Class Viiith Agriculture Notes

        Agriculture 

1. Definition 

2. Farm system

2. Types of Farming 

4. Major crops

5. Agricultural development 

1. Definition 

The term 'agriculture' is derived from the Latin words 'ager' means field and 'culture' meaning to cultivate. 

Agriculture is the most important economic activity.  It includes growing crops, vegetables, flowers and rearing of livestock. 

All over the world 50 % of the population is engaged in agricultural activity. Two-third of India's population is still dependent on agriculture. 

2. Farming as a system

  Agriculture or farming may be termed as a 'system'. This is because it has certain inputs, processes and outputs involved. 

Input -- seeds, fertilisers and the labourers 

Process --  Ploughing, seeding, weeding and harvesting 

Output  ---- Crops and fruits

Important terms

1. Sericulture --- It refers to rearing of silkworm for the production of raw silk. 

2. Pisciculture --- It is the science of breeding fishes 🐠 for scientific or commercial purpose. 

3. Viticulture  --- It refers to the study of grapes. 

4. Horticulture -- It is the science of cultivating fruits, vegetables ,flowers or ornamental plants. 

3. Types of farming 

      Farming can be broadly classified into subsistence farming and commercial farming. 

A. Subsistence farming

   The farming in which the foods are grown for feeding their families. There is not much technology used here and the people of family themselves act as labour.. 

Types of subsistence farming 

   a.Intensive subsistence farming

                This is practiced on densely populated areas.They grow more than one crop annually on the same plot using simple tools and more labours. 

b. Primitive subsistence farming

          It includes two kinds of farming practices. They are :shifting cultivation and Nomadic herding. 

Shifting cultivation : Shifting cultivation is also known as 'Slash and burn 'agriculture. As a patch of forest land is cleared by cutting and burning and crops are grown on the ash. This type of farming is practiced in areas having thick forests and heavy rainfall like Amazon basin, Northeast India. 

Nomadic Herding 

➡️It is a type of farming in which the farmers do not settle in one place but continuously move with their animals to different pastures..

➡️This is practiced in sparsely populated parts of the world where natural vegetation is mainly grass and the rainfall is low. 

e. g:- Sahara region, Rajasthan and Ladakh etc. 

➡️The most commonly reared animals are camels, sheep, yak and goats etc.... 

B. Commercial Farming 

The farming in which crops are grown and animals are reared for commercial purposes. 

There are three types of commercial farming : Commercial Grain Farming, Mixed Farming and Plantation agriculture. 

Commercial Grain Farming

              In this system, grains are grown for commercial purpose.This type of farming is practiced in the temperate grasslands of North America, Europe and Asia. 

Mixed Farming 

Mixed Farming is a system of farming in which a farmer uses different types of agricultural practices on a single farm. 

For example, a farmer may use the land for growing food and fodder crops and rearing livestocks as well. 

It is practiced in Argentina, New Zealand and South Africa. 

Plantation Agriculture 

Plantation Agriculture is a type of commercial agriculture in which a single kind of crops are grown in very large field. 

It requires large amount of labour and capital and well developed transportation networks. 

Crops grown are tea, coffee, sugarcane ,cashew, rubber, banana etc.

4. Major Crops 

A. Rice : Rice is the major food crop in the world. 

Geographical condition

  a.  Temperature : High

   b.  Rainfall ☔ : High

   c.  Soil : Alluvial clayey soil

Note -- INDIA ranks second in the rice production after China. 

B. Wheat :Wheat is one of the first cereals to have been grown. 

Geographical condition

  a.  Temperature : Moderate during growing season, high during harvest 

   b.  Rainfall ☔ : Moderate 

   c.  Soil : Loamy soil

C. Millets : Millets like Jowar, Bajra and Ragi are grown in India. 

Geographical condition

  a.  Temperature : High to moderate 

   b.  Rainfall ☔ : low

   c.  Soil : sandy soil

Note - Millets can be used as food and fodder. 

D. Maize🌽 : Maize is commonly known as corn in some countries and also used as food and fodder. 

Geographical condition

  a.  Temperature : Moderate

   b.  Rainfall ☔ : Moderate 

   c.  Soil : Well-drained fertile soil

Note -- Maize is the second most produced cereal after rice. In the world. 

E.  Cotton : It is one of the main raw material for the cotton textile industry. 

Geographical condition

  a.  Temperature : High

   b.  Rainfall ☔ : Moderate

   c.  Soil : Black soil

Note : The leading producers of cotton are China, USA, India etc.. 

F. Jute : It is also known as Golden Fibre. It is used to make sacks, carpets, chair covering, ropes etc. 

Geographical condition

  a.  Temperature : High

   b.  Rainfall ☔ : High

   c.  Soil : Alluvial  soil

Note : The leading producers of cotton are  India and Bangladesh.  

G. Coffee : It is one of the most consumed drink in the world. It can have stimulating effect on humans because of its caffeine content. 

Note : The leading producers of cotton are Brazil, Columbia , India etc.. 

H. Tea 🍵 : Tea is one of the most common beverages in the world. 

Geographical requirement :

Rainfall : High throughout the year

Soil : Loamy soil 

Note : Darjeeling in India is famous for its tea. 

5. Agricultural Development 

The world population is increasing at a fast pace. To feed the growing population ,higher crop production is required. 

Agricultural development refers to efforts made to increase farm production in order to meet the growing demands of the increasing population. There are many ways to achieve this, like :

• Increasing the area under cultivation 

• Increasing the no of crops grown 

• Improving irrigation facilities 

• Using fertilisers to maintain soil nutrition