What is Agriculture?

 comes from the Latin origin of the word, '"agricultura."'

 "agr"' means '"field,"' and '"culture"' means '"growing"' or '"cultivation."'
 ‘”farming”’ comes from the Latin origin of the word, ‘”firmare.”’ It means ‘”to fix or to settle.”’
 is the science or practice of farming, or the growing crops and raising livestock, with the purpose of
human use and consumption.
 Production of food and raw material through farming (FAO, 2011)
 The science , art and business of producing crops and raising of domesticated animals (sheaffer and
Moncada, 2011).
 Scientist James M. Rubenstein explained it in his book,  The Cultural Landscape: An Introduction to
Human Geography, as: '"The deliberate modification of Earth's surface through cultivation of plants
and rearing animals to obtain sustenance or economic gain."'

Types of Agriculture
 Industrialized Agriculture is farming for the purpose of mass production and economic growth,
while Subsistence Agriculture is farming to feed the family that works the farm.

Four main branches of agriculture:

1. Livestock production.
2. Crop production.
3. Agricultural economics.
4. Agricultural engineering.

Crop production is a branch of agriculture, which includes the cultivation of crops in field cultivation,
vegetable growing, fruit growing, etc. This industry gives necessary food. Consumer goods manufacturing
and food industries gets raw materials.

2 Types of Crops
1. Agronomic crops are generally non-perishable crops such as grains, dry beans, oilseeds, and fiber.
 2. Horticultural Crops are fruits and vegetables, mainly grown for their “contribution to the flavour and
interest of food and for the supply of minor but essential nutrients.”

What is the importance of agriculture?

The importance of agriculture is that it allows humans to live in a permanent location without having to hunt
and gather food. It has allowed civilizations to come into existence and flourish and has made a great
impact on economic growth for many countries. However, the corruption of agriculture has allowed
pollution, pesticides, and genetically modified organisms to become introduced into the system and the
situation is now difficult to control.

History of Agriculture
At the proclamation of Philippine Independence on June 12, 1898, which gave birth to the First Philippine
Republic under the stewardship of President Emilio Aguinaldo, several offices and agencies were
established. The then Department of Agriculture and Manufacturing was created through a Presidential
Proclamation on June 23, 1898.
By 1901, a policy of diversification was adopted under the American Sovereignty, which gave emphasis to
the development of other agricultural products, like rice and other basic commodities, and also fishing,
forestry and mining. The Insular Bureau of Agriculture was then created under the Department of Interior
through Act 271.

The means by which agriculture expanded into the Philippines is argued by many different anthropologists
and an exact date of its origin is unknown.[1][2][3][4] However, there are proxy indicators and other pieces
of evidence that allow anthropologists to get an idea of when different crops reached the Philippines and
how they may have gotten there.[5][6] Rice is an important agricultural crop today in the Philippines and
many countries throughout the world import rice and other products from the Philippines.

DOMESTICATION _ the adapting or farming of wild species of plant or animals to be used by man.
The Philippine economy is driven primarily by the service and industry sectors. Two-thirds of the population
is still living in the rural area where agriculture is the main source of livelihood. Forty-eight percent of the
total land area for agriculture are planted to temporary crops while 46% are planted to permanent crops.
The major crops in the Philippines are rice, corn, coconut, sugarcane, banana, pineapple, coffee, mango,
tobacco, abaca, peanut, mungbean, cassava, sweet potato, tomato, garlic, onion bulb, cabbage, eggplant,
calamansi, and rubber. Major livestock are carabao, hog, cattle, goat, dairy and the major fisheries are
milkfish, tilapia, tiger prawn, yellowfin tuna. Poultry products in the country are chicken, duck, chicken eggs,
and duck eggs.