This PowerPoint was created by a visual arts class for a competition about sustainable agriculture. It discusses why studying agriculture is important, and defines sustainable farming practices like trickle irrigation, crop rotation, and hydroponics. These practices use water and soil more efficiently while reducing pollution, compared to traditional farming methods involving monoculture and heavy chemical use. The PowerPoint urges adopting sustainable practices to preserve natural resources and ensure future food supply.

2. WHO WE ARE
This is Hurlstone Agricultural High’s Year 10 Visual Arts class, we’re Helena
and Clare, and we’ll be guiding you through the meaning of sustainability,
and how we can choose sustainable practices to enhance our quality of
lives and protect what is left of our natural resources.

3. WHY THIS POWERPOINT WAS CREATED
This PowerPoint was originally created in response to ARCHIBULL
PRIZE, by gathering information from our sustainable farming
projects we did at school, and merging them to form a huge
PowerPoint.
The ARCHIBULL PRIZE is a competition for
selected schools to raise awareness of
agriculture, in particular, sustainability, through
means of art, which is eye catching and will get
through to the audience. Each school were given
2 fibreglass bulls, and using any art making
practice they wanted, they constructed a
meaningful artwork out of them, representing
sustainability, and unsustainability.

4. WHY IS IT IMPORTANT TO
STUDY AGRICULTURE ?
GOOD QUESTION. The field of agriculture is becoming unpopular as more people
choose to take a career path in tertiary industries (i.e. clerks, accountants, lawyers)
and thus feel that studying agriculture is unnecessary. However, agriculture remains a
vastly important aspect in our current lives. Without farmers to grow crops,
horticulturalists to plant, grow and maintain vegetation, we could potentially end up
with food shortage. It is of huge benefit to anyone who chooses to study agriculture.
They can grow their own vegetables, saving up on food costs, and if they take a liking
to the subject, they may also consider a career in agriculture, and help contribute to
the resolving the food crisis.

5. PEEKABOO!!
(Just don’t eat us)

6. Sustainable Farming

7. So good so far..
But, what farming practices should we use to maintain a sustainable
environment?
Actually, No....
There are many sustainable
farming practices that a farmer
can use to improve their
profitability (economically
sustainable), while doing minimal
damage to their farm
(environmentally sustainable).
Examples include: zero tillage,
crop rotation, hydroponics,
trickle/micro jet irrigation and
many more .

9. Where there is a small dripper from
which water drips into the soil,
allowing water to slowly seep into
plant roots. They are commonly used
in orchards, especially involving
citrus, backyard gardens and
vegetable patches
Similar to using a sprinkler with a small head
located on the ground that emits over a large area
with the water being under pressure. They are
commonly used on huge farm enterprises

10. REPLACING THE UNSUSTAINABLE

11.  It uses less water overall than all other
irrigation methods.
 Water doesn’t run off or evaporate,
going straight to the root zone. (Trickle
irrigation)
 Expensive mechanisms / machines
aren’t necessary.
 Less money spent on water usage and
soil standards remain the same.

13. HYDROPONICS .
Growing plants without soil, and using water to give the plant
the required nutrients instead. It may be grown either with or
without a solid medium other than soil, i.e. rock.
IT CAN BE USED BY / IN :
 Everyday households
 Amateurs who enjoy growing plants as a hobby and want to simply explore
the world of hydroponics.
 Although it may seem difficult, it is suited to any plant enterprise, especially
the commercial production of tomatoes, cucumbers, lettuce, chrysanthemums
and carnations.

14. REPLACING THE UNSUSTAINABLE
TRADITIONAL FARMING
MACHINES
USED TO
FIELD BASED CULTIVATE
AGRICULTURE LAND PRODUCE
USES UP TOO CO2 WHICH IS
MUCH WATER. BAD FOR THE
ENVIRONMENT.
SOIL EROSION USE OF
OCCURS. CHEMICALS
TO GET RID OF
WEEDS AND
PESTS
ORIGINATING
FROM SOIL.

15. WHY SHOULD WE USE
HYDROPONICS?
- Better control over pH levels of soil
and nitrogen levels, etc. Thus you
can make sure plants grow
optimally.
- Physical labour (digging,
cultivation, fertilising, irrigation),
is not required.
- More yields – plants grown using
hydroponics method produce 2 – 4
times the yield in soil.
- Water is conserved.
- Disease problems in soil and
weeds are eliminated.
- Crop rotation / fallowing is not
necessary, since plants can be used
2 times.

16. CROP ROTATION

17. WHAT IS CROP ROTATION?
Crop rotation is the practise of planting different families of
crops in an area (in a sequence) for various benefits. It is one
of the oldest and most effective cultural control strategies,
dating back to the Roman era. By the 19th century , many
farmers used a 4 year rotation cycle of wheat. Barely (root
crop and nitrogen fixing crop).
Monoculture took over when farmers found that they could
use pesticide and chemicals to improve the soil, but now,
there are organic farmers who rely entirely on crop rotation to
maintain soil health and yield.
WHERE IS CROP ROTATION USED?
All types of farm enterprises can use crop rotation, but it is
found more often in vegetable production.
Crop rotation can be applied in all gardens, particularly
vegetable gardens at home.

20. REPLACING THE UNSUSTAINABLE
MONOCULTURE
This is the production or growing of a single crop (or crop from the
same family) over a large area, every season. Machines or weed killers
and pesticides are used to control weeds, and fertilizers are used to reduce
the strain on soil nutrients.
Yields typically decline.
Farmer is completely dependent on chemicals
and machinery which ultimately pollute the land,
the water, and the food they’re producing.
Soil structure problems occur.
Soil fertility decreases.
Ecosystem diversity and habitat structure
reduces.
Soil borne disease build up and spread quickly.

22. SUSTAINABILITY THREATENED BY
SUBURBIAN GROWTH
With many houses and buildings being built
over fertile farmland in areas such as:
- Suburbs (urban sprawl), and
- Coastal lands (since it is an ideal
place for humans to live)
…it is no wonder that farms and land which
would be extremely suitable for farms are
becoming scarce, also leading to the increase
of cost in production of food.

23. THE END
So which sustainable farming practice will you use?
All images are from Google, Scrappy Princess and Photobucket.

24. WOULD LIKE TO THANK THE SPONSORS OF THE
2010 CREAM OF THE CROP COMPETITION
PLATINUM GOLD SILVER
BRONZE