Cultivating Progress: Exploring the Diverse Types of Agriculture in Our Nation’s History

Agriculture is an age-old economic activity in our country. Over these years, cultivation methods have changed significantly depending upon the characteristics of the physical environment, technological know-how and socio-cultural practices.  Farming varies from subsistence to commercial type.

Classification of Farming Based on Moisture Sources

Farming in India can be mainly classified based on the main source of moisture for crops as irrigated and rainfed (barani).

• Irrigated Farming: Nurturing Crops Through Protective and Productive Approaches
  • It can be either protective or productive.
  • Protective Irrigation: Aim is to protect the crops from adverse effects of soil moisture deficiency. 
    • It also means that irrigation acts as a supplementary source of water over and above the rainfall.
    • In this kind of irrigation soil moisture is applied to the maximum possible area.
  • Productive Irrigation: To provide sufficient soil moisture in the cropping season to achieve high productivity
    •  In this type of irrigation, Water input per unit area of cultivated land is higher than protective irrigation.
• Exploring Rainfed Farming: Nurturing Crops Under Nature’s Precipitation
  • It is primarily dependent on rainfall. It is further classified into dryland and wetland farming. 
  • Dryland farming is prevalent in regions with annual rainfall less than 75 cm.
    • These regions grow hardy and drought resistant crops
    • Example:  ragi, bajra, moong, gram and guar (fodder crops).
  • Wetland farming in regions with excess rainfall during the rainy season.
  • Such regions may face flood and soil erosion hazards.
  • Example: Water intensive crops grown such as rice, jute and sugarcane and also aquaculture in the freshwater bodies is practiced.

Other major types of agriculture are as follows

Subsistence Agriculture 

This type of Agriculture is practiced to meet the needs of the farmer’s family. Traditionally, low levels of technology and household labor are used to produce small output. In this, farming areas consume most or all of the locally grown products. 

It is grouped in two categories – Primitive Subsistence Agriculture and Intensive Subsistence Agriculture.

• Exploring the Dynamics of Primitive Subsistence Farming, Shifting Cultivation

These types of agriculture are common among tribes in the tropics (Africa, South/Central America, Southeast Asia).

• Relying on Monsoon: This type of farming depends upon monsoon, natural fertility of the soil and suitability of other environmental conditions to the crops grown.
• Shifting Cultivation: It involves shifting cultivation or slash and burn Farming  which requires clearing vegetation with fire, which adds soil fertility.(Refer figure).
• Technology: It uses primitive tools like sticks and hoes. 
• Shifting Agriculture Cycle: Soil loses fertility after 3-5 years, leading to shifting of plot.

Areas of Primitive Subsistence Agriculture

• Shifting Cultivation is known by different names in India –

• Shifting Cultivation Worldwide: Practice of Shifting cultivation in different parts of the world is known by various names.
  • Example: Milpa in Central America/Mexico, Ladang in Indonesia/Malaysia, ‘Conuco’ in Venezuela, ‘Roca’ in Brazil, ‘Masole’ in Central Africa, ‘Ray’ in Vietnam etc. 

Shifting Agriculture

• Exploring the Dynamics of Intensive Subsistence Agriculture in Densely Populated Regions
  • These types of Agriculture are practiced in a densely populated region (Refer figure). It has two types:
  • Wet Paddy dominated: Characterized by dominance of rice crop, small land holdings due to high population density, use of family labor and limited use of machinery. 
    • All this leads to extensive use of land. Further, manure used to maintain soil fertility.
    • In this agriculture, yield per unit area is high but labor productivity is low.
  • Non-Paddy Dominated: This agriculture is practiced in areas unsuitable for rice. 
    • Crops like wheat, soybean, barley, and sorghum are grown. 
    • Millets are cultivated similar to wet paddy, but it often requires irrigation.

Areas of Intensive Subsistence Farming

• Intensive Farming  is common in densely populated developing countries, while commercial agriculture dominates larger holdings in the USA, Canada, and Australia.

Cultivating Success the Techniques and Diversity of Commercial Farming

• Definition: Commercial farming refers to the types of agriculture  practiced for  cultivating crops and/or raising livestock for the primary purpose of selling them for a profit.
• Modern Inputs in Commercial Farming: Commercial farming  relies on modern inputs like high-yielding seeds, fertilizers, and pesticides for increased productivity. 
• The degree of commercialization varies by region;
• Example: Rice is commercial in Haryana and Punjab but subsistence in Odisha.

Areas of Extensive Commercial Grain Farming 

Extensive Commercial Grain Cultivation

• This types of  agriculture thrives in the interior regions of semi-arid lands within the mid-latitudes.
  • Wheat is the primary crop, but other grains like corn, barley, oats, and rye are also cultivated.
• Mechanized Agriculture: The farms are typically large in size, which allows for mechanized operations from plowing to harvesting. Mechanization plays a crucial role in these large-scale operations.
• Efficiency of Mechanized Agriculture: While the yield per acre is low, the yield per person involved in farming is high due to mechanization and extensive land use.
• Extensive commercial grain cultivation is best developed in regions such as Eurasian steppes, the Canadian and American Prairies, the Pampas of Argentina, the Velds of South Africa, the Australian Downs, and the Canterbury Plains of New Zealand.(Refer figure)

Plantation Farming: Revealing the Dynamics of Large-Scale Crop Cultivation for Profit and Industry

• Meaning : Plantation farming is a large-scale agricultural system that focuses on the cultivation of a single cash crop on a large estate. 
• Objective: The primary purpose of plantation farming is to produce crops for sale, and the crops are typically grown for industrial purposes rather than direct consumption. It is a type of commercial farming.
• Europeans introduced other forms of Farming, which were guided by profit-oriented motives. 
  • Example: commercial farming, plantation farming etc.
• The Characteristic Plantation Farming: It include  large estates or plantations, large capital investment, managerial and technical support, scientific methods of cultivation, 
  • Monoculture Farming: This involves cultivating a single crop on a large scale. 
  • Capital-Intensive Crop Production: Plantations require significant capital and labor, with produce used as raw materials for industries. 
  • Crucial Role of Infrastructure: A well-developed transport and communication network is crucial for plantation development and the factories and markets for the export of the shifproducts.
  • Example: Important plantation crops in India include tea, coffee, rubber, sugarcane, and banana, with regions like Assam, North Bengal, and Karnataka playing key roles. 

Mixed Farming: Nurturing Agricultural Synergy through Crop Cultivation and Livestock Rearing 

• Meaning: Mixed farming is an agricultural practice that involves the simultaneous cultivation of crops and the raising of livestock on the same farm.
• Geographical Distribution: Mixed Farming is found in highly developed parts of the world, such as North-western Europe, Eastern North America, parts of Eurasia, and temperate latitudes of Southern continents (Refer figure).
• Crops in Mixed Farming: These farms are moderate in size and typically cultivate crops like wheat, barley, oats, rye, maize, fodder, and root crops. 
  • Fodder crops are vital for mixed farming, and practices like crop rotation and intercropping help maintain soil fertility.
• Balanced Agriculture: These farms balance crop cultivation and animal husbandry, with cattle, sheep, pigs, and poultry contributing significantly to income. 
• Resource-Intensive Nature: Mixed farming involves substantial capital investment in farm machinery and 
  • Infrastructure, extensive use of chemical fertilizers and green manures, and requires skilled expertise.

Areas of Mixed Farming

Cooperative Farming: Fostering Unity for Agricultural Prosperity and Sustainability

• The Essence of Cooperative Farming: Cooperative farming involves farmers forming a society to pool resources for more efficient and profitable agriculture. 
  • Individual farms remain intact, and this approach promotes cooperation in farming. 
• The Role of Cooperative Societies: Co-op societies help farmers procure essential inputs, sell products on favorable terms, and process quality products at lower costs.
• Flourishing of the Cooperative Movement: Originated over a century ago, this movement found success in Western European countries like Netherlands, Belgium, Sweden, Italy and especially in Denmark, where every farmer is a member of cooperatives.

Also Read: Land Resources and Agriculture in India: Dynamic, changes and Relationships

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