NATURE

AND
IMPORTANCE
OF AGRCULTURE
Content:

1) Definition of Agriculture
2) Importance of Agriculture
3) History of Agriculture
4) Data and Facts About Philippine
Agriculture
5) Government Interventions in
Philippine Agriculture
6) Meaning and Scope of Crop
Science
What is agriculture?

The word “Agriculture” is derived from

Latin words:
o “Ager”– means “land” or “field”
o “Cultura”– means “cultivation”
Technically agriculture means “Cultivation of land”
Definition of
Agriculture

o Art and science of producing crops and

livestock for economic purposes
o Systematic raising of useful plants and
livestock under the management of man
o A purposeful work through which the
elements of nature are harnessed to
produce plants and animals to meet
human needs
o Art, science, and business of crops and
livestock production
Agriculture
as an art:

It is an art because it requires skills to perform

the operations of the farm
Skills:
o Physical Skill
o Mental Skill
Agriculture
as an art:

*Rainbow fields of silver dust, marigolds, and scarlet

sage at the flower fields of shikisai-no-oka Farm
beautiful flowers farm colorful hill at Biei, Hokkaido,
Japan
Agriculture
as a science:

Its science is derived from the adoption or

application of the basic sciences like
physiology, meteorology, and anatomy
Agriculture
as a science:
Agriculture as
a business:

o It aims at maximum net return through the

management of land, labor, water, and
capital, employing the knowledge of
various sciences for production of food,
feed, fiber, and fuel
o In recent years, agriculture is
commercialized to run as a business
through mechanization
Agriculture as
a business:
Why is agriculture
important?

The human basic needs:

o Food
o Clothing
o Shelter
o Medicine
o Recreation
Why is agriculture
important?

Human basic needs come

from agriculture, making the
agriculture as the most
important enterprise in the
world
Why is agriculture
important?

Importance of agriculture in food supply:

o Agriculture is the world’s leading source of
food items. All the food substances that are
essential. Agriculture produces vegetables,
proteins, and oils.
o The carbohydrates provide all living beings
with energy. These are produced in the form of
grains that grow in farms such as rice, wheat,
and potatoes.
o It’s helpful to build our body with proteins.
They are distributed by agriculture as grams
and other leguminous goods.
Why is agriculture
important?

Importance of agriculture in food supply:

o It is essential to supply energy, body structure,
and heat with fats and oils. These can be
obtained by growing sunflower, groundnut,
mustard, sesame, from agriculture.
o Flowers are used for decoration, for the
purposes of ceremonies. They are also a rich
source of fragrance, coloring material.
Why is agriculture
important?

Supply of fodder:
o The agricultural sector provides fodder for
domestic animals. The cow provides people
with milk which is a form of protective food.
Moreover, livestock also meets people’s food
requirements.
Why is agriculture
important?

Source of raw material:

o The main source of raw materials to major
industries such as cotton and jute fabric, sugar,
tobacco, edible as well as non-edible oils is
agriculture.
o Many other industries such as the processing
of fruits as well as vegetables and rice husking
get their raw material mainly from agriculture.
Why is agriculture
important?

Foreign exchange resources:

o The main source of raw materials to major
industries such as cotton and jute fabric, sugar,
tobacco, edible as well as non-edible oils is
agriculture.
o Many other industries such as the processing
of fruits as well as vegetables and rice husking
get their raw material mainly from agriculture.
History of
Agriculture:

Origin of Agriculture:
o The history of agriculture is difficult to trace
due to the lack of historians
o Civilization began with agriculture – when our
nomadic ancestors began to settle and grow
their own food, human society was forever
changed
o First civilization – flourished near the Nile River,
Indus and Tigris Euphrates: as man began to
settle and had division of labor
History of
Agriculture:

Origin of Agriculture:
o The advent of stationary human societies and
development of civilization were possible only after
the establishment of agriculture
o Humans did not “put down roots” and remain in
one place until they learned to cultivate the land
and collect and store agricultural crops
o The origin of agriculture provided “release time”
for the development of art, writing, culture, and
technology
History of
Agriculture:

Hunter Gatherer:
o The earliest humans lived in small bands of several
families (up to 50 or so) during paleolithic or old
stone age, humans obtained food by hunting wild
animals and gathering plants depended almost
completely on the local environment
o Such hunter gathering societies existed extensively
until 10,000 years ago
History of
Agriculture:

Hunter Gatherer:
o Paleolithic cultures were nomadic by necessity
wandered as small family groups in search of game
and edible plants
➢ Meat was their primary source of protein
➢ Sugars & many vitamins were provided by fruits
and berries
➢ Starches from roots and seed
➢ Oils and vitamins from nuts
o As seasons changed, nomadic peoples moved on
followed game, gathering plants available
History of
Agriculture:

Agriculture originated at least four separate times in

four different places:
❖ Middle East – Fertile Crescent
❖ China – Yellow River
❖ Egypt – Aswan
❖ Central America –Tehuacan Valley
History of
Agriculture:

Possible scenario:
1) Nomadic tribes migrated annually in the fall and
spring from the foothills of surrounding
mountains to nearby valleys
o Probably followed natural migrations of animal
herds
o Valleys provided plants needed for food and
fiber and fuel during the winter that were not
available at higher elevations
o In spring the animals moved back to the
foothills and spent summer in cooler locations
o Cycle was repeated each year
History of
Agriculture:

Possible scenario:
2) Probably used same routes and same camps each
season
3) Each camp had a designated trash heap or
compost pile; seeds fruits wastes were thrown
there
History of
Agriculture:

Possible scenario:
4) plants sprouted in these rich compost beds
o As people returned year after year must have
noticed and took advantage of fruits and
vegetables growing in these beds
o Realization of choice plants growing near camp
could have led to experimental “farming” with
more and more successes could have cultivated
more and more plants
History of
Agriculture:
Possible scenario:
5) Became increasingly dependent on such activities
6) Staying in one place also meant fewer hazards,
more leisure time, greater population size (more
sedentary lifestyle)
7) Sedentary lifestyle would have allowed other
changes:
o Accumulation of material goods
o Division of labor (not everyone needed to be
farmers, potters, weavers, tanners, artisans,
scholars
8) Advanced civilizations rapidly evolved
History of
Agriculture:

Earliest Agriculture:
o The first plants to be cultivated were probably the
ones that had been gathered by peoples
o Crops were more likely to be cultivated if:
✓ If easily cultivated
✓ If they were locally abundant
✓ If they had many uses
History of
Agriculture:
Earliest Domestications:
o Near East
➢ Barley may have been the 1st crop
domesticated there
➢ Also wheat, peas, lentils, vetch
➢ Dogs, goats and sheep
o China
➢ Rice, millet, rape, hemp
➢ Cattle, pigs, dogs, poultry
o Tehuacán Valley (Eastern Central Mexico)
➢ Corn probably first
➢ Later squash, avocado, gourds, beans, chili
peppers
➢ Dog and later turkey were domesticated
History of
Agriculture:

Examples of Early Cereals and Grains:

o China and Southeast Asia
➢ Rice was widely cultivated
o Middle East
➢ Wheat was cultivated in hilly regions
o Southern Egypt
➢ Barley
o America
➢ Maize
History of
Agriculture:

Examples of Early Root and Stem Crops:

o Cassava
➢ Thick root
➢ Tapioca is made from this plant
o Irish Potato
➢ Wheat was cultivated in hilly regions
o Taro in Asia
o Tannia in West India
History of
Agriculture:

Later Development
o Aztecs – a Mesoamerican culture flourished in
Central Mexico
➢ Aztecs developed sophisticated irrigation
system called Chinampas
➢ Chinampas also called floating garden built
on a freshwater lake
History of
Agriculture:

Later Development
o Romans – were using crop rotation, manure,
grafting, and experimenting with plant varieties by
200 CE
History of
Agriculture:

Later Development
o Increased population growth allowed the
development of large cities and exchange of crop
plants worldwide
o Continued agricultural advances resulted from
selecting more productive strains of crop plants
o Industrialization lead to large scale agriculture
➢ Greatly increased areas under cultivation
➢ Greatly increased productivity/acre
➢ Today, in industrialized countries, all the food is
produced by only 5% of the population
➢ At least 90% of all human caloric intake is
provided by commercially grown plants
Data and Facts about
Philippine Agriculture

Philippines as an Agricultural Country

o Composed of small farms
o Humid tropical climate and variable weather
o Varying topographies and soil types
o Diverse flora and fauna; and
o A mélange of cultures in numerous
communities
Data and Facts about
Philippine Agriculture

Crop Agriculture and Land Use in the Philippines

Total land area

= 30,018,000 ha

Public & Unclassified Forest Alienable & Disposable

Lands = 15,883 M ha Lands = 14,117 M ha
Data and Facts about
Philippine Agriculture

Crop Agriculture and Land Use in the Philippines:

o 14.60 M ha (49%) = suitable for agriculture
o 73 M population by 1998 = land-man ratio of
0.20 ha lower than world average of 0.28 ha.
o Cropped area = 13 M ha
o Cropping intervals (cropping index) = 1.26
o physical area = 10.299 M ha
o more than 80% of agricultural area is planted to
three major crops: rice, corn and coconut
Data and Facts about
Philippine Agriculture

Characteristics of Philippine Agriculture

o Generally small-scale
o Dependent on manual labor
o Farmers are heterogeneous; commercial, semi-
commercial, subsistence and landless farm
workers
Data and Facts about
Philippine Agriculture

Philippine Agriculture Research & Development

o Public investment in agricultural research is only
0.03 percent of agricultural GVA --- lowest in
East Asia and less than a third of WB
recommends for poor countries
o Average rate of return is about 40% --- much
higher than other investments in agricultural
development like infrastructure (15%)
Data and Facts about
Philippine Agriculture

Contributions of Agricultural Sector to the Economy

o Main driver of economic growth in the country -
-- agricultural sector contributes about 22 % to
the country's GNP
o About 50% of total labor force is involved in
agricultural activities
o About 1/3 income derived comes from
agriculture --- traders, processors, retailers, and
other groups
Government Interventions in
Philippine Agriculture

Components:
1) Production and Marketing Support Services
2) Research Development and Extension
3) Trade and Fiscal Incentives
Government Interventions in
Philippine Agriculture

1) Production and Marketing Support Services

o Designation of Strategic Agriculture and Fisheries
Development Center
→ suitable for economic scale production and agro-
industrial development
o Medium and Long-term Agriculture and Fisheries
Modernization Plan
→ global competitiveness, global climate change, WTO
concerns, and CARP concerns
Government Interventions in
Philippine Agriculture

1) Production and Marketing Support Services

o Access to credit
→ small farmers involved in production, processing, and
trading; small and medium enterprises involved in
agriculture
o Rehabilitation of existing irrigation systems
→ promotion of affordable and appropriate irrigation
system; and watershed conservation
Government Interventions in
Philippine Agriculture

1) Production and Marketing Support Services

o Provision of timely and accurate market and trade
information system
→ supply, demand, price and price trends, product
standards
o Other infrastructure requirements
→ seaports, airports, energy, communications, water
supply, post-harvest facilities and agricultural
mechanization
Government Interventions in
Philippine Agriculture

2) Research Development and Extension

o Establishment of the national research and
development system in agriculture and fisheries
o Use of appropriate technology
Government Interventions in
Philippine Agriculture

3) Trade and Fiscal Incentives

o 5-year exemption of private businesses from tariffs and
duties
o Use of appropriate technology
Government Interventions in
Philippine Agriculture

Enactment of AFMA (Agriculture and Fisheries

Modernization Act of 1997)
o An attempt to modernize Philippine Agriculture
o AFMA focus:
✓ Food security
✓ Poverty alleviation and social equity
✓ Income enhancement and profitability
✓ Global competitiveness
✓ Sustainability
Meaning and Scope of Crop
Science

Crop Science – is concerned with the observation and

classification of knowledge concerning economically
cultivated crops and the establishment of verifiable principles
regarding their growth and development for the purpose of
deriving the optimum benefit from them
Meaning and Scope of Crop
Science

Crop Science is divided into two:

1) Agronomy – deals with the principles and practices of
managing field crops and soils
2) Horticulture – deals with gardens and plants within an
enclosure:
A. Pomology
B. Olericulture
C. Floriculture
D. Nursery Management
E. Landscape Gardening
Meaning and Scope of Crop
Science

Fields of Horticulture:
A. POMOLOGY
➢ The science of growing fruit
Derived from two latin word:
o Pomum = Fruit
o Logos = study
Meaning and Scope of Crop
Science

Fields of Horticulture:
B. OLERICULTURE
➢ The science of growing
vegetable
Derived from two latin word:
o Oleris = vegetable
o Cultura/colore = cultivate
Meaning and Scope of Crop
Science

Fields of Horticulture:
C. FLORICULTURE
➢ is a discipline of horticulture
cohied with the cultivation of
flowering and ornamental
plants for gardens and for
floristry, comprising the floral
industry
Derived from two latin word:
o Flos = flower
o Cultura/colore = cultivate
Meaning and Scope of Crop
Science

Fields of Horticulture:
D. NURSERY MANAGEMENT
➢ Raising of seedlings, grafts,
and cutting before
transplanting
Meaning and Scope of Crop
Science

Fields of Horticulture:
E. LANDSCAPE GARDENING
➢ Is an aesthetic branch of
Horticulture which deals with
planting of ornamental plants
in such a way that it creates a
picturesque effect
References:
o https://agriculturegoods.com/why-is-agriculture-important/
o https://abcofagri.com/definition-scope-and-importance-of-
agriculture/
o https://www.austincc.edu/sziser/Biol%201409/1409lecnotes/
LNExamIII/History%20of%20Agriculture.pdf