DEFINITION OF TERMS:

Agriculture – it is the science, art and practice of cultivating the soil, producing crops and raising
livestock and in varying degrees the preparation and marketing and resulting of products

Farm Equipment - These are machineries used in crop production. They are used in land preparation and
in transporting farm inputs and products. These equipment need a highly skilled operator to use

Farm Implements - accessories pulled by animals or mounted to machineries to make the work easier

Farm Tools - objects that are usually light and are used without the help of animals and machines

Fertile Crescent – semicircle of fertile land stretching from southeast coast of Mediterranean around
Syrian Desert, North of Arabia to Persian Gulf

Neolithic – of or relating to the latest period of the Stone Age characterized by polished stone
implements

Parthenocarpy – the production of fruits without fertilization

LESSON 1:
DEFINITION AND IMPORTANCE OF AGRICULTURE
What is Agriculture?
Nominal Definition (explains what a name is) Agriculture comes from the Latin words ager, agri meaning
field and cultura meaning growing, cultivation. Therefore it means “growing and cultivating of the field.

Real Definition (explains what a thing is)

Agriculture is the science or practice of farming which includes the cultivation of the soil for the
growing of crops and fruit-bearing trees. It also considers the raising of animals to provide food and
other raw materials which can produce another product.

Elements in the Definition of Agriculture

 It is a science, because of systematically organized body of knowledge which not only based on
opinions, hypothesis and theories but on factual and absolute knowledge. Also, it is a practice because
of the actual applications of the ideas.

 Of farming, because is the act or process of working the ground, planting seeds, and growing edible
plants. It can also include raising animals for milk, meat and wool.

VALUE OF AGRICULTURE
Agriculture has a vital role in the life and progress of an economy. It does provide food which is the
basic needs of mankind, not only to sustain food and raw material but also employment opportunities to
a vast number of the population of a country. It can be a source of livelihood which can contribute to
micro and macro community, supplying and sustaining food and fodder that are the basic necessities of
human to live, promoting the diplomatic friendship facilitated by trading system in local, national and
international arena, marketable surplus products, source of saving of the entire national budget and
basis of the economic development of a country.

Without agriculture, the economy will be at high risk to food security that may result into serious
national problems. The effect may be adverse or even worse.

LESSON 2:
BRIEF HISTORY OF AGRICULTURE
Agriculture was developed at least 10,000 years ago, and it has undergone significant developments
since the time of the earliest cultivation.

Ancient Origins
The Fertile Crescent of the Middle East was the site of the earliest planned sowing and harvesting of
plants that had previously been gathered in the wild. Independent development of agriculture occurred
in northern and southern China, Africa's Sahel, New Guinea and several regions of the Americas. Barley
has been found in archeological sites in Levant, and East of the Zagros Mountains in Iran.

The eight so-called Neolithic founder crops of agriculture includes emmer wheat einkorn wheat, hulled
barley, peas, lentils, bitter vetch, chick peas and flax. Bitter vetch and lentils along with almonds and
pistachios appear in Franchthi Cave Greece simultaneously, about 9,000 BC. Neither was native to
Greece, and they appear 2,000 years prior to domesticated wheat in the same location. This suggests
that the cultivation of legumes and nuts preceded that of grain in some Neolithic cultures.

By 7,000 BC, small-scale agriculture reached Egypt. From at least 7,000 BC the Indian subcontinent
saw farming of wheat and barley, as attested by archaeological excavation at Mehrgarh in Balochistan.

By 6,000 BC, mid-scale farming was entrenched on the banks of the Nile. About this time,
agriculture was developed independently in the Far East, with rice, rather than wheat, as the primary
crop. Chinese and Indonesian farmers went on to domesticate taro and beans including mung, soy and
azuki. To complement these new sources of carbohydrates, highly organized net fishing of rivers, lakes
and ocean shores in these areas brought in great volumes of essential protein. Collectively, these new
methods of farming and fishing inaugurated human population boom dwarfing all previous expansions,
and it continues today.

By 5,000 BC, the Sumerians had developed core agricultural techniques including large scale
intensive cultivation of land, mono-cropping, organized irrigation, and use of a specialized labour force,
particularly along the waterway now known as the Shatt al-Arab, from its Persian Gulf delta to the
confluence of the Tigris and Euphrates. Domestication of wild aurochs and mouflon into cattle and
sheep, respectively, ushered in the large-scale use of animals for food/fiber and as beasts of burden. The
shepherd joined the farmer as an essential provider for sedentary and semi-nomadic societies. Maize,
manioc, and arrowroot were first domesticated in the Americas as far back as 5,200 BC.

The potato, tomato, pepper, squash, several varieties of bean, tobacco, and several other plants
were also developed in the New World, as was extensive terracing of steep hillsides in much of Andean
South America. The Greeks and Romans built on techniques pioneered by the Sumerians but made few
fundamentally new advances. Southern Greeks struggled with very poor soils, yet managed to become a
dominant society for years. The Romans were noted for an emphasis on the cultivation of crops for
trade.

Middle Ages
During the Middle Ages, Muslim farmers in North Africa and the Near East developed and
disseminated agricultural technologies including irrigation systems based on hydraulic and hydrostatic
principles, the use of machines and the use of water raising machines, dams, and reservoirs. They also
wrote location-specific farming manuals, and were instrumental in the wider adoption of crops including
sugar cane, rice, citrus fruit, apricots, cotton, artichokes, aubergines, and saffron. Muslims also brought
lemons, oranges, cotton, almonds, figs and sub-tropical crops such as bananas to Spain. The invention of
a three field system of crop rotation during the Middle Ages, and the importation of the Chinese-
invented moldboard plow, vastly improved agricultural efficiency. Another important development
towards the end of this period was the discovery and subsequent cultivation of fodder crops which
allowed over-wintering of livestock.

Modern Era
After 1492, a global exchange of previously local crops and livestock breeds occurred. Key crops
involved in this exchange included the tomato, maize, potato, cocoa and tobacco going from the New
World to the Old, and several varieties of wheat, spices, coffee, and sugar cane going from the Old
World to the New. The most important animal exportations from the Old World to the New were those
of the horse and dog (dogs were already present in the pre-Columbian Americas but not in the numbers
and breeds suited to farm work). Although not usually food animals, the horse (including donkeys and
ponies) and dog quickly filled essential production roles on western hemisphere farms.

By the early 1800s, agricultural techniques, implements, seed stocks and cultivated plants
selected and given a unique name because of its decorative or useful characteristics had so improved
that yield per land unit was many times seen in the Middle Ages. With the rapid rise of mechanization in
the late 19th and 20th centuries, particularly in the form of the tractor, farming tasks could be done with
a speed and on a scale previously impossible. These advances have led to efficiencies enabling certain
modern farms in the United States, Argentina, Israel, Germany, and a few other nations to output
volumes of high quality produce per land unit at what may be the practical limit. The Haber-Bosch
method for synthesizing ammonium nitrate represented a major breakthrough and allowed crop yields
to overcome previous constraints. In the past century agriculture has been characterized by enhanced
productivity, the substitution of labor for synthetic fertilizers and pesticides, selective breeding,
mechanization, water pollution, and farm subsidies. In recent years there has been a backlash against
the external environmental effects of conventional agriculture, resulting in the organic movement.
Agricultural exploration expeditions, since the late nineteenth century, have been mounted to find new
species and new agricultural practices in different areas of the world.

LESSON 3 :

BRANCHES OF AGRICULTURE

BRANCHES OF AGRICULTURE
There are four main branches of agriculture, namely;

1. Livestock Production or Animal Husbandry

2. Crop Production or Agronomy

3. Agricultural Economics

4. Agricultural Engineering

I. Livestock Production or Animal Husbandry

Animal Husbandry is the branch of agriculture concerned with animals that are raised for meat, fiber,
milk, eggs, or other products. The term "livestock" encompasses many species and numerous breeds
within animal species which can produce food and other raw materials. Livestock production or Animal
Husbandry has 4 common classifications such as:

a.) Nomadic Pastoralism is the husbandry of grazing animals is viewed as an ideal way of
making a living and the regular movement of all or part of the society is considered a normal
and natural part of life. Pastoral nomadism is commonly practice where climatic conditions
produce seasonal pastures but cannot support sustained stationary agriculture because of the
animals’ food limitations.

b.) Poultry Farming is the raising of birds domestically or commercially, primarily for meat and
eggs as well as for feathers. Chickens, turkeys, ducks, and geese are of primary importance,
while guinea fowl and squabs (young pigeons) are chiefly of local interest.
 c.)

d.) Swine Farming is the raising and breeding of domestic pigs as livestock, and is a branch of
animal husbandry. Pigs are farmed principally for food (e.g. pork, bacon, gammon) or
sometimes skinned.

e.) Apiculture is the scientific method of rearing honeybees. The word ‘apiculture’ comes from
the Latin word apis meaning bee and colere which means “to culture”. Bees are mainly reared
for their honey. So, apiculture or also known as beekeeping is the care and management of
honey bees for the production of honey and the wax. In this method of apiculture, bees are
bred commercially in apiaries, an area where a lot of beehives can be placed. Apiaries can be
set up in areas where there are sufficient bee pastures – usually areas that have flowering
plants.

II. Crop Production or Agronomy

It is the science dealing with the cultivation of crops and vegetables on a field scales either
under rain fed or irrigation conditions. These crops are mainly annuals cultivated food. The
requirements of each crop are studied in terms of soil and climate, as well as planting time and
techniques, different cultivars, fertilization, weed, disease, and insect control, as well as the effect of
stress factors. Crop Production or Agronomy includes:

Horticulture is the science and art of growing and caring for plants, especially flowers, fruits,
and vegetables. The word is derived from the Latin hortus which means “garden” and colere which
means “to culture”. As a general term, it covers all forms of garden management, but in ordinary use it
refers to intensive commercial production. Horticulture has 3 branches namely, pomology, olericulture
and floriculture.

a) Pomology- is the branch of botany that studies all fruits, specifically the science of growing
fruits and nuts. The word is derived from the Latin pomum which means “fruit” and logia which
means “field of study”. As a branch of horticulture, it focuses to the cultivation of fruits, nuts,
fruitbearing and nut-bearing trees/plants for human use and consumption
b) Olericulture is the science and art of vegetable growing, dealing with the culture of non-woody
(herbaceous) plants for food. The word is derived from the Latin oleris which means “pot herb”
and colere which means “to culture”. As language develops over long period of time, it is simply
defined as the science and art of growing vegetables crops. It deals with the production, storage
processing and marketing of vegetables. It encompasses crop establishment, including cultivar
selection, seedbed preparation and establishment of vegetable crops by seed and transplants. It
also includes maintenance and care of vegetable crop production.

c) Floriculture refers to farming, plant care, propagation, and cultivation with one goal in mind,
the maximum production of flowering and ornamental plants for gardens and floristry,
comprising the floral industry. The word is derived from the Latin floris which means “flower”
and colere which means “to culture”. Therefore, it is the cultivation of flower. To elaborate,
floriculture is an entire gardening spectrum that is geared towards understanding and improving
all aspects of bud and flower creation, including indoor lighting, growroom requirements,
greenhouse needs, plant nutrition, irrigation, pest management, and breeding new
cultivars/strains.
III. Agricultural Economics is study of the allocation, distribution and utilization of the resources
used, along with the commodities produced, by farming. It concerns itself with the study of the
production and consumption of food in both developed and developing countries along with analysis of
the policies that shape the world’s largest country.

IV. Agricultural Engineering is the area of engineering concerned with the design, construction and
improvement of farming equipment and machinery. Agricultural engineers integrate technology with
farming. For example, they design new and improved farming equipment that may work more
efficiently, or perform new tasks. They design and build agricultural infrastructure such as dams, water
reservoirs, warehouses, and other structures. They may also help engineer solutions for pollution
control at large farms. Some agricultural engineers are developing new forms of biofuels from non-food
resources like algae and agricultural waste. Such fuels could economically and sustainably replace
gasoline without jeopardizing the food supply.

LESSON 4:
 TYPES OF AGRICULTURAL CROPS AND ITS CLASSIFICATIONS

Agricultural crops are plants that are grown or intentionally managed by man for certain
purposes. They are classified in various terms used worldwide.

Types of Crops
Crops are divided into six falls into categories and they’re as follows:

1. Food Crops

2. Feed Crops

3. Fiber Crops

4. Oil Crops

5. Ornamental Crops

6. Industrial Crops

Descriptions of Crops According to their Categories

I. Food Crops – A plant that is primarily raise, culture and harvest for the human consumption.
It has two sub categories, the field crops and root crops.

a) Field crop is a crop (other than fruits or vegetables) that is grown on a large scale for agricultural
purposes. Examples are wheat, rice, corn, sugarcane and other forage crops. These crops
typically consist of a large majority of agricultural acreage and crop revenues
b) Root Crops – are underground plant parts edible for human consumption.

II. Feed Crops – A plant that is primarily raise, culture and harvest for the livestock
consumption.

III. Fiber Crops – A plant that is primarily raise, culture and harvest for its fibers which are used
as raw material

IV. Oil Crops – A plant that is primarily raise, culture and harvest as base for biodiesel
production.
V. Ornamental Crops – A plant that is primarily raise and culture for decorative purposes
especially in gardens and landscape design projects.

VI.
Industrial Crops – A plant that is cultured for their biological materials which are used in
industrial processes into nonedible products. (Example: Tobacco)

Classification of Crops According to their Reproduction

1. Sexual - plants that develop from a seed or a spore after undergoing union of male and
female gametes.
2. Asexual – plants which reproduce by any vegetative means without the union of the
sexual gametes.

Classification of Crops According to Mode of Pollination

I. Naturally Self Pollinated Crops – predominant mode of pollination in this plant is self-
pollination.
II. Naturally Cross Pollinated Crops – pollen transfer in these plants is from another of one
flower in a separate plant.
III. Both Self and Cross Pollination Crops – these plants are largely selfpollinated but in varying
amounts
Classifications of Crops According to Growth Habits

I. Herb – succulent plants with self-supporting stems.

 II. Vines – herbaceous climbing or twining plants without self-supporting stem.
III. Lianas – woody climbing or twining plants which depend on other plants for vertical support
to climb up to the trees
IV. Shrubs – a small tree or tree like plants generally less than 5 meters in height but other
authorities restricted to small, erect woody plants.
V. Trees – plants having erect and continuous growth with a large develop of woody tissue,
with a single distinct stem or trunk.
VI. Evergreen – plants that maintain their leaves throughout the year.
VII. Deciduous – plants which naturally shed off or lose leaves annually for extended periods.

Descriptions of Crops According to their Life Span

I. Annual crop is a plant that completes its life cycle, from germination to production of seed,
within one growing season, and then dies. Annual crops examples are rice, corn and others.
II. Biennial crop is a plant that takes two years to complete its biological lifecycle. Its examples
are cabbage, parsley and others.
III. Perennial crop is a plant that lives more than two years. The term is often used to
differentiate a plant from shorter-lived annuals and biennials. The term is also widely used
to distinguish plants with little or no woody growth from trees and shrubs, which are also
technically perennials.

LESSON 5:

TYPES OF COMMERCIAL FOOD CROPS IN THE PHILIPPINES

Food Crop

A crop primarily raised and culture for human consumption. There are 5

major categories of common commercial crops in the Philippines they are the

following: cereal crops, root and tuber crops, sugar crops, vegetable crops, fruit

crops.
a) Cereal Crops – are one of the members of grass family with their seed

to eat.

b) Root and Tuber Crops – a crop that is root vegetables and thick

underground part of the stem which is edible to consume by human.

c) Sugar Crops – several species of tall perennial grass that are grown for

extraction of sugar product.

 c) Vegetable Crops – are edible part/s of the plant.

e) Fruit Crops – are groups of different types of fruits that are edible to

consume by human.

Common Commercial Food Crops in the Philippines

COMMON NAME SCIENTIFIC NAME ENGLISH NAME

Palay Oryza sativa Linn Rice

Mais Zea mays L. Corn/Maize

Niyog Cocos nucifera L. Coconut

Tubo Saccharum officinarum L. Sugarcane

Saging Musa sapientum var. Banana

Pinya Ananas comosus L. Pineapple

Kape Coffea sp. Coffee

Mangga Mangofera indica Mango

Tabako Nicotiana tabacum Tobacco

Mani Archis hypogaea Linn. Peanut

Munggo Vigna radiata L. Mungbean

Kamoteng Kahoy Manihot esculenta Crantz. Cassava

Kamote Ipomoea batatas Lam Sweet Potato

Kamatis Lycopersicon esculentum Mill. Tomato

Bawang Allium sativum Linn. Garlic

Sibuyas Allium cepa Linn. Onion bulb

Repolyo Brassica oleracea L. Cabbage

Talong Solanum melongena Linn. Eggplant

Kalamansi Citrus madurensis Lour. Calamansi

LESSON 6:

PLANT PARTS AND ITS FUNCTION

A plant has different parts. The main parts are the roots, stem and the leaves. Each part has a
vital role in the life of a plant. The root absorbs water and different nutrients in the ground. The roots also
establish the plant as foundation. The stem carries the water and different nutrients from the ground to the
leaves. It also supports the foundation.
 The main functions of the root system are absorption of water and minerals from the soil,
providing a proper anchorage to the plant parts, storing reserve food material and synthesis of plant
growth regulators.

In majority of the dicotyledonous plants, the direct elongation of the radicle leads to the formation
of primary root which grows inside the soil. It bears lateral roots of several orders that are referred to as
secondary, tertiary, and so on. The primary roots and its branches constitute the tap root system.
 In monocotyledonous plants, the primary root is short lived and is replaced by a large number of
roots. These roots originate from the base of the stem and constitute the fibrous root system.
In some plants, roots arise from parts of the plant other than the radicle and are called adventitious roots.

In some plants, roots arise from parts of the plant other than the radicle and are called adventitious
roots.
The root is covered at the apex by a thimble-like structure called the root cap. It protects the tender apex
of the root as it makes its way through the soil. Tap roots of carrot, turnip and adventitious roots of sweet
potato, get swollen and store food.

Hanging structures that support a banyan tree are called prop roots.
 Similarly, the stems of maize and sugarcane have supporting roots coming out of the lower nodes of
the stem. These are called stilt roots

In some plants such as Rhizophora growing in swampy areas, roots come out of the ground and
grow vertically upwards. Such roots, called pneumatophores, help to get oxygen for respiration.
 The Stem
The stem of a plant is one of two structural parts of a vascular plant (a plant that has tissues for
moving water and nutrients), the other being the root. The stem is the part above ground which provides
support for leaves and buds. It's like the major highway of a plant, and it's vital for plant life.

The region of the stem where leaves are born are called nodes while internodes are the portions between
two nodes. Some stems perform the function of storage of food, support, protection and of vegetative
propagation.
Underground stems of potato, ginger, turmeric, zaminkand, colocasia are modified to store food in them.

Stem tendrils which develop from axillary buds, are slender and spirally coiled and help plants
to climb such as in gourds (cucumber, pumpkins, watermelon) and grapevines.
 Axillary buds of stems may also get modified into woody, straight and pointed thorns. They
protect plants from browsing animals.

Some plants of arid regions modify their stems into flattened (Opuntia), or fleshy cylindrical
(Euphorbia) structures. They contain chlorophyll and carry out photosynthes

Underground stems of some plants such as grass and strawberry, etc., spread to new niches and
when older parts die new plants are formed
 The Leaf
Leaf is a flattened structure of a higher plant, typically green and bladelike, that is attached to a
stem directly or via a stalk. Leaves are the main organs of photosynthesis and transpiration.
Leaves originate from shoot apical meristems. Leaf develops at the node and bears a bud in its
axil. The axillary bud later develops into a branch.
A typical leaf consists of three main parts: leaf base, petiole and lamina. The petiole help hold
the blade to light. Long thin flexible petioles allow leaf blades to flutter in wind, thereby cooling the leaf
and bringing fresh air to leaf surface. The lamina or the leaf blade is the green expanded part of the leaf
with veins and veinlets. There is, usually, a middle prominent vein, which is known as the midrib. Veins
provide rigidity to the leaf blade and act as channels of transport for water, minerals and food materials.
 Leaf Venation
The arrangement of veins and the veinlets in the lamina of leaf is termed as venation. When
the veinlets form a network, the venation is termed as reticulate. When the veins run parallel to each other
within a lamina, the venation is termed as parallel. Leaves of dicotyledonous plants generally possess
reticulate venation, while parallel venation is the characteristic of most monocotyledons.
 Modifications of Leaves
Leaves of certain insectivorous plants such as pitcher plant, venus-fly trap are also
modified leaves for their food.