Different crops require different climatic conditions, temperature and photoperiods for their growth and completion of their life cycle. Photoperiods are related to the duration of sunlight. Growth of plants and flowering are dependent on sunlight.
There are some crops, which are grown in rainy season, called the kharif season from the month of June to October, and some of the crops are grown in the winter season, called the rabi season from November to April. Paddy, soyabean, pigeon pea, maize, cotton, green gram and black gram are kharif crops, whereas wheat, gram, peas, mustard, linseed are rabi crops.
Improvements divide it into three stages. The first is the choice of seeds for planting. The
second is the nurturing of the crop plants. The third is the protection of the growing and harvested crops from loss. Thus, the major groups of activities for improving crop yields can be classified as:
Crop variety improvement
Crop production improvement
Crop protection management.
There are Varieties or strains of crops can be selected by breeding for various useful characteristics such as disease resistance, response to fertilisers, product quality and high yields.
One way of incorporating desirable characters into crop varieties is by hybridisation. Hybridisation refers to crossing between genetically dissimilar plants.
Another way of improving the crop is by introducing a gene that would provide the desired characteristic. This results in genetically modified crops.
The variety produces high yields under different conditions that are found in different areas. Farmers would need to be provided with good quality seeds of a particular variety, that is, the seeds should all be of the same variety and germinate under the same conditions.
Different farmers thus have more or less land, money and access to information and technologies. In short, it is the money or financial conditions that allow farmers to take up different farming practices and agricultural technologies. There is a correlation between higher inputs and yields. Thus, the farmer's purchasing capacity for inputs decides cropping system and production practices.
Therefore, production practices can be at different levels. They include ‘no cost’ production, ‘low cost’ production and ‘high cost’ production practices.
Nutrients are supplied to plants by air, water and soil. There are several nutrients which are essential for plants. Air supplies carbon and oxygen, hydrogen comes from water, and soil supplies the other thirteen nutrients to plants.
The other nutrients are used by plants in small quantities and are therefore called micro-nutrients.
Many measures are used to bring more and more agricultural land under irrigate ion.
Several different kinds of irrigation systems are adopted to supply water to agricultural lands depending on the kinds of water resources available. These include wells, canals, rivers and tanks.
Different ways of growing crops can be used to give maximum benefit. Mixed cropping is growing two or more crops simultaneously on the same piece of land, for example, wheat + gram, or wheat + mustard, or groundnut + sunflower.
Inter-cropping is growing two or more crops simultaneously on the same field in a definite pattern.
The growing of different crops on a piece of land in a pre-planned succession is known as crop rotation. Depending upon the duration, crop rotation is done for different crop combinations. The availability of moisture and irrigation facilities decide the choice of the crop to be cultivated after one harvest. If crop rotation is done properly then two or three crops can be grown in a year with good harvests.
Field crops are infested by a large number of weeds, insect pests and diseases. If weeds and pests are not controlled at the appropriate time then they can damage the crops so much that most of the crop is lost.
Generally insect pests attack the plants in three ways: (i) they cut the root, stem and leaf, (ii) they suck the cell sap from various parts of the plant, and (iii) they bore into stem and fruits. They thus affect the health of the crop and reduce yields.
Diseases in plants are caused by pathogens such as bacteria, fungi and viruses. These pathogens can be present in and transmitted through the soil, water and air.
Weed control methods also include mechanical removal. Preventive methods such as proper seed bed preparation, timely sowing of crops, intercropping and crop rotation also help in weed control. Some other preventive measures against pests are the use of resistant varieties, and summer ploughing, in which fields are ploughed deep in summers to destroy weeds and pests.
Storage Of Grains
Storage losses in agricultural produce can be very high. Factors responsible for such losses are biotic-insects, rodents, fungi, mites and bacteria, and abiotic-inappropriate moisture and temperatures in the place of storage. These factors cause degradation in quality, loss in weight, poor germinability, discolouration of produce, all leading to poor marketability.
These factors can be controlled by proper treatment and by systematic management of warehouses.
Animal husbandry is the scientific management of animal livestock. It includes various aspects such as feeding, breeding and disease control. Animal-based farming includes cattle, goat, sheep, poultry and fish farming. As the population increases and as living standards increase, the demand for milk, eggs and meat is also going up.
Cattle husbandry is done for two purposes-milk and draught labour for agricultural work such as tilling, irrigation and carting. Indian cattle belong to two different species, Bosindicus, cows, and Bos bubalis, buffaloes. Milk-producing females are called milch animals (dairy animals), while the ones used for farm labour are called draught animals.
Proper cleaning and shelter facilities for cows and buffaloes are required for humane farming, for the health of the animals and for production of clean milk as well. Animals require regular brushing to remove dirt and loose hair. They should be sheltered under well-ventilated roofed sheds that protect them from rain, heat and cold. The floor of the cattle shed needs to be sloping so as to stay dry and to facilitate cleaning.
Poultry farming is undertaken to raise domestic fowl for egg production and chicken meat. Therefore, improved poultry breeds are developed and farmed to produce layers for eggs and broilers for meat.
Poultry fowl suffer from a number of diseases caused by virus, bacteria, fungi, parasites, as well as from nutritional deficiencies. These necessitate proper cleaning, sanitation, and spraying of disinfectants at regular intervals. Appropriate vaccination can prevent the occurrence of infectious diseases and reduce loss of poultry during an outbreak of disease.
Fish is a cheap source of animal protein for our food. Fish production includes the finned true fish as well as shellfish such as prawns and molluscs. There are two ways of obtaining fish. One is from natural resources, which is called capture fishing. The other way is by fish farming, which is called culture fishery.
Popular marine fish varieties include pomphret, mackerel, tuna, sardines, and Bombay duck. Marine fish are caught using many kinds of fishing nets from fishing boats. Yields are increased by locating large schools of fish in the open sea using satellites and echo-sounders.
As marine fish stocks get further depleted, the demand for more fish can only be met by such culture fisheries, a practice called mariculture.
While capture fishing is also done in such inland water bodies, the yield is not high. Most fish production from these resources is through aquaculture.
Honey is widely used and therefore beekeeping for making honey has become an agricultural enterprise. Since bee-keeping needs low investments, farmers use it as an additional income generating activity. In addition to honey, the beehives are a source of wax which is used in various medicinal preparations.
The local varieties of bees used for commercial honey production are Apis cerana indica, commonly known as the Indian bee, A. dorsata, the rock bee and A. florae, the little bee. An Italian bee variety, A. mellifera, has also been brought in to increase yield of honey.