We analyze rural-urban land allocation in light of the increasing environmental role of agricultural landscape. The amenity value of farmland varies across crops and as a result affects the optimal crop mix in addition to its effect on rural-urban land allocation. Investigating the effects of population and income growth processes, we find that, contrary to market outcomes, the socially optimal allocation may call for more farmland preservation under both processes. In an empirical application to a region in Israel we find that the extent of market undersupply of farmland is substantial and that population growth calls for more farmland preservation at the expense of urban land.