Crop Production and Management - TEXT

Crop Production and Management

Class 8 - Chapter 1

The chapter outlines essential steps involved in crop production, including preparation of soil, sowing, adding manure and fertilizers, irrigation, weeding, harvesting, and storage. It emphasizes the need for soil preparation through plowing and leveling to provide better aeration and moisture for the seeds. The role of fertilizers and organic manure in supplying essential nutrients to plants is also discussed.

We already know that: All living organisms require food. The energy from food is utilised by an organism for carrying out its various life processes such as digestion, respiration and excretion. Plants can make their food themselves but animals including humans cannot. We get our food from plants or animals, or both.

Crop:
Food is necessary for human survival since it provides energy for all of the body’s metabolic processes, including breathing and excretion. Plants provide us with food through agricultural methods, while animals provide it through the process of animal husbandry, which is the area of agriculture that deals with raising livestock. Food must be regularly produced, properly managed, and distributed in order to feed a sizable population. A crop is a large-scale crop grown and cultivated on the same sort of plants in one location. For instance, fruits, vegetables, grains, rice, and wheat. These are categorised according to the growing season. A crop is a group of related plants that are produced and managed on a vast area of land for food production.

Types of Crops

1. Rabi crops are those that are grown during the winter, that is, from October to 2. March. Paddy, maize, soybean, groundnut, and cotton are Kharif crops.

2.Kharif crops are those that are sown from July to October, during the wet season. Examples of rabi crops are wheat, gram, pea, mustard, and linseed.

3. Zaid Crops (or Summer Crops): The crops grown in the summer season are ( called zaid crops. Moong, muskmelon, watermelon, cucumber, gourd and bitter gourd are examples of zaid crops.

Cultivation of crops involves the following activities:

1. Preparation of Soil: The first stage in growing crops for food production is preparing the soil.The ground is ready to receive the crop’s seeds. Many procedures and instruments are used to do this. The preparation of soil is the first step before growing a crop. One of the most important tasks in agricultural is to turn the soil and loosen it. This allows the roots to penetrate deep into the soil. The loose soil allows the roots to breathe easily even when they go deep into the soil. The loosened soil helps in the growth of earthworm and microbes present in the soil. These organisms are friends of the farmer since they further turn and loose the soil and add humus to it. only a few centimetres of the top layer of soil supports plant growth, turning and loosening of soil brings the nutrient-rich soil to the top so that plants can use these nutrients. Thus, turning and loosening of soil is very important for cultivation of crops.

Sowing: The process scattering seeds in the ground soil for growing the crop plants is called sowing. A cultivator or plough loosens the soil, which is then used to sow the seeds. Before sowing good quality seeds are selected. Quality of the Seeds in crop production is largely dependent on the quality of the seed. Soaking the seeds in water helps identify high-quality seeds. Good seeds sink, but damaged and dead seeds become hollow and float on water.

Traditional Tools

A traditional tool is primarily an instrument that helps in the completion of a particular task. A device which was used traditionally was mainly manual. Farmers employed conventional implements prior to the invention of contemporary agricultural gear. These consist of ploughs, Hoe, Cultivator and Sickle. A funnel-like device was the conventional equipment used to plant the seeds. After the seeds were placed in this funnel, they were placed in two or three sharp-ended tubes. The ends will enter the ground, dispersing the seeds into the soil.

Plough: A plough is a large farming tool with sharp blades which is pulled across the soil to turn it over, usually before seeds are planted.

Uses: A plough is one of the agricultural tools used for the initial soil cultivation in preparation for seed sowing or planting to loosen or turn the soil. It is usually made of wood and is drawn by two bulls. This is being used since ancient times for tilling the soil, adding fertilizers to the crop, removing the weeds, scraping of soil, etc.

Hoe: A hoe is an agricultural tool that is used to cultivate the soil, remove weeds, and shape the beds for planting. It consists of a long handle with a curved blade attached to it at a right angle.

Cultivator: Cultivator is used to prepare the soil for farming. They are used to remove weeds. They make soil loose and pulverized to help in cultivation. Cultivators are self-propelled and are easy to use.

Traditional Tool: A traditional tool is a device or instrument that has been used historically or traditionally for a particular task or trade. Traditional tools are often manual, simple to make, and less expensive than modern tools. They are usually powered by humans or cattle.

Sickle: A sickle is a hand tool with a curved blade and a short handle that is used for harvesting crops, trimming grass, and clearing brush.

Seed Drill
A seed drill is a device used in agriculture that sows seeds for crops by positioning them in the soil and burying them to a specific depth. This ensures that seeds will be distributed evenly. The seed drill sows the seeds at the proper seeding rate and depth, ensuring that the seeds are covered by soil. Tractors are utilised to assist in the sowing process with seed drills.

Adding Manure and Fertilisers: Manure and fertilizers are components added to the soil to restore the soil's nutrient content. Adding manure and fertilizers to the soil is called manuring. Manuring should be adequate as improper or insufficient manuring may lead to weaker growth of plants.

Farmers dump plant and animal waste in pits at open places and allow it to decompose. The decomposition is caused by some microorganisms. The decomposed matter is used as organic manure.

Fertilisers are chemical substances which are rich in a particular nutrient. Fertilisers are produced in factories. Some examples of fertilisers are urea, ammonium sulphate, super phosphate, potash, NPK(Nitrogen, Phosphorus, Potassium). But excessive use of fertilisers has made the soil less fertile. Fertilisers have also become a source of water pollution. Another method of replenishing the soil with nutrients is through crop rotation.

Advantages of Manures
The organic manure is considered better than fertilisers. It enhances the water holding capacity of the soil. It makes the soil porous due to which exchange of gases becomes easy and increases the number of friendly microbes.It improves the texture of the soil.

Disadvantages of Using Fertilizers
Excessive use of fertiliser can cause pollution. It can also change the pH of the soil in certain rare cases.

Irrigation: Irrigation is the artificial process of applying controlled amounts of water to land to assist in the production of crops. The different sources of irrigation are - rivers, wells, ponds, tube-wells, lakes, dams and canals. There are various traditional and modern methods of irrigation.

To maintain the moisture of the soil for healthy crop growth, fields have to be watered regularly. Water also protects the crop from both frost and hot air currents.

Sources of irrigation: The sources of irrigation are wells, tube wells, ponds, lakes, rivers, dams and canals.

Traditional system: These methods are cheaper, but less efficient. The various traditional ways are:

Moat (pulley-system)
Chain pump
Dhekli, and Rahat (Lever system)

• Modern method of Irrigation: Modern methods of irrigation help us to use water economically. The main methods used are as follows
Sprinkler System & Drip system

Protection from Weeds: Weeds are the unwanted plants that grow along with the crops. In a field many other undesirable plants may grow naturally along with the crop. These undesirable plants are called weeds.

The removal of weeds is called weeding. Weeding is necessary since weeds compete with the crop plants for water, nutrients, space and light. The best time for the removal of weeds is before they produce flowers and seeds. Weeds are also controlled by using certain chemicals, called weedicides, like 2,4-D. These are sprayed in the fields to kill the weeds. They do not damage the crops. The weedicides are diluted with water to the extent required and sprayed in the fields with a sprayer.

Pests: Pests are the insects or rodents that destroy’much of our crop yield. Thus, it is necessary to save crops from pests.

Harvesting: Harvesting: The process which involves cutting of mature crop to gather grains is known as harvesting. Harvesting can be done manually by using a sickle. A sickle is a small instrument with sharp serrate-edged metal blade attached to a wooden handle. Harvesting can also be done by using a machine called as harvester.

 

Methods of Harvesting Harvesting is done by 2 methods. First is the manual method where a sickle is used. Second is the mechanical method where a huge machine called harvester is used.

In the harvested crop, the grain seeds need to be separated from the chaff. This process is called threshing. This is carried out with the help of a machine called ‘combine’ which is in fact a combined harvester and thresher. Farmers with small holdings of land do the separation of grain and chaff by winnowing.

Storage: storage can refer to the process of protecting grains or the process of saving digital data:

Storing grains: In agriculture, storage is the process of keeping grains in closed containers to protect them from atmospheric conditions that can damage them. This process is important for food security, especially during times of scarcity or adverse weather conditions.

Here are some tips for storing grains:
Dry grains: Before storing, dry grains in the sun to reduce moisture content. High moisture levels can promote the growth of fungus and mold.

Store in bins or bags: Store dried grains in metal bins or jute bags.

Use neem leaves: For home storage, use dried neem leaves.
Store in godowns: For large-scale storage, use godowns. Before storing, spray pesticides and rodenticides in the godowns.
Storing digital data: Storage can also refer to the process of saving digital data in a data storage device. A storage device is a piece of hardware that can store digital information and programs, such as photos, videos, and audio.
Cloud storage: Cloud storage is a service model that stores data on remote storage systems over a network, typically the internet.
Granaries
Granaries are the place where freshly obtained food grains are stored.

Animal husbandry: Animal husbandry is the scientific management of domesticated animals, such as livestock and poultry, for the production of food, fiber, and other products. It involves:

Breeding: Selective breeding of animals to improve their genetic qualities and behavior

Care: Caring for the animals' health, nutrition, reproduction, and welfare

Production: Raising animals for the production of commercially important products like milk, meat, wool, eggs, honey, and silk.

Animal husbandry is a branch of agriculture that is important for the livelihood of many farmers. It began with cattle farming, but has since expanded to include poultry farming, fisheries, and apiculture.

THANK YOU

Nanditha Akunuri