Agriculture: Farming Types, Crops & Revolutions
Agriculture encompasses various farming methods, seasonal cropping patterns, and the cultivation of essential crops. It has undergone significant transformations through revolutions like the Green and White Revolutions, aiming to enhance productivity and food security. Understanding these facets reveals the dynamic nature of global food production and its impact on economies and livelihoods.
Key Takeaways
Farming methods range from primitive subsistence to commercial and mixed approaches.
Cropping patterns like Kharif, Rabi, and Zaid define seasonal agricultural cycles.
Major crops include staples like rice and wheat, cash crops, and fiber crops.
Agricultural revolutions significantly boosted production and transformed farming practices.
Sustainable practices are crucial for addressing environmental impacts of modern agriculture.
What are the primary types of farming practices?
Farming practices vary widely based on scale, technology, and purpose. Primitive subsistence farming, for instance, relies on basic tools and family labor for local consumption, often involving slash and burn techniques. Intensive subsistence farming supports high populations with significant labor and inputs. Commercial farming focuses on large-scale production for market sale, utilizing modern inputs and often specializing in single crops. Mixed and intercropping integrate livestock or grow multiple crops on the same land, enhancing resource utilization and yield diversity. These diverse approaches reflect different economic and environmental contexts globally.
- Primitive Subsistence Farming: Practiced on small land patches, uses primitive tools, relies on family/community labor, dependent on monsoon and natural soil fertility, often involves slash and burn agriculture.
- Intensive Subsistence Farming: Practiced in areas of high population pressure on land, labor intensive farming, high use of biochemical inputs and irrigation for higher production, right of inheritance leads to land fragmentation and uneconomical land holdings.
- Commercial Farming: Single crop grown on large areas of land, uses higher doses of modern inputs (HYV seeds, chemical fertilizers, insecticides, pesticides), aims for high productivity, plantation is also a type of commercial farming (e.g., tea, coffee, rubber, sugarcane, banana), all produced used as raw materials.
- Mixed and Intercropping: Involves growing crops and raising livestock (Agriculture + Livestock); Intercropping is the practice of growing two or more crops in close proximity on the same piece of land; Similarities include growing two or more crops in a same piece of land; Differences are that mixed cropping involves mixing seeds before sowing, while intercropping involves growing seeds in a row format.
How do different cropping patterns influence agricultural cycles?
Cropping patterns dictate when specific crops are sown and harvested, aligning with climatic conditions and water availability. The Kharif season, typically from July to October, relies on monsoon rains for crops like rice and maize. The Rabi season, from October to April, is for winter crops such as wheat and barley, benefiting from winter rainfall. Zaid, a short cropping season between Rabi and Kharif, usually in May-June, focuses on quick-growing crops like watermelons and fodder. These distinct patterns optimize agricultural output by matching crop requirements with seasonal environmental factors, ensuring continuous food production throughout the year.
- Kharif: Sowing in July, harvesting September - October; also known as monsoon crops (Rice, sugarcane, jute, cotton, tobacco, maize, soybean, groundnut).
- Rabi: Sowing in October, harvesting in April; crops include Wheat, barley, gram, mustard, linseed, pea, winter castor (winter rainfall is beneficial).
- Zaid: Short cropping season, May-June; crops include Watermelon, muskmelon, cucumber, fodder crops.
What are some major global crops and their cultivation requirements?
Key agricultural crops worldwide include staples, cash crops, and fiber crops, each with specific environmental needs. Rice, a major staple, thrives in high temperatures and rainfall, with India being the second-largest producer. Wheat requires moderate rain and is another primary staple. Sugarcane needs warm temperatures and significant rainfall. Tea and coffee are plantation crops, with tea requiring acidic, well-drained soil and coffee benefiting from laterite soil and showers. Leguminous crops like pulses fix nitrogen, improving soil fertility. Millets and oilseeds are also vital, contributing to food security and economic value. Fiber crops like cotton, jute, and silk are crucial for textiles.
- Rice: Also known as paddy before processing, India is 2nd largest producer after China, requires high temperatures (>25°C), 3 seasons and high rainfall (>100 cm), varieties include Aus, Aman, Boro, India's most consumed staple crop.
- Wheat: Rain required: 50-70 cm, India's most consumed staple crop.
- Sugarcane: Temperature required: 21-27°C, Rain required: 75-100 cm.
- Tea: Grown in acidic soil and requires well-drained soil, requires topsoil shadow, topmost producer: China > India > Kenya, topmost (in India): Assam.
- Coffee: India (topmost producer: Karnataka) produces 3.2% of world's coffee (2008 data), requires laterite soil and showers helps in growth, varieties include Arabica, Liberica, Robusta, Brazil is known as the coffee bowl of the world.
- Leguminous Crops: India is largest consumer, nitrogen fixing bacteria (Rhizobium) reside in the roots of these plants, examples: Pulses, no soyabeans (Top producer: Madhya Pradesh).
- Millets: Also known as finger millets, examples: Bajra, Ragi (finger millets), Jowar (Sorghum), topmost producer: Rajasthan.
- Oil Seeds: India is 2nd largest producer after China, examples: Groundnut, coconut, mustard, sesame, cotton seed, soybean, topmost producer: Gujarat.
- Horticulture Crops: Includes Fruits and Vegetables, India produces 13% of world's vegetables.
- Fibre Crops: Cotton (requires black soil, fibre crop also known as silver fibre, requires 210 frost free days); Jute (golden fibre, topmost exporter: India (West Bengal), requires 6 to 8 months to mature, non-westerns good for growth of jute); Silk (rearing of silk is called Sericulture).
How have agricultural revolutions transformed global food production?
Agricultural revolutions represent periods of significant innovation and growth in farming. The Green Revolution, starting in the 1940s-60s, particularly in Mexico and later India, introduced high-yielding varieties (HYV) of wheat and rice, modern inputs, and improved irrigation. This led to substantial increases in food grain production, though it also caused issues like groundwater depletion and soil salinity. The White Revolution, or 'Operation Flood,' launched in 1970, focused on increasing milk production in India. Other revolutions, like Yellow for oilseeds and Blue for fisheries, further diversified and boosted specific agricultural sectors, collectively shaping modern food systems.
- Green Revolution: First in Mexico, Latin America (1940s-60s), term coined by William Gaud, father (world): Norman Borlaug (USA), father (India): M S Swaminathan, HYV of wheat was imported from Mexico, USA; In India, 1st phase (1960s-70s) focused on arid and semi-arid states (Punjab, Haryana, Andhra Pradesh) for wheat and rice, included announcement of MSP; 2nd phase (1970s-80s) focused on sustainable farming; Drawbacks included low groundwater levels, high soil alkalinity, increased disparity between farmers, and commercial farmers benefiting more.
- White Revolution: Also known as 'Operation Flood,' launched in 1970, father: Verghese Kurien, aimed to reduce scarcity of milk production in India.
- Yellow Revolution: Father: Sam Pitroda, focused on Oil seeds/Dairy.
- Other Revolutions: Blue Revolution (Fishery), Brown Revolution (Leather), Golden Revolution (Fruits/Honey), Grey Revolution (Fertilizer), Pink Revolution (Onion), Red Revolution (Meat/Tomato), Silver Revolution (Egg/Poultry), Evergreen Revolution (Overall Development).
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the main difference between primitive and intensive subsistence farming?
Primitive farming uses basic tools on small plots for family needs, relying on nature. Intensive farming supports high populations on limited land, using more labor, biochemicals, and irrigation for higher yields.
What are the three main cropping seasons in agriculture?
The three main cropping seasons are Kharif (monsoon crops like rice, July-Oct), Rabi (winter crops like wheat, Oct-Apr), and Zaid (short season crops like watermelon, May-June).
Who are considered the fathers of the Green and White Revolutions?
Norman Borlaug is the father of the Green Revolution globally, and M.S. Swaminathan is the father in India. Verghese Kurien is the father of India's White Revolution.
