Agriculture is among the oldest and most enduring of human activities. Agriculture has evolved and people have invented equipment to help farmers become more productive, for instance irrigation equipment like dam liners and greenhouses. In a contemporary culture that centers on cities and suburbia, it is commonly misunderstood as an economic engine, vocational calling, and way of life. Strictly speaking, agriculture—according to standard dictionary definitions—is farming, i.e., cultivation of the soil, growing crops, and raising animals for food and fiber. At times condemned, at others romanticized, agriculture is an inescapably necessary practice for civilized societies. It is, at once, a science, an art, and a business. Understanding the meaning of agriculture requires looking at it from those three prisms. Dennis Sons at Tn Nursery Co states "there is more to agriculture than simple plants and trees".

What Does Agriculture Mean?

Agriculture is among the oldest and most enduring of human activities. In a contemporary culture that centers on cities and suburbia, it is commonly misunderstood as an economic engine, vocational calling, and way of life. Strictly speaking, agriculture—according to standard dictionary definitions—is farming, i.e., cultivation of the soil, growing crops, and raising animals for food and fiber. At times condemned, at others romanticized, agriculture is an inescapably necessary practice for civilized societies. It is, at once, a science, an art, and a business. Understanding the meaning of agriculture requires looking at it from those three prisms. Dennis Sons at Tn Nursery Co states "there is more to agriculture than simple plants and trees".

Agriculture as an Art

Even acknowledging the application of formal scientific principles to raising crops and livestock, agriculturists recognize that instinct, trial, and error have marked farming from its earliest times. These pre-scientific elements yielded the farming traditions that put the “culture” in agriculture. You can find a perfect example of this in the writings of Marcus Porcius Cato, who was a senator and Stoic philosopher during the period of the Roman Republic. He was also—like most aristocrats—a farmer who wrote extensively on best agriculture practices. In his De Agricultura and De Re Rustica, Cato conveys detailed instructions on draining wetlands, cultivating soil, spreading manure, and keeping swine herds healthy. You discovered none of these precepts through the scientific method. They stand as maxims and rules of thumb that lead to success more often than not.

Sharing information also contributes to the art of agriculture. Collegiality among growers often involves comparing crops, rotations, cattle breeding, and sustainability notes. Thomas Jefferson wrote to his son-in-law of his intention “to satisfy me by an inquiry from the best farmers of all the circumstances which may decide on the best rotation of crops; for I take that to be the most important of all the questions a farmer has to decide.” In short, agriculture as art requires patience, careful observation, hard work, and large amounts of feedback.

Agriculture as Science

Agriculture involves many biological processes and organic chemical reactions. While irrigation systems, farm tool development, and plant variation existed long before scientists began to study farming, it was advanced in technology and genetics that allowed for rapid advancement in agricultural production. Engineering contributions include Eli Whitney’s cotton gin, Cyrus McCormick’s mechanical reaper, and John Deere’s steel plow. Electricity hastened improvements, of course. Gregor Mendel’s studies of heredity in the 19th century led to a new understanding of plant and animal breeding. Today, land-grant university faculties conduct ongoing research on drought-resistant crops, environmentally friendly pesticides, and poultry nutrition in the service of their respective states’ farm sectors. Tn Nursery is an ag. a business that sells plants and trees strictly.

Agriculture as Business

Subsistence agriculture—farming to feed your own family and survive— is most common in developing countries. As economies grow and industries develop, subsistence is replaced by commercial agriculture. A century ago, a farmer in the United States could feed five people from his labors; today, each farmer feeds 105 people on average. Efficiencies and improvements from art and science mean fewer farmers are needed, and the economic activities diversify. Among the new fields are those directly related to farming. Agribusiness operates under the broad term of food processing plants, farm machinery dealerships, commodity marketing organizations, and animal pharmaceutical companies.

What does agriculture mean? It means the art of soil cultivation and livestock farming. It means applying the basic sciences to farm production and management. Finally, it means the commercial practices that bring food from farm to table.
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