Definition of farming
This term refers
to the practice of growing crops and rearing animals for subsistence or
commercial purposes.
Farming as a system
Farming is
regarded as a system because it consists of inputs, processes and outputs
a. Inputs
These are the factors that the farmer
considers before carrying out farming activities. They include seeds, soil,
water, sunshine, fertilizers, pesticides, labour, ploughs (hoes), capital (finances/money),
animals etc
b. Processes
These are the activities that are
involved in production such as land preparation, planting, weeding, crop
spraying, harvesting, feeding animals etc
c. Outputs
These are the produce such as crops,
animals
Farming is influenced
by a number of factors. The factors are categorised into Physical factors
(climate, topography, soil, biotic factors), human factors (ownership and
inheritance of land, government policies, religion and culture), economic
(market, capital) and technological factors (mechanisation and use of chemical
fertilizers).
a.
Climate
This factor consists of temperature,
rainfall, wind, humidity.
i.
The flourishing crops is
dependent on the distribution of temperature. As some crops do well in hot
regions such as sugarcane, cocoa, others do so in cold regions such as wheat,
oats, burley etc. Apart from that plants do not grow when temperature drop
below 60C because the subsoil becomes frozen. This is why it is
impossible to cultivate crops in Polar Regions.
ii.
The crop growth is also
influenced by the amount and distribution of rainfall. Some regions receive
more rains than others which implies that they favour different crops. For
example, rice does well in regions which receive a lot of rains whereas cassava
does well in regions which receive little rains. Besides that some regions
which include desert regions do not favour the growth of crops due to scanty
rains they receive.
iii.
Some climatic conditions such
as frosts, summer storms, periodic droughts and wind affect crops adversely.
b.
Topography
This refers to the landforms. Some
regions are mountainous others are generally flat. Some crops do well in
mountains regions such as tea, coffee while others such as sugar rice, rice
require a flat area. Besides that flat areas allow the use of machinery,
thereby increasing production.
c.
Soil factors
Different types of soil are suited to
different crops. For instance wet rice grows well in clay soils while coconut
trees grow well in sandy soils. Besides that crops do well in fertile soils.
d.
Biotic factors
These include parasitic plants,
diseases and insect pests. They damage crops thereby reducing production.
e.
Ownership and inheritance of
land
A farmer is able to cultivate crops
if he/she owns or subleases a piece of land other than the one who does not
have.
f.
Government policies
Some government policies are
deliberately formulated in order to increase production such as subsidy of
inputs, provision of free inputs etc
g.
Religion and culture
Some religions do not allow their
members to be engaged in production of crops or animals such as Islam does not
allow the keeping pigs. Moreover, in some cultures especially in Africa,
farming is dominated by women as a result production is relatively low.
h.
Capital
This factor allows a farmer to
purchase inputs, hire labour, and transport the produce to markets and
construct storage facilities. It is difficult for a farmer to realise high
yields without the enough capital.
i.
Market
Farmers are encouraged to grow a crop
which has readily available market other than the one that does not have a
market.
j.
Mechanisation
A farmer who uses machinery is able
to realise more yields than the one who does not.
k.
Use of chemical fertilizers
The use of fertilizers helps a farmer to
realise high yields.
Types of farming
a.
Subsistence farming
This is the type of farming in which
crops are cultivated for consumption purposes
b.
Commercial farming
This is the type of faming in which crops
are cultivated for commercial purposes.
These farming
types may fall into intensive or extensive categories.
a.
Intensive farming
This is the farming that involves
application of huge labour and capital on relatively small piece of land and
high yields per hectare are realised.
b.
Extensive farming
This is the farming that involves low
application of labour and capital to a relatively large piece of land but low
yields per hectare are realised.
Agricultural Systems of the World
The following
the agricultural systems of the world
i.
Shifting cultivation
ii.
Extensive wheat farming
iii.
Intensive rice farming
iv.
Polder farming
v.
Irrigation farming
vi.
Dairy farming
vii. Ranching
viii. Plantation
agriculture
The map below
shows regions where the systems of farming mentioned above are practised.
a. Shifting cultivation
This is the system of farming which
involves cultivating crops for three to four on a piece of land which is later
abandoned for another due to loss of fertility.
It is a good example of subsistence
farming
It is practised by primitive people
in different parts of the world in which it is known by different names such
as:
Ladang in Malaysia
Taungya in Burma
Cainguin in the Philippines
Milpain Zimbabwe
Chitemene in Zambia
Crops which grown include hill rice,
tapioca, millet, sweet potatoes, cassava, maize, sorghum, yams.
It is characterised by the following:
i.
Small pieces of land
ii.
Use of rudimentary techniques
such as hoes, sickles, machete, digging sticks etc
iii.
Use of ashes as fertilizers
iv.
Practice of slash and burn
practice in which trees are cut down and burnt to produce ash.
v.
Use of family labour
vi.
Low yields are realised
It is practised
in low populated regions because they have vast land.
Problems of this
form of farming include:
i.
It hinders development of
villages, towns
ii.
It contributes to environmental
degradation as forests are cleared for farming
