1. What is farming?

Agriculture, also called farming or husbandry, is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi, and other life forms for food, fiber, biofuel and other products used to sustain life. Agricultural practices such as irrigation, crop rotation, fertilizers, pesticides and animals were developed long ago, but have made great strides in the past century. The history of agriculture has played a major role in human history, as agricultural progress has been a crucial factor in worldwide socioeconomic change. Division of labor in agricultural societies made common place specializations rarely seen in hunter-gatherer cultures. Farming system is a resource management strategy to achieve economic and sustain agricultural production to meet diverse requirement of the farm household while preserving the resource base and maintaining high environmental quality. The farming system in its real sense will help the following ways to lift the economy of Indian agriculture and standard of living of the farmers.

2. What is extensive farming?

Extensive farming or extensive agriculture is an agricultural production system that uses small inputs of labor, fertilizers, and capital, relative to the land area being farmed. Extensive farming most commonly refers to sheep and cattle farming in areas with low agriculture productivity. It is found in the mid-latitude sections of most continents. The nature of extensive farming means it requires less rainfall than that of intensive farming. Extensive farming is distinguished from intensive farming in that the latter, employing large amounts of labor and capital, enables one to apply fertilizers, insecticides, fungicides, and herbicides and to plant, cultivate, and often harvest mechanically. Because extensive farming produces a lower yield per unit of land, its use commercially requires large quantities of land in order to be profitable. This demand for land means that extensive farming must be carried on where land values are low in relation to labor and capital, which in turn means that extensive farming is practiced where population densities are low and thus usually at some distance from primary markets.

3. Define intensive farming and the advantages of intensive farming.

Intensive farming or intensive agriculture is an agricultural production system characterized by a low fallow ratio and the high use of inputs such as capital, labor, or heavy use of pesticides and chemical fertilizers relative to land area. Intensive farming has a number of benefits.

•  Significantly increased yield per acre, per person, and per GBP relative to extensive farming and therefore,
•  Food becomes more affordable to the consumer as it costs less to produce.
• The same area of land is able to supply food and fiber for a larger population reducing the risk of starvation.
• The preservation of existing areas of woodland and rainforest habitats (and the ecosystems and other sustainable economies that these may harbor), which would need to be felled for extensive farming methods in the same geographical location. This also leads to a reduction in anthropogenic CO2 generation (resulting from removal of the sequestration afforded by woodlands and rainforests).
•  In the case of intensive livestock farming: an opportunity to capture methane emissions which would otherwise contribute to global warming. Once captured, these emissions can be used to generate heat or electrical energy, thereby reducing local demand for fossil fuels.

4. What are the advantages of extensive farming over intensive farming?

Extensive farming has a number of advantages over intensive farming:

    1. Less labor per unit areas is required to farm large areas, especially since expensive alterations to land (like terracing) are completely absent.
    2. Mechanization can be used more effectively over large, flat areas.
    3. Greater efficiency of labor means generally lower product prices.
    4. Animal welfare is generally improved because animals are not kept in stifling conditions.
    5. Lower requirements of inputs such as fertilizers.
    6. If animals are grazed on pastures native to the locality, there is less likely to be problems with exotic species.
    7. Local environment and soil are not damaged by overuse of chemicals.

5. Explain the difference between arable and pastoral farming.

Farming has two branches: arable and pastoral.

Arable is where farmers plough the land, sow seeds and grow plants to harvest. In geography, arable land is an agricultural term, meaning land that can be used for growing crops. Arable crops such as oat and wheat require good soils and a warm climate to be grown successfully. To be grown and harvested successfully they require flat land that allows machinery such as combine harvesters to be used. As such this type of farming is concentrated in the east and south of the UK where the climate, soil and relief of the land allow it to be profitable.

Examples: Corn, Wheat, Vegetables and Soybeans.

Pastoral farming is the rearing of animals. Pastoral farming involves livestock (animals). Livestock generally are raised for subsistence or for profit. Raising animals (animal husbandry) is an important component of modern agriculture. Pastoral farming is farming related to livestock rather than growing crops and other fodder. The livestock usually graze on naturally-grown grass and other vegetation. Some pastoral farmers grow crops, but instead of selling the harvest, they feed it to livestock so that they stay healthy for optimum production of meat, wool, milk and eggs.

Examples: Cattle (for meat, cheese and milk), Hens or chickens (for meat and eggs) and Sheep (for meat and wool).

6. What is mixed farming?

Mixed farming is the combining of two independent agricultural enterprises on the same farm. A typical case of mixed farming is the combination of crop enterprise with dairy farming or in more general terms, crop cultivation with livestock farming. Mixed farming may be treated as a special case of diversified farming. This particular combination of enterprises, support each other and add to the farmer’s profitability. Mixed farming is one which crop production is combined with the rearing of livestock. The live stock enterprises are complementary to crop production; so as to provide a balance and productive system of farming. In mixed farming at least 10% of its gross income must be contributed by livestock activity. The upper limit being 45% under Indian condition. So the farm on which at least 10 to 49% income is found from livestock is called mixed farm. In mixed farming cow and buffaloes are included with crop production. If farmers are rearing cows, buffaloes, sheep goat, and fisheries with crop cultivation this type of farming is called diversified farming. In mixed farming a farmer can take up different types of practices for income generation while doing his main business of agriculture. Some of these practices that can be done together with the main agricultural practices are – poultry farming, dairy farming, bee keeping, sericulture, pisciculture, shrimp farming, goat and sheep rearing, piggery and agroforestry. Thus a farmer can raise his income manifold through carrying out different farming practices together. The greatest benefit from this type of farming is that if any one business does not pay desired benefit, the same can be recovered from the benefit of the other business.

7. What are the advantages of mixed farming?

   1.  It offers highest return on farm business, as the by products of farm are properly utilized.
   2.  It provides work throughout year.
   3.  Efficient utilization of land, labor, equipment and other resources.
   4. The crop by products such as straw, bus, fodder etc. is used for feeding of livestock and in return they provide milk.
   5.  Manures available from livestock maintain soil fertility.
   6.  It helps in supplying all the food needs of the family members.
   7.  Intensive cultivation is possible.
   8.  If one source of income is lost he can maintain his family from other source of income.
   9.  Milk cattle’s provide draft animals for crop production and rural transport.
  10. Mixed farming increases social status of the farmer.

8. Describe the characteristics of organic agriculture.

Organic agriculture is a production system that sustains the health of soils, ecosystems and people. It relies on ecological processes, biodiversity and cycles adapted to local conditions, rather than the use of inputs with adverse effects. Organic agriculture combines tradition, innovation and science to benefit the shared environment and promote fair relationships and a good quality of life for all involved. It is a type of farming that restricts the use of chemical fertilizers and chemical pesticides and relies more on crop rotation and green manure is known as organic farming. Organic farming helps to sustain the mineral resources of the soil and prevent soil pollution through chemical contamination. Organic agriculture is based on:

    1. The principle of health.
    2. The principle of ecology.
    3. The principle of fairness.
    4. The principle of care.

9. What are plantations?

A plantation is a long, artificially-established forest, farm or estate, where crops are grown for sale, often in distant markets rather than for local on-site consumption. They were originally developed in tropical areas by European and North American merchants. Large areas were cleared and a single crop of either a bush or tree was planted. Plantations are an example of monoculture. Plantation crops include tea, coffee, rubber, bananas and sugar cane. Plantations require a very high capital and labor input. Some large plantations provide housing, schools and other services for their workers. Local processing facilities may also be present. 

10. Describe the location of rubber plantations in Malaysia.

Malaysia is the leading producer of natural rubber in the world. About 46% of the total world's rubber is produced in Malaysia. The rubber plantation was started in Malaysia in 1877. First, the seedlings were brought from the Amazon Basin, and were planted here on a experimental basis. Later, when the rubber seedlings were successfully planted, attempts were made to produce it on a commercial scale. The British people, who colonized the region and introduced rubber tree, provided the capital for clearing the forest and planting rubber trees. They also provided the market for rubber. The skilled labor that was needed was managed from India, particularly from South India. Rubber can grow anywhere in Malaysia, because of the suitability of climate and soil; but most of the rubber estates are concentrated in the western coastal plains of Malaysia. The plantation in coastal zone gets the advantage of nearest port for it’s export. Yet very low areas are avoided in order not to suffer from stagnation of water. The greatest production is in its Johor State of Southern Malaysia. Here rubber cultivation occupies about 4-2 million acres or about 65% of the total cultivated area in the country Peninsular Malaysia – comprising 12 of the 14 states in the Malaysian federation – is among the world’s most important rubber growing areas. Rubber is also grown in Sabah (formerly North Borneo) and Sarawak, which, known together as East Malaysia make up Malaysia. Altogether Malaysia produces almost 20% of the world’s natural rubber. A good deal of Malaysia’s rubber (over half) comes from thousands of privately owned plots of land called small holdings, which are usually about 2 hectares. The rest is grown on big estates owned by various companies; each can cover over a thousand hectares. Altogether, Malaysia has 1.7 million hectares of rubber.