Improvement in Food Resources

Welcome dear students! Today we are going to learn about Improvement_in_Food_Resources from Class 9 Science. We know that all living organisms need food. Food supplies proteins, carbohydrates, fats, vitamins and minerals, all of which we require for body development, growth and health. Both plants and animals are major sources of food for us. We obtain most of this food from agriculture and animal husbandry. We read in newspapers that efforts are always being made to improve production from agriculture and animal husbandry. Why is this necessary? Why can we not make do with the current levels of production? India is a very populous country. Our population is more than one billion people, and it is still growing. As food for this growing population, we will soon need more than a quarter of a billion tonnes of grain every year. This can be done by farming on more land. But India is already intensively cultivated. As a result, we do not have any major scope for increasing the area of land under cultivation. Therefore, it is necessary to increase our production efficiency for both crops and livestock. Efforts to meet the food demand by increasing food production have led to some successes so far. We have had the green revolution, which contributed to increased food-grain production. We have also had the white revolution, which has led to better and more efficient use as well as availability of milk. However, these revolutions mean that our natural resources are getting used more intensively. As a result, there are more chances of causing damage to our natural resources to the point of destroying their balance completely. Therefore, it is important that we should increase food production without degrading our environment and disturbing the balances maintaining it. Hence, there is a need for sustainable practices in agriculture and animal husbandry. Also, simply increasing grain production for storage in warehouses cannot solve the problem of malnutrition and hunger. People should have money to purchase food. Food security depends on both availability of food and access to it. The majority of our population depends on agriculture for their livelihood. Increasing the incomes of people working in agriculture is therefore necessary to combat the problem of hunger. Scientific management practices should be undertaken to obtain high yields from farms. For sustained livelihood, one should undertake mixed farming, intercropping, and integrated farming practices, for example, combine agriculture with livestock, poultry, fisheries, and bee-keeping. The question thus becomes, how do we increase the yields of crops and livestock? [CHECKPOINT] Let us move on to section twelve point one, Improvement in Crop Yields. Cereals such as wheat, rice, maize, millets and sorghum provide us carbohydrate for energy requirement. Pulses like gram, pea, black gram, green gram, pigeon pea, lentil, provide us with protein. And oil seeds including soyabean, ground nut, sesame, castor, mustard, linseed and sunflower provide us with necessary fats. As shown in Figure twelve point one, we see different types of crops categorized visually to represent these groups. Vegetables, spices and fruits provide a range of vitamins and minerals in addition to small amounts of proteins, carbohydrates and fats. In addition to these food crops, fodder crops like berseem, oats or sudan grass are raised as food for the livestock. Different crops require different climatic conditions, temperature and photoperiods for their growth and completion of their life cycle. Photoperiods are related to the duration of sunlight. Growth of plants and flowering are dependent on sunlight. As we all know, plants manufacture their food in sunlight by the process of photosynthesis. There are some crops, which are grown in rainy season, called the kharif season from the month of June to October, and some of the crops are grown in the winter season, called the rabi season from November to April. Paddy, soyabean, pigeon pea, maize, cotton, green gram and black gram are kharif crops, whereas wheat, gram, peas, mustard, linseed are rabi crops. In India there has been a four times increase in the production of food grains from nineteen fifty two to twenty ten with only twenty five percent increase in the cultivable land area. How has this increase in production been achieved? If we think of the practices involved in farming, we can see that we can divide it into three stages. The first is the choice of seeds for planting. The second is the nurturing of the crop plants. The third is the protection of the growing and harvested crops from loss. Thus, the major groups of activities for improving crop yields can be classified as crop variety improvement, crop production improvement, and crop protection management. [CHECKPOINT] Let us now study crop variety improvement. This approach depends on finding a crop variety that can give a good yield. Varieties or strains of crops can be selected by breeding for various useful characteristics such as disease resistance, response to fertilisers, product quality and high yields. One way of incorporating desirable characters into crop varieties is by hybridisation. Hybridisation refers to crossing between genetically dissimilar plants. This crossing may be intervarietal, which means between different varieties, interspecific, which means between two different species of the same genus, or intergeneric, which means between different genera. Another way of improving the crop is by introducing a gene that would provide the desired characteristic. This results in genetically modified crops. For new varieties of crops to be accepted, it is necessary that the variety produces high yields under different conditions that are found in different areas. Farmers would need to be provided with good quality seeds of a particular variety, that is, the seeds should all be of the same variety and germinate under the same conditions. Cultivation practices and crop yield are related to weather, soil quality and availability of water. Since weather conditions such as drought and flood situations are unpredictable, varieties that can be grown in diverse climatic conditions are useful. Similarly, varieties tolerant to high soil salinity have been developed. Some of the factors for which variety improvement is done are higher yield to increase the productivity of the crop per acre, improved quality where quality considerations vary from crop to crop, such as baking quality in wheat, protein quality in pulses, oil quality in oilseeds and preserving quality in fruits and vegetables, biotic and abiotic resistance because crops production can go down due to biotic stresses like diseases, insects and nematodes, and abiotic stresses like drought, salinity, water logging, heat, cold and frost, change in maturity duration because shorter duration from sowing to harvesting is more economical and allows multiple rounds of crops in a year, wider adaptability to help stabilise crop production under different environmental conditions, and desirable agronomic characteristics where tallness and profuse branching are desirable for fodder crops, while dwarfness is desired in cereals so that less nutrients are consumed. Developing varieties of desired agronomic characters helps give higher productivity. To answer the in-text questions, biotic and abiotic factors affect crop production by causing stress that can reduce yields or even lead to crop failure. The desirable agronomic characteristics for crop improvements are tallness and profuse branching for fodder crops, and dwarfness for cereals. [CHECKPOINT] Next, we will learn about crop production management. In India, farming ranges from small to very large farms. Different farmers thus have more or less land, money and access to information and technologies. In short, it is the money or financial conditions that allow farmers to take up different farming practices and agricultural technologies. There is a correlation between higher inputs and yields. Thus, the farmer purchasing capacity for inputs decides cropping system and production practices. Therefore, production practices can be at different levels. They include no cost production, low cost production and high cost production practices. Now let us look at nutrient management. Just as we need food for development, growth and well-being, plants also require nutrients for growth. Nutrients are supplied to plants by air, water and soil. There are several nutrients which are essential for plants. Air supplies carbon and oxygen, hydrogen comes from water, and soil supplies the other thirteen nutrients to plants. Amongst these, some are required in large quantities and are therefore called macro-nutrients. The other nutrients are used by plants in small quantities and are therefore called micro-nutrients. According to Table twelve point one, air supplies carbon and oxygen. Water supplies hydrogen and oxygen. Soil supplies macronutrients which are nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, calcium, magnesium, and sulphur, and micronutrients which are iron, manganese, boron, zinc, copper, molybdenum, and chlorine. Deficiency of these nutrients affects physiological processes in plants including reproduction, growth and susceptibility to diseases. To increase the yield, the soil can be enriched by supplying these nutrients in the form of manure and fertilizers. Plants get nutrients from air, water, and soil. Macro-nutrients are called so because they are required by plants in large quantities. [CHECKPOINT] Let us discuss manure. Manure contains large quantities of organic matter and also supplies small quantities of nutrients to the soil. Manure is prepared by the decomposition of animal excreta and plant waste. Manure helps in enriching soil with nutrients and organic matter and increasing soil fertility. The bulk of organic matter in manure helps in improving the soil structure. This involves increasing the water holding capacity in sandy soils. In clayey soils, the large quantities of organic matter help in drainage and in avoiding water logging. In using manure we use biological waste material, which is advantageous in protecting our environment from excessive use of fertilizers. Using biological waste material is also a way of recycling farm waste. Based on the kind of biological material used, manure can be classified as compost and vermi-compost, and green manure. The process in which farm waste material like livestock excreta, vegetable waste, animal refuse, domestic waste, sewage waste, straw, eradicated weeds et cetera is decomposed in pits is known as composting. The compost is rich in organic matter and nutrients. Compost is also prepared by using earthworms to hasten the process of decomposition of plant and animal refuse. This is called vermi-compost. For green manure, prior to the sowing of the crop seeds, some plants like sun hemp or guar are grown and then mulched by ploughing them into the soil. These green plants thus turn into green manure which helps in enriching the soil in nitrogen and phosphorus. Now let us learn about fertilizers. Fertilizers are commercially produced plant nutrients. Fertilizers supply nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium. They are used to ensure good vegetative growth, giving rise to healthy plants. Fertilizers are a factor in the higher yields of high-cost farming. Fertilizers should be applied carefully in terms of proper dose, time, and observing pre- and post-application precautions for their complete utilisation. For example, sometimes fertilizers get washed away due to excessive irrigation and are not fully absorbed by the plants. This excess fertilizer then leads to water pollution. Also, continuous use of fertilizers in an area can destroy soil fertility because the organic matter in the soil is not replenished and micro-organisms in the soil are harmed by the fertilizers used. Short-term benefits of using fertilizers and long-term benefits of using manure for maintaining soil fertility have to be considered while aiming for optimum yields in crop production. To compare them, manure improves soil structure and long-term fertility through organic matter, while fertilizers provide immediate, concentrated nutrients but can degrade soil health and cause pollution if overused. [CHECKPOINT] Organic farming is a farming system with minimal or no use of chemicals as fertilizers, herbicides, pesticides, et cetera, and with a maximum input of organic manures, recycled farm-wastes, use of bio-agents such as culture of blue green algae in preparation of biofertilizers, neem leaves or turmeric specifically in grain storage as bio-pesticides, with healthy cropping systems. These cropping systems are beneficial in insect, pest and weed control besides providing nutrients. Now let us move to irrigation. Most agriculture in India is rain-fed, that is, the success of crops in most areas is dependent on timely monsoons and sufficient rainfall spread through most of the growing season. Hence, poor monsoons cause crop failure. Ensuring that the crops get water at the right stages during their growing season can increase the expected yields of any crop. Therefore, many measures are used to bring more and more agricultural land under irrigation. Droughts occur because of scarcity or irregular distribution of rains. Drought poses a threat to rain-fed farming areas, where farmers do not use irrigation for crop production and depend only on rain. Light soils have less water retention capacity. In areas with light soils, crops get adversely affected by drought conditions. Scientists have developed some crop varieties which can tolerate drought conditions. India has a wide variety of water resources and a highly varied climate. Under such conditions, several different kinds of irrigation systems are adopted to supply water to agricultural lands depending on the kinds of water resources available. These include wells, canals, rivers and tanks. There are two types of wells, namely dug wells and tube wells. In a dug well, water is collected from water bearing strata. Tube wells can tap water from the deeper strata. From these wells, water is lifted by pumps for irrigation. Canals are usually an elaborate and extensive irrigation system where canals receive water from one or more reservoirs or from rivers. The main canal is divided into branch canals having further distributaries to irrigate fields. In areas where canal flow is insufficient or irregular due to inadequate reservoir release, the river lift system is more rational. Water is directly drawn from the rivers for supplementing irrigation in areas close to rivers. Tanks are small storage reservoirs, which intercept and store the run-off of smaller catchment areas. Fresh initiatives for increasing the water available for agriculture include rainwater harvesting and watershed management. This involves building small check-dams which lead to an increase in ground water levels. The check-dams stop the rainwater from flowing away and also reduce soil erosion. [CHECKPOINT] Let us now study cropping patterns. Different ways of growing crops can be used to give maximum benefit. Mixed cropping is growing two or more crops simultaneously on the same piece of land, for example, wheat plus gram, or wheat plus mustard, or groundnut plus sunflower. This reduces risk and gives some insurance against failure of one of the crops. Inter-cropping is growing two or more crops simultaneously on the same field in a definite pattern. As shown in Figure twelve point two, a few rows of one crop alternate with a few rows of a second crop, for example, soyabean plus maize, or finger millet plus cowpea. The crops are selected such that their nutrient requirements are different. This ensures maximum utilisation of the nutrients supplied, and also prevents pests and diseases from spreading to all the plants belonging to one crop in a field. This way, both crops can give better returns. The growing of different crops on a piece of land in a pre-planned succession is known as crop rotation. Depending upon the duration, crop rotation is done for different crop combinations. The availability of moisture and irrigation facilities decide the choice of the crop to be cultivated after one harvest. If crop rotation is done properly then two or three crops can be grown in a year with good harvests. Now let us move to crop protection management. Field crops are infested by a large number of weeds, insect pests and diseases. If weeds and pests are not controlled at the appropriate time then they can damage the crops so much that most of the crop is lost. Weeds are unwanted plants in the cultivated field, for example, Xanthium, Parthenium, Cyperinus rotundus. They compete for food, space and light. Weeds take up nutrients and reduce the growth of the crop. Therefore, removal of weeds from cultivated fields during the early stages of crop growth is essential for a good harvest. Generally insect pests attack the plants in three ways. They cut the root, stem and leaf, they suck the cell sap from various parts of the plant, and they bore into stem and fruits. They thus affect the health of the crop and reduce yields. Diseases in plants are caused by pathogens such as bacteria, fungi and viruses. These pathogens can be present in and transmitted through the soil, water and air. Weeds, insects and diseases can be controlled by various methods. One of the most commonly used methods is the use of pesticides, which include herbicides, insecticides and fungicides. These chemicals are sprayed on crop plants or used for treating seeds and soil. However, excessive use of these chemicals creates problems, since they can be poisonous to many plant and animal species and cause environmental pollution. Weed control methods also include mechanical removal. Preventive methods such as proper seed bed preparation, timely sowing of crops, intercropping and crop rotation also help in weed control. Some other preventive measures against pests are the use of resistant varieties, and summer ploughing, in which fields are ploughed deep in summers to destroy weeds and pests. To answer the in-text question, condition c gives the most benefits because using quality seeds, adopting irrigation, using fertilizer, and using crop protection measures together ensure optimal growth, maximum yield, and protection from losses, whereas the other conditions lack one or more critical factors. [CHECKPOINT] Let us now look at storage of grains. Storage losses in agricultural produce can be very high. Factors responsible for such losses are biotic, which include insects, rodents, fungi, mites and bacteria, and abiotic, which include inappropriate moisture and temperatures in the place of storage. These factors cause degradation in quality, loss in weight, poor germinability, discolouration of produce, all leading to poor marketability. These factors can be controlled by proper treatment and by systematic management of warehouses. Preventive and control measures are used before grains are stored for future use. They include strict cleaning of the produce before storage, proper drying of the produce first in sunlight and then in shade, and fumigation using chemicals that can kill pests. Preventive measures and biological control methods are preferred because they protect crops without causing environmental pollution or harming beneficial organisms, unlike chemical pesticides. Factors responsible for grain losses during storage are biotic agents like insects, rodents, fungi, mites, and bacteria, and abiotic factors like inappropriate moisture and temperature. Now let us proceed to the activities. For Activity twelve point one, you are instructed to visit a nearby garden or agricultural field and make a list of the weeds and the flowers or crops found in the area. Also, make a list of insect pests, if any, infesting the flowers or crops. For Activity twelve point two, collect grains or seeds of cereals, pulses and oil seeds and gather information about the seasons in which they are sown and harvested. [CHECKPOINT] We will now study section twelve point two, Animal Husbandry. Animal husbandry is the scientific management of animal livestock. It includes various aspects such as feeding, breeding and disease control. Animal-based farming includes cattle, goat, sheep, poultry and fish farming. As the population increases and as living standards increase, the demand for milk, eggs and meat is also going up. Also, the growing awareness of the need for humane treatment of livestock has brought in new limitations in livestock farming. Thus, livestock production also needs to be improved. Let us begin with cattle farming. Cattle husbandry is done for two purposes, milk and draught labour for agricultural work such as tilling, irrigation and carting. Indian cattle belong to two different species, Bos indicus, which are cows, and Bos bubalis, which are buffaloes. Milk-producing females are called milch animals, while the ones used for farm labour are called draught animals. Milk production depends, to some extent, on the duration of the lactation period, meaning the period of milk production after the birth of a calf. So, milk production can be increased by increasing the lactation period. Exotic or foreign breeds, for example, Jersey and Brown Swiss, are selected for long lactation periods, while local breeds, for example, Red Sindhi and Sahiwal, show excellent resistance to diseases. The two can be cross-bred to get animals with both the desired qualities. The commonly used method for improving cattle breeds is cross-breeding between exotic and local breeds, because it combines the long lactation period of exotic breeds with the disease resistance of local breeds. Proper cleaning and shelter facilities for cows and buffaloes are required for humane farming, for the health of the animals and for production of clean milk as well. Animals require regular brushing to remove dirt and loose hair. They should be sheltered under well-ventilated roofed sheds that protect them from rain, heat and cold. The floor of the cattle shed needs to be sloping so as to stay dry and to facilitate cleaning. The food requirements of dairy animals are of two types. The first is maintenance requirement, which is the food required to support the animal to live a healthy life. The second is milk producing requirement, which is the type of food required during the lactation period. Animal feed includes roughage, which is largely fibre, and concentrates, which are low in fibre and contain relatively high levels of proteins and other nutrients. Cattle need balanced rations containing all nutrients in proportionate amounts. Besides such nutritious food material, certain feed additives containing micronutrients promote the health and milk output of dairy animals. Cattle suffer from a number of diseases. The diseases, besides causing death, reduce milk production. A healthy animal feeds regularly and has a normal posture. The parasites of cattle may be both external parasites and internal parasites. The external parasites live on the skin and mainly cause skin diseases. The internal parasites like worms, affect stomach and intestine while flukes damage the liver. Infectious diseases are also caused by bacteria and viruses. Vaccinations are given to farm animals against many major viral and bacterial diseases. [CHECKPOINT] For Activity twelve point three, you are instructed to visit a livestock farm. Note the number of cattle and number of different breeds. Note the amount of daily milk production from the different breeds. Now let us move to poultry farming. Poultry farming is undertaken to raise domestic fowl for egg production and chicken meat. Therefore, improved poultry breeds are developed and farmed to produce layers for eggs and broilers for meat. The cross-breeding programmes between Indian breeds, for example, Aseel, and foreign breeds, for example, Leghorn, for variety improvement are focused on to develop new varieties for the following desirable traits. The first is number and quality of chicks. The second is dwarf broiler parent for commercial chick production. The third is summer adaptation capacity or tolerance to high temperature. The fourth is low maintenance requirements. The fifth is reduction in the size of the egg-laying bird with ability to utilise more fibrous cheaper diets formulated using agricultural by-products. As shown in Figure twelve point four, we see visual representations of the Aseel breed and the Leghorn breed. Broiler chickens are fed with vitamin-rich supplementary feed for good growth rate and better feed efficiency. Care is taken to avoid mortality and to maintain feathering and carcass quality. They are produced as broilers and sent to market for meat purposes. For good production of poultry birds, good management practices are important. These include maintenance of temperature and hygienic conditions in housing and poultry feed, as well as prevention and control of diseases and pests. The housing, nutritional and environmental requirements of broilers are somewhat different from those of egg layers. The ration for broilers is protein rich with adequate fat. The level of vitamins A and K is kept high in the poultry feeds. Poultry fowl suffer from a number of diseases caused by virus, bacteria, fungi, parasites, as well as from nutritional deficiencies. These necessitate proper cleaning, sanitation, and spraying of disinfectants at regular intervals. Appropriate vaccination can prevent the occurrence of infectious diseases and reduce loss of poultry during an outbreak of disease. To answer the in-text questions, common management practices in dairy and poultry farming include proper shelter, balanced feeding, regular cleaning and sanitation, and disease prevention through vaccination. The differences between broilers and layers are that broilers are raised for meat, require protein-rich feed with high vitamins A and K, and need conditions for rapid growth, while layers are raised for eggs, require different nutritional balance, and need lighting and housing optimized for egg production. [CHECKPOINT] For Activity twelve point four, you are instructed to visit a local poultry farm. Observe types of breeds and note the type of ration, housing and lighting facilities given to them. Identify the growers, layers and broilers. Now let us study fish production. Fish is a cheap source of animal protein for our food. Fish production includes the finned true fish as well as shellfish such as prawns and molluscs. There are two ways of obtaining fish. One is from natural resources, which is called capture fishing. The other way is by fish farming, which is called culture fishery. The water source of the fish can be either seawater or fresh water, such as in rivers and ponds. Fishing can thus be done both by capture and culture of fish in marine and freshwater ecosystems. India marine fishery resources include seven thousand five hundred kilometers of coastline and the deep seas beyond it. Popular marine fish varieties include pomphret, mackerel, tuna, sardines, and Bombay duck. Marine fish are caught using many kinds of fishing nets from fishing boats. Yields are increased by locating large schools of fish in the open sea using satellites and echo-sounders. Some marine fish of high economic value are also farmed in seawater. This includes finned fishes like mullets, bhetki, and pearl spots, shellfish such as prawns, mussels and oysters as well as seaweed. Oysters are also cultivated for the pearls they make. As marine fish stocks get further depleted, the demand for more fish can only be met by such culture fisheries, a practice called mariculture. Fresh water resources include canals, ponds, reservoirs and rivers. Brackish water resources, where seawater and fresh water mix together, such as estuaries and lagoons are also important fish reservoirs. While capture fishing is also done in such inland water bodies, the yield is not high. Most fish production from these resources is through aquaculture. Fish culture is sometimes done in combination with a rice crop, so that fish are grown in the water in the paddy field. More intensive fish farming can be done in composite fish culture systems. Both local and imported fish species are used in such systems. In such a system, a combination of five or six fish species is used in a single fishpond. These species are selected so that they do not compete for food among them having different types of food habits. As a result, the food available in all the parts of the pond is used. As Catlas are surface feeders, Rohus feed in the middle-zone of the pond, Mrigals and Common Carps are bottom feeders, and Grass Carps feed on the weeds, together these species can use all the food in the pond without competing with each other. This increases the fish yield from the pond. As shown in Figure twelve point six, we see illustrations of Catla, Silver carp, Rohu, Grass Carp, Mrigal, and Common Carp. One problem with such composite fish culture is that many of these fish breed only during monsoon. Even if fish seed is collected from the wild, it can be mixed with that of other species as well. So, a major problem in fish farming is the lack of availability of good-quality seed. To overcome this problem, ways have now been worked out to breed these fish in ponds using hormonal stimulation. This has ensured the supply of pure fish seed in desired quantities. To answer the in-text questions, fish are obtained through capture fishing from natural resources and culture fishery through farming. The advantages of composite fish culture include maximum utilization of pond food resources at different levels, no competition among species, and increased overall fish yield. [CHECKPOINT] For Activity twelve point five, you are instructed to visit a fish farm in fish breeding season and note the varieties of fish in the fish farm, types of ponds, feed ingredients used, and production capacity of the farm. If there are no fish farms close to your locality, gather the above information from internet, by referring books or talking to people who are engaged in fishery. Now let us learn about bee-keeping. Honey is widely used and therefore bee-keeping for making honey has become an agricultural enterprise. Since bee-keeping needs low investments, farmers use it as an additional income generating activity. In addition to honey, the beehives are a source of wax which is used in various medicinal preparations. The local varieties of bees used for commercial honey production are Apis cerana indica, commonly known as the Indian bee, Apis dorsata, the rock bee, and Apis florae, the little bee. An Italian bee variety, Apis mellifera, has also been brought in to increase yield of honey. As shown in Figure twelve point seven, we see an arrangement of beehives in an apiary and a honey extractor. This Italian variety is commonly used for commercial honey production. The Italian bees have high honey collection capacity. They sting somewhat less. They stay in a given beehive for long periods, and breed very well. For commercial honey production, bee farms or apiaries are established. The value or quality of honey depends upon the pasturage, or the flowers available to the bees for nectar and pollen collection. In addition to adequate quantity of pasturage, the kind of flowers available will determine the taste of the honey. To answer the in-text questions, desirable characters of bee varieties suitable for honey production are high honey collection capacity, less stinging, staying in the beehive for long periods, and good breeding ability. Pasturage refers to the flowers available to bees for nectar and pollen collection, and it directly determines the quantity, quality, and taste of the honey produced. [CHECKPOINT] Let us now review what we have learnt. There are several nutrients essential for crops. Of these, some are required in large quantities and are known as macro-nutrients whereas rest of the nutrients are required in small quantities and are known as micro-nutrients. Manure and fertilizers are the main sources of nutrient supply to crops. Organic farming is a farming system with minimal or no use of chemicals as fertilizers, herbicides, pesticides et cetera, and with a maximum input of organic manures, recycled farm wastes, and bio-agents, with healthy cropping systems. Mixed farming is a system of farming on a particular farm which includes crop production, raising of livestock et cetera. Mixed cropping is growing of two or more crops simultaneously on the same piece of land. Growing two or more crops in definite row patterns is known as inter-cropping. The growing of different crops on a piece of land in pre-planned succession is called crop rotation. Varietal improvement is required for higher yield, good quality, biotic and abiotic resistance, shortening the maturity duration, wider adaptability and desirable agronomic characteristics. Farm animals require proper care and management such as shelter, feeding, breeding and disease control. This is called animal husbandry. Poultry farming is done to raise domestic fowls. Poultry production includes egg production and broiler production for poultry meat. To enhance poultry production, cross breeding is done between Indian and exotic breeds for variety improvement. Fish may be obtained from marine resources as well as inland resources. To increase production of fish, they can be cultured in marine and inland ecosystems. Marine fish capture is done by fishing nets guided by echo-sounders and satellites. Composite fish culture system is commonly used for fish farming. Bee-keeping is done to get honey and wax. [CHECKPOINT] Now, let us answer the exercises completely. Question one asks to explain any one method of crop production which ensures high yield. One method is inter-cropping. Inter-cropping involves growing two or more crops simultaneously on the same field in a definite row pattern, such as soyabean plus maize. The crops are selected so their nutrient requirements differ. This ensures maximum utilization of supplied nutrients, prevents pests and diseases from spreading to all plants, and allows both crops to give better returns, thereby ensuring a high overall yield. Question two asks why manure and fertilizers are used in fields. They are used to enrich the soil with essential nutrients that plants need for growth, reproduction, and disease resistance. Manure supplies organic matter and improves soil structure and water retention, while fertilizers provide concentrated, readily available nutrients like nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium to boost vegetative growth and crop yields. Question three asks what are the advantages of inter-cropping and crop rotation. The advantages of inter-cropping include maximum nutrient utilization, reduced pest and disease spread, and higher overall returns. The advantages of crop rotation include maintaining soil fertility, breaking pest and disease cycles, allowing two or three crops per year, and preventing soil nutrient depletion. Question four asks what is genetic manipulation and how is it useful in agricultural practices. Genetic manipulation involves introducing a specific gene into a crop to provide a desired characteristic, resulting in genetically modified crops. It is useful because it allows scientists to develop varieties with traits like disease resistance, drought tolerance, higher yield, and improved quality, which can be grown in diverse conditions to ensure food security. Question five asks how do storage grain losses occur. Storage grain losses occur due to biotic factors like insects, rodents, fungi, mites, and bacteria, and abiotic factors like inappropriate moisture and temperature in storage facilities. These cause degradation in quality, weight loss, poor germinability, and discoloration, leading to poor marketability. Question six asks how do good animal husbandry practices benefit farmers. Good animal husbandry practices ensure healthy livestock through proper shelter, balanced feeding, disease control, and vaccination. This leads to increased milk, meat, and egg production, better draught animal performance, higher farmer income, and sustainable use of farm resources. Question seven asks what are the benefits of cattle farming. The benefits include production of milk from milch animals, provision of draught labour for tilling, irrigation, and carting, generation of income through sale of milk and animals, and production of organic manure from dung for crop fields. Question eight asks for increasing production, what is common in poultry, fisheries and bee-keeping. The common factor is the use of scientific management practices including proper housing, balanced nutrition, disease prevention through vaccination and hygiene, and selective breeding or cross-breeding to improve yield and quality of the produce. Question nine asks how do you differentiate between capture fishing, mariculture and aquaculture. Capture fishing involves catching fish from natural water bodies like oceans, rivers, and lakes. Mariculture is the culture of marine fish and shellfish in seawater environments, such as farming mullets, prawns, and oysters in the sea. Aquaculture is the broader practice of farming fish, crustaceans, and aquatic plants in controlled freshwater or brackish water environments like ponds, tanks, and reservoirs. [CHECKPOINT] Thank you for listening! Keep revising and practicing. Goodbye! [CHAPTER_COMPLETE]