Introduction to Agriculture and Farming Systems: notes

Agriculture

• Branches: crop production, animal production, agricultural engineering, agricultural economics and soil science.
• Importance: food, jobs, raw materials for industry, foreign currency from exports such as tobacco and cotton.

Farming Systems

• Subsistence farming: food grown mainly for the family. Little is sold.
• Commercial farming: produce grown mainly to sell for profit.
• Mixed farming: crops and livestock on the same farm. Manure feeds the soil; crop residues feed animals.
• Extensive farming: a large area with low inputs per hectare.
• Intensive farming: a small area with high inputs per hectare, such as a market garden.
• Shifting cultivation: farmland is left to rest when yields fall.

Factors Affecting Production

• Natural: rainfall, temperature, soil, pests and diseases.
• Economic and social: capital, labour, markets, transport, land tenure and government policy.