift.
  5. The pattern proves that farmers never compete for land and that bid-rent cannot influence land use.
Explanation: The von Thünen model assumes several simplifying conditions: a single market, uniform terrain, equal transport in all directions, and no government intervention. Real-world regions violate these assumptions through multiple markets, varied topography, highway networks that create transport corridors, and zoning regulations. These factors distort the ideal concentric ring pattern into more complex, patchy distributions. Highways reduce transport costs along specific routes, allowing specialty crops to locate in distant pockets with good access. Zoning can restrict intensive agriculture near cities, forcing low-intensity uses like grazing onto valuable peri-urban land. The observed pattern—specialty crops far away near highways and grazing close to the city—directly contradicts the model's predictions and demonstrates how real-world complexities override the simple distance-decay relationship. Choice B correctly identifies these violations of assumptions as the explanation.

Question 11

A secondary-source excerpt on concentric rings in the von Thünen model explains that bulky fuelwood historically clustered near the market because it was expensive to transport, while grains could be shipped farther. In a pre-industrial setting with one market city, farmers nearest the city sell firewood, then dairy/vegetables, then grain, and ranching is farthest out. According to the von Thünen model, which of the following best explains the agricultural pattern described?

  1. The ring order reflects transport-cost sensitivity: bulky, heavy, or perishable products locate closer to minimize cost and spoilage. (correct answer)
  2. The ring order is reversed in von Thünen: ranching is closest, then grain, then dairy, then firewood farthest away.
  3. The rings form because farmers ignore land competition, so bid-rent differences cannot affect location.
  4. The pattern is explained by the Hoyt sector model, which predicts wedge-shaped zones from a CBD.
  5. The pattern proves that all regions, regardless of technology and history, will always have a fuelwood ring.
Explanation: The von Thünen model's ring order reflects each product's transport cost sensitivity, which depends on bulk, weight, perishability, and value. In pre-industrial settings, firewood was extremely bulky and heavy relative to its value, making transport costs prohibitive over long distances, so it located in the first ring. Dairy and vegetables, being perishable, occupied the next ring where daily delivery was still feasible. Grains could be stored and transported more efficiently, allowing them to be produced farther out. Ranching, with self-transporting products (livestock can walk to market) and low value per unit area, occupied the most distant lands. This sequence—from high transport cost sensitivity near the market to low sensitivity far away—is exactly what the model predicts. Choice A correctly identifies transport-cost sensitivity as the organizing principle behind the ring order.

Question 12

A second town is built 60 km away. Von Thünen logic puts the market boundary where

  1. the rings remain unchanged
  2. one city claims all the land
  3. the new town takes all farms
  4. the two cities' bids are equal (correct answer)
Explanation: When a second town is built, farmers sell to whichever market gives the higher net return after transport costs. The boundary between the two market areas sits where the two towns' bid rents are equal; closer to either town, that town's bid wins. The tempting mistake is thinking the original rings stay unchanged, but the new town competes for farms and shifts the boundary.

Question 13

Refrigerated trucks make dairy shipping as cheap as grain. In Von Thünen's model, the dairy zone will

  1. shrink closer to the city
  2. disappear from the region
  3. expand farther from the city (correct answer)
  4. remain in the same location
Explanation: Refrigerated trucks lower transport costs and spoilage risk for dairy, so dairying no longer needs to be right next to the city. The dairy zone therefore shifts outward, just like a crop whose transport cost has fallen. The tempting wrong answer is that it shrinks closer to the city, but that would happen only if dairy became more perishable or costlier to ship, not less.

Question 14

In Von Thünen's model, milk sells for $4/L in town, costs $1/L, shipping $0.10/L-km. At what distance is bid-rent zero?

  1. 30 km (correct answer)
  2. 40 km
  3. 25 km
  4. 10 km
Explanation: Subtract the production cost from the selling price first: each liter earns $3 before shipping. Shipping costs $0.10 per liter per km, so $3 / $0.10 = 30 km. At that distance transport costs eat all profit. The tempting 40 km comes from dividing $4 by $0.10 and forgetting the $1 production cost.

Question 15

Why do actual farm belts near a city rarely match Von Thünen's rings?

  1. Farmers rarely maximize profit
  2. Rivers, roads, and soil vary (correct answer)
  3. Perishables now move by air
  4. All exports go to one port
Explanation: Von Thünen's model assumes an isolated uniform plain with one market and identical soils, so real-world rivers, roads, and soil differences distort the neat rings. The tempting wrong answer is that farmers rarely maximize profit, but profit-seeking normally shapes land use; variable transport and terrain are the bigger real-world factors.

Question 16

How does market gardening's bid-rent curve compare with wheat's in Von Thünen's model?

  1. Lower at the market, flatter
  2. Higher at the market, steeper (correct answer)
  3. Lower at the market, steeper
  4. Higher at the market, flatter
Explanation: Market gardening crops are perishable and costly to transport, so growers bid more for land close to the market and the rent falls sharply with distance. Wheat, by contrast, stores well, so its bid-rent is lower near the market and declines gradually. The tempting error is "higher at the market but flatter," which confuses high land bids with a gentle slope; steepness comes from transport sensitivity, not value alone.

Question 17

In a class example of the von Thünen model, a single city market is surrounded by agricultural zones that form concentric rings. The teacher notes that highly perishable, high-value products tend to cluster near the market, while less perishable, lower-value, land-intensive uses occur farther away. According to the von Thünen model, which of the following best explains the agricultural pattern described?

  1. Dairy and market gardening occur closest to the city, followed by forest, then grains, with ranching farthest away. (correct answer)
  2. Ranching and grains occur closest to the city, followed by forest, with dairying farthest away due to refrigeration.
  3. All agricultural types appear randomly because the model assumes real landscapes with varied soils and multiple markets.
  4. Industrial parks form the innermost ring, followed by high-income housing, then retail, as in the sector model.
  5. The closest ring is always wheat because it is the most common staple crop in all regions.
Explanation: In the von Thünen model, agricultural land use forms concentric rings around a central market city, with the arrangement determined by factors like perishability, value, and land intensity. Highly perishable and high-value products, such as dairy and market gardening, are located closest to the city to reduce spoilage and transport costs. Moving outward, the rings typically include forestry for firewood, then grains which are less perishable and can withstand longer transport, and finally ranching which is land-extensive and has low transport costs per unit. This pattern emerges because farmers choose locations that optimize profits given distance from the market. Random distributions or urban elements like industrial parks do not fit the model's agricultural focus. Thus, the classic ring order reflects the economic logic of balancing transport sensitivity and land use intensity.

Question 18

A secondary source summarizing the von Thünen model notes that it assumes an isolated state: one central market, a flat and uniform plain, similar soils and climate, farmers seeking to maximize profit, and transportation costs that rise with distance. In a region that mostly fits these assumptions, planners observe that land uses change predictably as distance from the city increases. According to the von Thünen model, which of the following best explains the agricultural pattern described?

  1. The pattern is random because real farmers ignore transport costs and plant whatever they prefer.
  2. A single market and uniform landscape create distance-based profit differences that sort crops by their sensitivity to transport costs. (correct answer)
  3. Grain and ranching should be closest to the city because they are the most perishable and must arrive fastest.
  4. All land uses locate where they can pay the highest rent, so distance from the market is irrelevant.
  5. The pattern is best explained by the sector model, in which land uses extend outward in wedges along transportation corridors.
Explanation: The von Thünen model predicts that agricultural land use forms concentric rings around a central market based on economic factors. When assumptions of a single market and uniform landscape are met, different crops sort themselves by distance according to their transport costs and land rent relationships. Perishable or bulky products that are expensive to transport locate closer to the market, while less intensive uses that can better absorb transport costs locate farther away. This creates predictable rings of land use as farmers maximize profit by balancing transport costs against land rent. The model demonstrates how distance from market creates systematic patterns in agricultural geography. Answer B correctly identifies this core mechanism of distance-based profit differences sorting crops by transport cost sensitivity.

Question 19

A class handout describes the von Thünen model's ring pattern and notes that some students mistakenly treat it as a perfect description of reality. According to the von Thünen model, which of the following statements best captures a key limitation of using the model to explain current agricultural landscapes?

  1. It assumes uniform conditions and a single market, but modern refrigeration, highways, and global trade can reduce the role of distance and distort ring patterns. (correct answer)
  2. It is limited because it assumes farmers always ignore transportation costs when deciding what to grow.
  3. It is limited because it proves that crop choice is determined only by latitude and elevation, not by markets.
  4. It is limited because it requires the CBD to be surrounded by a zone of transition and then commuter suburbs.
  5. It is limited because it predicts the spacing of villages using hexagonal market areas.
Explanation: While the von Thünen model provides valuable insights into spatial economics, its 19th-century assumptions limit its direct application to modern agricultural landscapes. The model assumes that distance to market is the primary cost factor, but refrigeration technology now allows perishable goods to travel globally without spoilage. Modern highway systems and containerized shipping have dramatically reduced transport costs and made them less sensitive to distance for many products. Global trade means farmers often produce for distant international markets rather than the nearest city, breaking the simple relationship between proximity and crop choice. Additionally, government subsidies, corporate farming, and technological innovations like precision agriculture create patterns that deviate from the model's predictions. These modern realities don't invalidate the model's logic but require us to consider many more factors beyond simple distance. Answer A correctly identifies how technological and economic changes challenge the model's assumptions.

Question 20

A study guide describes von Thünen's bid-rent idea for agriculture: land users compete for locations, and the amount they can pay declines with distance because transport costs reduce net profit. According to the von Thünen model, which of the following best explains why intensive market gardening can outbid grain farming for land near the market?

  1. Market gardeners can pay more near the city because their high-value, perishable goods lose more profit to transport, so proximity raises net revenue and bid-rent. (correct answer)
  2. Market gardening always earns more everywhere, so it will replace all other farming at all distances.
  3. Grain must be closest to the city because it is heavier than vegetables and therefore always costs the most to ship.
  4. Bid-rent is irrelevant because farmers choose land only based on tradition and ignore market prices.
  5. This pattern is best explained by the sector model, which predicts wedges of land use extending from the CBD along transport lines.
Explanation: The bid-rent concept is central to understanding how different agricultural activities compete for land in the von Thünen model. Market gardeners produce high-value, perishable goods like fresh vegetables that lose value quickly during transport - each additional mile from the market significantly reduces their profit. To avoid these losses, market gardeners are willing to pay high rents for land close to the city where they can deliver produce quickly and capture maximum value. Their bid-rent curve slopes steeply downward with distance because transport costs eat heavily into their profits. Grain farmers, producing less perishable and lower-value crops, have a gentler bid-rent slope - they can still profit at greater distances where land is cheaper. At the intersection of these bid-rent curves, market gardening outbids grain farming near the city, while grain farming becomes more competitive farther out. Answer A correctly explains this economic competition based on perishability and transport costs.