Principles of Agriculture

Recognizing The Role Of

Agriculture In Society
 Lesson

Determining The History

Of Agriculture
 Student Learning Objectives

Define agriculture and the

agriculture industry
Identify important historical
developments in agriculture
Explain major technological
developments in agriculture
 Terms

Agriculture Domestication
industry Farming
Agriculture Forestry
Agribusiness Inventions
Aquaculture Natural
Biotechnology Resources
 Terms (continued)

Ornamental
Horticulture
Suburban
Farming
Technology
Objective One

Define Agriculture and The

Agriculture Industry
 What is Agriculture?

Agricultureis the science of

growing crops and raising
animals to meet the needs of
humans
 What is the Ag Industry?

Involves all activities involved

with providing people with food,
clothing, and shelter
Includes farm operations, and
Nonfarm operations
Largest industry in America
 What are Farming
Operations?
Uses land and other resources
to grow crops and raise animals
Includes conventional farming,
suburban farming, aquaculture,
and forestry
 Conventional Farming

Larger acreage of land growing

typical grains of corn,
soybeans, wheat, and other
similar crops
Producing larger numbers of
animals like swine, beef and
dairy cattle, and sheep
 Suburban Farming

Normally involves smaller areas

of land
Normally found in residential or
business locations
Typical products would include
vegetable crops and small
animals
 Aquaculture

“Farming the Water”

Involves raising fish or similar
aquatic animals
Also includes producing aquatic
plants like water cress or water
chestnuts
 Forestry

Involves the production and use

of trees
 What are Nonfarm
Operations?
Normally referred to as
Agribusiness
Agribusiness is nonfarm work in
areas such as ag supplies,
services, marketing, and
product processing
 Agriculture Also Makes the
Lives of People Better
Ornamental Horticulture
produces flowers and plants for
their beauty
Natural Resources involve
working with things found in
nature like soil, water, and air
 Objective Two

Identify Important Historical

Developments in
Agriculture
 Two Important Groups of
People That Affected Early
Agriculture

Native
Americans
Colonists
 Native Americans
Includes Indians, Hawaiians, and
Eskimos
Hunting and gathering met their
food and fiber needs
Indians first began simple farming
By 1000 AD, corn is being grown in
large plots
 Colonists

Learned many successful ag

practices from Native Americans
Credited with early domestication of
animals, which is the taming,
confinement, and breeding of
animals for human use
Objective Three

Explain major
technological
developments
in agriculture
 What is Technology?

Technology is the application of

knowledge to practical use
Uses inventions (new devices,
products, or ways of doing
work) for easier work and better
living
History of American Agriculture
1776-1990

Farm Machinery and

Technology
 18th Century

Oxen and Horses used for

power
Crude wooden plows
Sowing and cultivating by hand
Harvested grain with sickle
Threshing grain with flail
 1776 To 1799
 Cradle and scythe introduced
 1793--Cotton Gin invented
 1794--Thomas Jefferson’s moldboard of
least resistance tested
 1797--Charles Newbold patented first
cast iron plow
 Charles Townsend develops crop
rotation systems
 1800 To 1830

1819--Jethro Wood patented

iron plow with interchangeable
parts
US food canning industry was
established
Gregor Mendel discovers basic
principles of heredity
1830’s
250 hours needed to produce 100
bushels (five acres) of wheat
1834--McCormick Reaper patented
1837--John Deere began making
steel plows
1837--Practical Threshing machine
patented
1840’s
1841--Practical grain drill patented
1842--First grain elevator in
Buffalo, New York
1844--Practical mower patented
1847--Irrigation begun in Utah
1849--Mixed chemical fertilizers
sold commercially
 1850’s

75 hours needed to produce 100

bushels (2.5 acres) of wheat
1854--Self-governing windmill
perfected
1856--2 horse straddle-row
cultivator patented
 1860’s

Use of horses keys first American

ag revolution
Gang and sulky plows came into
use
1868--Steam tractors tried out
1869--Spring-tooth harrow appears
USDA established
 1870’s

Silos came into use

Deep well drilling first widely
used
1874--Joseph Glidden patents
barbed wire. Era of open range
grazing ends
 1880’s

1880--William Deering put 3000

twine binders on the market
1884--Horse drawn combine
used in Pacific Coast wheat
areas
 1890’s

1890--Cream separators came into

wide use
50 labor hours required to produce
100 bushels (5 acres) wheat
40 labor hours required to produce
100 bushels (2.5 acres) corn
 1900 To 1910

Annual commercial fertilizer

consumption 3.7 million tons
George Washington Carver finds
new uses for peanuts, sweet
potatoes, and soybeans. Ag in
southern United States diversifies
First successful gas tractor is built
 1910 To 1920

Annual commercial fertilizer

consumption 6.1 million tons
Big open-geared gas tractors
came into use
1919--Small prairie type
combine with auxiliary engine
introduced
 1920’s

1926--Successful light tractor

developed
1926--Cotton stripper
developed
Increased ag production results
from expanded use of
mechanized power
 1930’s

Annual commercial fertilizer

consumption 6.5 million tons
Rubber tired tractor with
complementary machinery came
into use
20 labor hours required to produce
100 bushels (2.5 acres) corn
 1940’s

One farmer supplies 10.7 other

people
Change from horses to tractors
leads to second American ag
revolution
Frozen foods popularized
Annual commercial fertilizer
consumption 13.6 million tons
 1950’s

One farmer supplies 15.5 others

1954--Number of tractors on farms
exceeds number of horses for first
time
Anhydrous ammonia use
increases, spurring higher yields
 1960’s

One farmer supplies 25.8 others

Annual commercial fertilizer
consumption 32.3 million tons
5 labor hours required to produce
100 bushels (3.3 acres) wheat
using 14 ft. drill and 14 ft. self
propelled combine
 1970’s

No-tillagriculture popularized
One farmer supplies 75.8 others
3 hours labor required to produce
100 bushels (1 1/8 acres) corn
using tractor, 5 bottom plow, 20 ft.
disk, 12 ft. self propelled combine
 1980’s

More farmers using low-till

methods to reduce erosion
Farmers using low-input
sustainable agriculture (LISA)
techniques to reduce chemical
applications
 Other 20th Century
Advancements
Improved varieties of crop seeds
Development of chemicals to
control weeds, insects and other
pests
Genetic engineering implemented
to improve crops and livestock
Widespread application of
computers
 Other 20th Century
Advancements
Biotechnology--putting our
scientific knowledge of biology
(plants and animals) to practical
use
BT corn and Roundup Ready
Soybeans for example