3. Agriculture
The process of any country is greatly
influenced by the progress of agriculture.
Agriculture is the main source of food
requirement of all living organisms.
Agriculture is the process of growing crops by
sowing seeds. Because of agricultural
revolution many modern methods are
employed for growing crops. Let us study
about :
a) The different methods the farmers use for
growing crops
b) Implements used by farmers.
4. The problem of food production is one of the
innumerable problems the country is facing.
Growing more crops play an important role in
solving the food problem. The life of every one
depends upon the crops the farmers grow.
Crops can be classified into
three types. They are :-
5. Farm crops
The food producing crops are called farm crops.
They can be classified into four major groups.
They are cereals, pulses, oil seeds and fodder
crops.
Paddy, wheat, ragi, barley and maize are the
6. Commercial crops
Other than cereals many commercial crops are
grown in our country for monetary benefit.
Ex: Coffee, tea, sugarcane, cotton, silk, cashewnut
and arecanut.
8. Unwanted plants growing along with the crops are called
weeds. As they compete with the crop plants for space,
water and nutrients, the yield becomes less.
Weedicides shoud be used to control weeds. Same type of
weedicide should not be used for all weeds.
Post Weedicides – The Weedicides used after the growth
of weeds, these are called Post Weedicides. Ex: 2-4D,
Paraqueet and Propanil.
Pre Weedicides – The Weedicides used before the growth
of weeds, these are Pre Weedicides. Ex: Diauran,
Simagen, Machute.
9. ORGANIC FARMING
The method of growing crops using organic
manure is called ‘Organic Farming’.
Importance of Organic farming : As no chemical
fertilizers are pesticides are used in this type of
farming, the produce is relatively less
contaminated.
Organic manure
Organic manure is obtained by the decomposition
of plant and animal wastes. Organic manure is
suitable for growing food crops, fruits and
vegetables.
10. Mixed and Rotation of Crops
It is necessary for the farmers to grow a
variety of crops to get high yield. It helps
to retain certain nutrients in the soil and to
maintain the fertility of the soil.
The two methods are :
11. 1. Mixed cropping: The method of growing
different crops simultaneously in the
same field is called Mixed cropping.
Ex: Growing dolicos with ragi, growing
Soyabeans and beans with sugarcane.
2. Rotation of crops: The method of
growing different crops one after another
in the same field is called Rotation of
crops. By this method the nutrients used
by one crop are replenised and used
again by the other.
Ex: Growing monocots and dicots.
12. Normally farmers grow two crops in a year.
They are Kharif crops and Rabi Crops.
Kharif Crops: Sowing in June and July and
getting the yield is called Kharif Crops.
Ex: Paddy, Jowar, groundnut, pulses and
pepper.
Rabi Crops : Rabi crop is the second. Sowing
begins in October and goes up to the
December. Ex: Wheat, ragi, sesamum and
tobacco.
13. Agriculture Implements
Due to the revolution in Agricultural Technology
many agricultural implements have been
invented. By this, agricultural activities have
been taking place at a great speed.
Some simple tools which help the farmers are Axe,
Shovel, Spade and Sickle.
Let us know about some other agricultural
implements:
14. 1) Plough
Farmers use the plough before sowing the seeds.
Ploughing removes the weeds and turns over the soil.
Ploughing helps the manure to enter the soil easily.
For the deep sowing of seeds, iron plough is used.
15. Before sowing, for levelling the soil, to remove the
weeds and to break the crumbs of mud, harrows are
used. By ploughing the soil with a harrow the soil
becomes loose and porous. Through the pores,
water, air and minerals enter the soil easily and
help in growing better crops.
16. 3) Seed Drill
Seed drill is the most important of all the implements of
sowing. It consists of a long tube with two to six finger
like tubes and a funnel at the top. The seeds are fed
into the funnel. The plough makes furrows and the
drill sows the seeds through the tubes.
17. Power tiller is a modern machine. Some
farmers use this for tilling the field.
Instead of tractor. The Power tiller has
two rubber tyres. Its weight is 350 kg. Its
small teeth make the soil suitable for
Agriculture.
18. 5) Tractor
Tractor plays an important role in helping the
farmers. Iron plough, seed drill, harvester and
sprinkler systems can be fixed to the tractor.
Sowing in rows, applying manure and cutting
the grass can be done with the help of the
tractor. It also helps in transporting harvested
crops and manure. Tractors can also be used for
lifting water, cutting grass and winnowing.
19. 6) Harvester Combines
To separates grains from the chalf pulp of the
crop, machines called harvester combines are
used. To these machines sieves are attached
which move forward and backward. The fans
in between the sieves blow off the dust and
the cleaned grain comes out of the machine.
20. Manure
Manure is the substance which has necessary
nutrients and increases the fertility of the soil.
Manure helps in getting high yield.
Uses : The manures supply the necessary nutrients
like Nitrogen, Phosphorous and potash (NPH
mixture) to the crops.
The different types of manure are :
21. 1) Chemical fertilizers
The elements such as iron, magnesium,
sulphur and zinc are the nutrients required
in minute quantities for the growth of
plants. The chemical compounds with the
nutrients which help in the growth of plants
are called chemical fertilizers.
Uses: Chemical fertilizers when added to the
soil increase the yield of crops. Supply
minerals to the soil. Increase the level of
physical, chemical and biological properties
of the soil.
22. 2) BIO-FERTILIZERS
Some living organisms like bacteria enrich the soil with
nitrogen absorbed from air and act as fertilizers. They
are known as biofertilizers.
Ex: Axatobactor, azospirrilium, nostoc and rhizobium
23. Irrigation
Water is essential for the growth of
plants. Rainfall is the natural source
of water, but rainfall does not occur
throughout the year. So during lean
periods, stores water from ponds,
wells, lakes, rivers and reservoirs is
supplied to crops. This method of
supplying stored water for cultivation
of crops is called irrigation.
