Agriculture

Wheat Rice

Soybeans
An Ecological Perspective on Agriculture
Farming creates novel ecological conditions
Agroecosystem
Differ from natural systems in six ways
Agroecosystem
1. In farming we try to stop ecological succession and
keep the agroecosystem in an early-successional state.
2. Monoculture- large areas planted with a single
species
Counteracted by crop rotation
3. Crops planted in neat rows, which makes life easy
for pests.
Agroecosystem
4. Farming greatly simplifies biological diversity and
food chains.
5. Plowing is unlike any natural soil disturbance.
Nothing in nature repeatedly and regularly turns over
the soil to a specific depth.
6. Genetic modification of crops
Limiting Factors
High-quality agricultural soil has
All the chemical elements required for plants
A physical structure that lets air and water move freely
Retains water well
Mixture of soil particle size
The Future of Agriculture
Three major technological approaches to agriculture
1. Modern mechanized agriculture
2. Resource- based agriculture
 Organic food production
3. Bioengineering
Demand-based agriculture
Resource-based agriculture
An organic farm
History of Agriculture
1. Resource-based agriculture and what we now call
organic agriculture were introduced about
10,000years ago.
2. A shift to mechanized, demand-based agriculture
occurred during the Industrial Revolution of the 18th
and 19th centuries.
3. A return to resource-based agriculture began in
the 20th century, using new techniques.
4. Today there is a growing interest in organic
agriculture as well as use of genetically engineered
crops.
The Green Revolution
Name attached to the post WWII programs that have
led to the development of
new strain of crops w/ higher yield
better resistance to disease
or better ability to grow under poor conditions
The term Green Revolution refers to the introduction
of high-yielding varieties of staple food crops,
particularly wheat and rice, into Third World
countries, starting in the 1960s. Initially Mexico, India
and the Philippines were targeted. The stated aim was
to increase food production to end hunger and prevent
uprisings.
Improved Irrigation
Better irrigation techniques could improve crop yield
and reduce overall water use
Drip irrigation
Hydroponics
Organic Farming
Organic faming typically considered to have three
qualities
More like nature ecosystem than monoculture
Minimizes negative environmental impacts
The food that results does not contain artificial
compounds
One of the fastest growing sectors in US ag
Eating Lower on the Food Chain
Some people believe it is ecologically unsound to use
domestic animals for food.
Eating each step up the food chain leaves much less food
to eat per acre
On the best ag land this hold true but on rangelands
area better suited to livestock
Wisest approach may be to avoid using best lands for
animal feed
Genetically Modified Food
Scientist have been able to transfer specific genetic
characteristics from one individual to another,
from one population to another, and from one
species to another.
Genetic engineering in ag involves several
practices
Faster and more efficient ways to develop hybrids
Introduction of the terminator gene
Transfer of genetic properties from widely divergent
kinds of life
Genetically Modified Food
Considerable interest in developing crops
With entirely new characteristics
 E.g. nitrogen fixation
With tolerance of drought, cold, heat and toxic chemical
elements.
Climate Change and Agriculture
Climate change can increase or decrease yield
Likely to decrease as areas with good soils also have
suitable climate for agriculture
Climate change may increase evapotranspiration.
Irrigation and water supply becoming a bigger problem
How Agriculture Changes the Environment
Agriculture one of our greatest triumphs and
sources of environmental damage.
Major environmental problems
Soil erosion
Sediment transport and deposition downstream
On-site pollution from overuse and secondary effects of
fertilizers and pesticides
Off-site pollution of other ecosystems, of soil, water and
air
How Agriculture Changes the Environment
Major environmental problems cont.
Deforestation
Desertification
Degradation of aquifers
Salinization
Accumulation of toxic organic compounds
Loss of biodiversity
The Plow Puzzle
The more altered the soil the great the amount of
material must be added each year
Fertilizers, pesticides, water
Our Eroding Soil
When land cleared of its natural vegetation, the soil
begins to lose its fertility
Physical erosion
Became a national issue in the US in the 1930s
Intense plowing + drought
Loosened soil blow away
Our Eroding Soil
Traditionally decline in soil fertility combated using
organic fertilizers
Animal manure
In the 20th century crop production increased
Chemical or artificial fertilizers
Add nitrogen and phosphorous to the soil
Our Eroding Soil
Since WWII mechanized farming has seriously
damaged land
> 1 billion hectares
In US 1/3 of topsoil has been lost
Where Eroded Soil Goes
A lot of it travels down streams and rivers
Deposited at their mouths
Fill in water ways
Damage fisheries and coral reefs
Sedimentation has chemical effects
Enrichment of waters, eutrophication
Transport of toxic chemical pesticides
Making Soils Sustainable
Soil forms continuously
But very slowly
1mm of soil formation takes 10-40 years
To be truly sustainable soil lost should equal amount
of new soil produced
No-Till Agriculture
Involves not plowing the land, using herbicides and
integrated pest management to keep down weeds, and
allowing some weeds to grow.
The goal is to suppress and control weeds but not
eliminate them at the expense of soil conservation
Additional benefit reduces the release of CO2
Controlling Pests
Pests are undesirable
Competitors, parasites, and predators
In agriculture pests are mainly
Insects, nematodes, bacterial and viral diseases, weeds
and vertebrates.
Loss can be large
Estimated at 1/3 of potential harvest and 1/10 of the
harvested crop
Controlling Pests
Because a farm is maintained in a very early stage of
ecological succession and enriched by fertilizers and
water
 It is a good place for crops
AND early-successional plants (weeds)
Weeds compete for all resources
Light, water,nutrients, and space to grow.
The History of Pesticides
Pre- Industrial Revolution methods
Slash and burn agriculture
Planting aromatic herbs that repel insects
Modern science-based agriculture
Search for chemicals that would reduce abundance of
pests
The first, like arsenic, toxic to all life
 Killed pest and beneficial organisms
The History of Pesticides
Second stage began in the 1930
Petroleum based sprays and natural plant chemicals
(e.g., nicotine)
Third stage was the development of artificial organic
compounds
DDT, broad-spectrum
Aldrin and dieldrin used to control termites
 Toxic to humans, has been found in breast milk
The History of Pesticides
Forth stage is a return to biological and ecological
knowledge.
Biological control- the use of biological predators and
parasites to control pests
The use of Bacillus thuringiensis (BT)
Proved safe and effective
Does Farming Change the Biosphere?
1st Agriculture changes land cover
Resulting in changes in reflected light
The evaporation of water
The roughness of the surface
Rate of exchange of chemical compounds
2nd Modern ag increases carbon dioxide
Major user of fossil fuels
Clearing land speeds decomposition
Does Farming Change the Biosphere?
3rd Affect climate through fires
Associated w/ clearing land
Add small particulates to the atmosphere
4th Artificial production of nitrogen
Alters biogeochemical cycle
5th Affects species diversity
Reduces diversity and increases # of endangered species