PLANTS AND

LIVESTOCK
WEATHER
RELATIONSHIP
Shane V. Servan
What is Plant and
Livestock?
Plants- a living thing that grows in the
ground, usually has leaves or flowers, and
needs sun and water to survive
Livestock- are domesticated terrestrial
animals that are raised to provide a diverse
array of goods and services such as traction,
meat, milk, eggs, hides, fibers and feathers.
What is weather?

The state of the atmosphere, including

temperature, atmospheric pressure,
wind, humidity, precipitation, and cloud
cover. It differs from climate, which is all
weather conditions for a particular
location averaged over about 30 years.
Weather is influenced by latitude,
altitude, and local and regional
geography. It impacts the way people
dress each day and the types of
structures built.
 What is the relationship between Plant
and Livestock relationship to Weather?
Weather is the most important element that affects farm production. It can influence crop
growth, total yield, pest occurrence, water, fertilizer need, and all farm activities, carried out
during the growing season.

Here are the weather elements;

a) Temperature
b) Relative Humidity
c) Air/Atmospheric Pressure
d) Precipitation
e) Sunlight/Sunlight duration
f) Wind speed or Direction evapotranspiration
 Temperature

- influences most plant processes, including

photosynthesis, transpiration, respiration,
germination and flowering.
- As temperature increases (up to a point),
photosynthesis, transpiration and
respiration increase.
- An increase in temperature has one of the
largest direct impacts on livestock.
Heatwaves stress the animals, leaving
them more vulnerable to disease and
reduces their fertility
 Relative Humidity
- is the amount of water vapor in the air
relative to the maximum amount of water
vapor that the air can hold at a certain
temperature.
- When relative humidity levels are too high or
there is a lack of air circulation, a plant
cannot make water evaporate (part of the
transpiration process) or draw nutrients from
the soil. When this occurs for a prolonged
period, a plant eventually rots.
- humidity in warm conditions can be a
problem may affect livestock especially for
dairy and beef cattle. Such conditions can put
the animals under stress because they cannot
regulate their body temperature as effectively.
Air/Atmospheric Pressure
‾ also called barometric pressure, force per unit
area exerted by an atmospheric column (that
is, the entire body of air above the specified
area)
‾ atmospheric pressure may shorten
germination time, improve the rate of growth
of young plants, and cause more massive and
rapid root growth.
‾ can present special problems for the
respiration systems of animals because
atmospheric pressure affects the exchange of
oxygen and carbon di oxide that occurs during
animal respiration.
 Precipitation
‾ happens when any form of water
particle falls from the upper
atmosphere to the earth's
surface.
‾ Precipitation affect livestock by
the means of risk factor for
survival.
‾ Precipitation, manifested by rain,
freezing rain, sleet or ice pellets,
snowfall, and hail, is an
environmental factor
influencing plant growth.
Sunlight/Sunlight
Duration
‾ is necessary for plants to grow, and to
provide energy to warm the earth's
atmosphere.
‾ Light intensity controls plant growth.
Light duration affects plant flowering and
animal/insect habits.
‾ Most animals have body coverings that
protect them from the rays of the Sun.
But the solar radiation can penetrate these
covers sometimes and lead to activation,
heating, and ionization of the protoplasm,
which can cause mutations in the DNA of
such animals
Wind Speed or
Direction
Evapotranspiration
‾ is a fundamental atmospheric quantity
caused by air moving from high to low
pressure, usually due to changes in
temperature. Wind speed is now commonly
measured with an anemometer.
‾ greatly affects plants throughout their
growth. When plants are seedlings, slight
breezes help them grow more sturdy.
‾ blowing from the north can cool down
livestock houses during summer, while
winds from the south can raise the
temperature and affect the animals' well-
being.