Crop production is the most important branch of agriculture, which produces 70% of the total food consumed by the population. Ornamental deciduous plants and flowers adorn the areas adjacent to the houses, interiors. Many representatives of the flora are used as industrial, pharmaceutical and perfume raw materials, pet food. What is the different name for crop production in textbooks, popular science publications and teaching aids? This question arises among schoolchildren, university students, as well as specialists working in various sectors of the economy. We will find out what this activity is, how its name has changed over the centuries.
What is the name of plant growing?
The transition to settled life is the most important event in a primitive society. A more reliable food source has appeared than picking fruits and seeds in nature. In Europe, for many centuries, the main agricultural crops were cereals, primitive implements for cultivating the soil prevailed. Mariners, travelers, merchants brought new plants: citrus fruits, melons, vegetables, potatoes. In the XX and early XXI centuries, advanced methods of cultivating the soil and cultivating plants appeared. Crop production continues to change before our eyes. Modern technologies are being introduced at all stages of agricultural production. New tillage and harvesting machines are working in the fields.
Turning the pages of dictionaries and reference books, you can find out how crop production is called differently, what is the specificity of this branch of agriculture. Different editions contain the terms:
- agriculture;
- field cultivation;
- plant growing;
- agriculture (from the Greek word "agros" - "field");
- phytotechnics;
- agronomy.
Agriculture - the basis of crop production
Practical activities for growing crops based on data from a number of sciences: biology, chemistry, ecology. Demanded knowledge about the botanical classification, soil properties, cultivation technology. In the "Complete Encyclopedia of Russian Agriculture and its Sciences", published in Russia (1900–1912), the entire industry is called agronomy. In the "Reference book of the Russian rural owner" edited by V.G. Kotelnikova (1913) also explains what plant production is called in a different way - phytotechnics. Over the past century, certain areas of the industry have been formed:
- field growing - production of cereals (wheat, rice, corn), technical (sunflower, sugarcane, cotton), fodder crops;
- Horticulture - growing garden plants (cabbage, onions, sweet peppers, tomatoes and others);
- horticulture - the cultivation of pome fruits, stone fruits, grapes and other crops;
- decorative gardening;
- floriculture;
- meadow farming;
- forestry.
Agriculture specialists develop agricultural technology of crops and varieties, improve tillage methods, create hybrids and forms that are resistant to diseases and pests. Problematic in the industry are issues of reducing costs, reducing dependence on natural factors.
Intensification of crop production
World agriculture is developing dynamically. Yields, product quality are increasing, industrial technologies are being introduced. What is the name of crop production, which increasingly resembles industrial production? The term "agricultural technology" is increasingly used. Cultivation of crops involves the use of a number of techniques:
- tillage;
- the application of mineral and organic fertilizers;
- preparation of seeds, planting material;
- sowing and planting;
- plantation care, taking into account the biological characteristics of plants, climatic conditions of the season;
- harvesting.
“The main beginning of agriculture is to get everything back to the soil, taken from it,” wrote Justus von Liebig, the founder of agricultural chemistry. Based on the findings of scientists and the practice of field farmers in the world, resource and soil-saving systems of “strip-till”, “minimum” (Mini-Till) and “zero” (Nou-Till) tillage are based. They are successfully used in the USA, Germany, Russia, Ukraine, and a number of Canadian provinces. Technologies are aimed at preserving the soil cover, energy conservation. Manufacturers of agricultural raw materials develop processing and sales of products according to the scheme "field - production - counter". This principle is especially important when growing organic food.
Vertical plantations
Effective are methods of growing cultivated plants without soil. For these purposes, liquids containing in their composition all the necessary nutrients are used. What is the name of crop production for which no soil is needed? This is a relatively new way to harvest - hydroponics. Translated from Greek means the use of "working solution".
Hydroponic-based industrial crop production is relatively recent. Its distribution is associated with the high cost-effectiveness of installations that can be placed one above the other, creating vertical gardens and vegetable gardens. There are various types of supply of nutrient mixture to the roots of plants. The method has some advantages. Less space is needed for the production of products, less damage is caused by pathogens of soil diseases, insects and worms. In the working fluid, you can add substances that accelerate growth, regulate the timing of flowering and ripening of the crop.
Agriculture, crop production and public health
In the technology of obtaining food products, chemistry achievements and genetically modified objects (GMOs) are widely used. One of the problems is the use of nitrogen fertilizers, which leads to the accumulation of carcinogenic compounds - nitrates in vegetables, fruits, and melons . The use of other agrochemicals in crop production negatively affects the state of public health. Each country has established regulations for their use, compliance with which is monitored by phytosanitary services.
A promising area is organic farming. High demands are placed on his goods (natural, environmentally friendly). Agricultural companies and farmers should not use synthetic chemicals and GMOs in the cultivation of plants, in the processing of raw materials for food.
The cycle of substances in subsistence farming follows the pattern.
Currently, agricultural scientists and practitioners are improving production methods. Computer technologies for controlling the quality of agricultural products are being introduced everywhere, and biochemical and genetic methods for increasing plant immunity are being developed. Environmentally friendly products are becoming more popular, especially in the developed countries of the world.