Class 8 Geography Chapter 4 Notes / Agriculture Notes Class 8 Geography
In Class 8 Geography Chapter 4 Notes we discuss the farm system, Types of Farming, major crops of the words and Agricultural Development. Agriculture Notes Class 8 Geography is a part of our NCERT Notes. You can also download notes of Ch 4 Agriculture pdf. CBSE Notes Class 8 Geography Chapter 4 Agriculture is provided by our experienced teachers.
Lates start Class 8th Geography Chapter 4 Notes
The word agriculture is derived from the Latin words ager or agri meaning soil and culture meaning, cultivation.
The transformation from a plant to a finished product involves three types of economic activities. These are primary, secondary and tertiary activities.
- Primary Activities– All those activities are connected with the extraction and production of natural resources. Agriculture, fishing and gathering are good examples.
- Secondary activities– These are concerned with the processing of these resources. Manufacturing steel, baking bread and weaving cloth are examples of this activity.
- Tertiary activities- provide support to the primary and secondary sectors through services. Transport, trade, banking, insurance and advertising are examples of tertiary activities.
Agriculture is a primary activity. It includes growing crops, fruits, vegetables, flowers and rearing of livestock. In the world, 50 per cent of people are engaged in agricultural activity. Two-thirds of India’s population is still dependent on agriculture.
- Favourable topography of soil and climate is vital for agricultural activity.
- The land on which the crops are grown is known as arable land.
Farm System
- Agriculture or farming can be looked at as a system.
- The important inputs are seeds, fertilisers, machinery and labour.
- Some of the operations involved are ploughing, sowing, irrigation, weeding and harvesting.
- The outputs from the system include crops, wool, dairy and poultry products.
Types of Farming
Farming is practised in various ways across the world. Depending upon the geographical conditions, the demand for produce, labour and the level of technology, farming can be classified into two main types. These are subsistence farming and commercial farming.
Subsistence Farming
This type of farming is practised to meet the needs of the farmer’s family. Subsistence farming can be further classified as intensive subsistence and primitive subsistence farming.
- Intensive Subsistence Agriculture– the farmer cultivates a small plot of land using simple tools and more labour. Intensive subsistence agriculture is prevalent in the thickly populated areas of the monsoon regions of south, southeast and east Asia.
- Primitive Subsistence Agriculture– includes shifting cultivation and nomadic herding.
Shifting Cultivation
Shifting cultivation is also known as ‘slash and burn’ agriculture. In this type, a plot of land is cleared by felling the trees and burning them. The ashes are then mixed with the soil and crops like maize, yam, potatoes and cassava are grown. After the soil loses its fertility, the land is abandoned and the cultivator moves to a new plot.
It is practised in the thickly forested areas of the Amazon basin, tropical Africa, parts of southeast Asia and Northeast India. These are the areas of heavy rainfall and quick regeneration of vegetation.
Nomadic Herding
In this type of farming, herdsmen move from place to place with their animals for fodder and water, along defined routes.
- Sheep, camel, yak and goats are most commonly reared. They provide milk, meat, wool, hides and other products to the herders and their families.
- It is practised in the semi-arid and arid regions of the Sahara, Central Asia and some parts of India, like Rajasthan and Jammu and Kashmir.
Commercial Farming
In commercial farming, crops are grown and animals are reared for sale in the market.
- The area cultivated and the amount of capital used are large.
- Most of the work is done by machines.
- Commercial farming includes commercial grain farming, mixed farming and plantation agriculture.
- Grain Farming– In commercial grain farming crops are grown for commercial purposes. Wheat and maize are common commercially grown grains.
- Mixed Farming– In mixed farming, the land is used for growing food and fodder crops and rearing livestock.
- Plantations– Plantations are a type of commercial farming where single crops of tea, coffee, sugarcane, cashew, rubber, banana or cotton are grown. Rubber in Malaysia, coffee in Brazil, tea in India and Sri Lanka are some examples.
Organic Farming In this type of farming, organic manure and natural pesticides are used instead of chemicals. No genetic modification is done to increase the yield of the crop.
Major Crops
A large variety of crops are grown to meet the requirement of the growing population.
- Crops also supply raw materials for agro-based industries.
- Major food crops are wheat, rice, maize and millet.
- Jute and cotton are fibre crops.
- Important beverage crops are tea and coffee.
Rice-
- Rice is the major food crop of the world.
- It is the staple diet of the tropical and subtropical regions.
- Rice needs high temperature, high humidity and rainfall.
- It grows best in alluvial clayey soil, which can retain water.
- China leads in the production of rice followed by India, Japan, Sri Lanka and Egypt.
Wheat–
- Wheat requires moderate temperature and rainfall during the growing season and bright sunshine at the time of harvest.
- It thrives best in a well-drained loamy soil.
- Wheat is grown extensively in the USA, Canada, Argentina, Russia, Ukraine, Australia and India.
- In India, it is grown in winter.
Millets-
- They are also known as coarse grains and can be grown on less fertile and sandy soils.
- It is a hardy crop that needs low rainfall and high to moderate temperatures and adequate rainfall.
- Jowar, bajra and ragi are grown in India. Other countries are Nigeria, China and Niger.
Maize-
- Maize requires moderate temperature, rainfall and lots of sunshine.
- It needs well-drained fertile soils.
- Maize is grown in North America, Brazil, China, Russia, Canada, India, and Mexico.
Cotton-
- Cotton requires high temperatures, light rainfall, two hundred and ten frost-free days and bright sunshine for its growth.
- It grows best on black and alluvial soils.
- China, USA, India, Pakistan, Brazil and Egypt are the leading producers of cotton.
Jute-
- Jute was also known as the ‘Golden Fibre’.
- It grows well on alluvial soil and requires high temperatures, heavy rainfall and a humid climate.
- This crop is grown in tropical areas. India and Bangladesh are the leading producers of jute.
Coffee-
- Coffee requires a warm and wet climate and well-drained loamy soil.
- Hill slopes are more suitable for the growth of this crop.
- Brazil is the leading producer followed by Columbia and India.
Who discovered the Coffee Plant?
There are different versions about the discovery of coffee. In about AD 850, Kaldi, an Arab goat-herder, who was puzzled by the queer antics of his flock, tasted the berries of the evergreen bush on which the goats were feeding. On experiencing a sense of exhilaration, he proclaimed his discovery to the world.
Tea-
- Tea is a beverage crop grown on plantations.
- This requires a cool climate and well-distributed high rainfall throughout the year for the growth of its tender leaves. It needs well-drained loamy soils and gentle slopes.
- Labour in large numbers is required to pick the leaves.
- Kenya, India, China, and Sri Lanka produce the best quality tea in the world.
Agricultural Development
Agricultural Development refers to efforts made to increase farm production in order to meet the growing demand of the increasing population. This can be achieved in many ways such as
- Increasing the cropped area,
- The number of crops grown,
- Improving irrigation facilities,
- Use of fertilisers and a high-yielding variety of seeds.
- The mechanisation of agriculture is also another aspect of agricultural development.
The ultimate aim of agricultural development is to increase food security.
Class 8 Geography Chapter 4 Notes- Do You Know?
- Agriculture Culture– The science and art of cultivation on the soil, raising crops and rearing livestock. It is also called farming.
- Sericulture Culture– Commercial rearing of silkworms. It may supplement the income of the farmer.
- Pisciculture Culture– Breeding of fish in specially constructed tanks and ponds.
- Viticulture Culture– Cultivation of grapes.
- Horticulture Culture– Growing vegetables, flowers and fruits for commercial use.
- Shifting cultivation is known by different names in different parts of the world Jhumming – North-East India Milpa -Mexico Roca – Brazil. Ladang – Malaysia
- Maize is also know as corn. Various colourful varieties of maize are found across the world.
- Food security exists when all people, at all times, have access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food to meet their dietary needs and food preferences for an active and healthy life.