Neolithic Revolution and Agriculture

Neolithic Revolution

• 12,000 years ago, humans transitioned from nomadic hunter-gatherer lifestyles to permanent settlements and farming.
• Wild progenitors of crops (wheat, barley, peas) were traced to the Near East region.
• Fig trees with prehistoric seedless fruits were discovered in the Jordan Valley 11,300 years ago.
• Cereals were cultivated in Syria 9,000 years ago.
• Rice and millet farming began around 6,000 BCE.
• The world's oldest known rice paddy fields were discovered in eastern China in 2007.

Plant Domestication

• Domesticated plants include wheat, barley, and peas, originating from the Near East.

Philippine Agriculture

• The Philippines is primarily an agricultural country.
• Main agricultural crops: rice, corn, coconut, sugarcane, bananas, pineapple, coffee, mangoes, tobacco, and abaca.
• Secondary crops: peanuts, cassava, camotes, garlic, onions, cabbage, eggplants, calamansi, rubber, and cotton.
• Major export products: coconut oil, fruits, vegetables, bananas, prawns, Cavendish bananas, Cayenne pineapple, tuna, seaweed, and carrageenan.
• Coconut product exports were US$989 million in 1995, declining to US$569 million by 2000

Farmed Animals

• Cattle, goats, sheep, and pigs originated in the Fertile Crescent (eastern Turkey, Iraq, and southwestern Iran).
• This region is where the Neolithic Revolution began.

Corn (Maize) Cultivation

• Squash cultivation began around 10,000 years ago in Mexico.
• Corn (maize) cultivation required natural genetic mutations in its wild ancestor, teosinte.
• Maize-like plants were cultivated at least 9,000 years ago.
• Directly dated corn cobs date only to 5,500 years ago.
• Corn spread to North America, along with cultivated sunflowers.
• Potato cultivation began in the Andes region of South America around 5,000 years ago.

Crop Science

• Plant: A non-mobile organism from the Kingdom Plantae, lacking active locomotion and a developed nervous system, but with photosynthesis.
• Crop: Domesticated or cultivated plants grown for profit, often referring to a group or population of plants.
• Science: Systematically accumulated and tested knowledge.

Crop Science Practitioners

• Theoretical/Academic Scientists: Bring knowledge to a crystallized point.
• Applied Scientists: Transform ideas into practical applications.

Crop Science Focus

• Crop Science: Observes and classifies knowledge of economically cultivated crops, establishing principles of growth and development for optimizing benefit.
• Crop Production: Encompasses the art and science of producing crops for maximum monetary returns while minimizing environmental impact. This involves land preparation, sowing, fertilizing, irrigation, and harvesting.

Classification of Agricultural Crops

• Agronomic Crops: Annual herbaceous plants grown in extensive or large-scale farming practices.
• Botanical Classification: Categorizes crops based on morphological similarities.
• Legume Family/Leguminoseae: Their flowers are butterfly-like, with leaves exhibiting netted veins, and the fruit pods contain seeds. Roots often possess nodules with rhizosphere bacteria for nitrogen fixation.
• Grains/Cereals: Edible seeds from grasses such as rice, corn, wheat, and sorghum.