Intro to Ag Sci Notes PDF

# Intro to Ag Sci ## Dates Are Important * “When was the combine invented?” ## What is Agriculture? * Cultivating soil * Producing crops * Raising livestock * Preparing these products for human use ## What Do We Get? * Food * Raw materials * Clothing * Medicines * Shelter ## Branc...

# Intro to Ag Sci ## Dates Are Important * “When was the combine invented?” ## What is Agriculture? * Cultivating soil * Producing crops * Raising livestock * Preparing these products for human use ## What Do We Get? * Food * Raw materials * Clothing * Medicines * Shelter ## Branches * Crop Production * Animal husbandry * Agroforestry * Argi-tech and innovation ## Population Growth * Population growth = bigger need for agriculture * Farms getting more efficient and more productive * 12.8% of US household income spent on food in 2022 * Food price decrease = farmer income decrease * 1.89 million farms in US * Decreasing ## Reasons Not to Farm * Farm = anything that makes and sells an agricultural product * USDA says must sell $1,000 worth of product * Labor intensive * Dangerous ## Reasons to Farm * Lifestyle * High job satisfaction * Family tradition * Economics ## Where Does Our Money Go? * Big corporations * Production * Processing * Packaging * Retail trade * Food services * Energy * Finance and insurance * Advertising ## Agribusiness * Companies involved in production, processing, and marketing of farm products * All companies that provide goods and services for agricultural products ## Government * 52% of US land is farmland * Laws and regulations put into place to affect agriculture * Most politicians do not have any ag background ## USDA * United States Department of Agriculture * Budget * 13% to farms * 71% to nutrition assistance programs ## Staple Crops * Corn * Wheat * Rice * Soybeans ## USDA Loans * To farmers that produce staple crops * Want more production of staple crops * Really subsidies ## Importance of Agriculture * Food * Large sector of economy * US = largest exporter of agricultural products * Consumers control agriculture ## History of Ag * **Preagricultural Societies** * Stone Age * Paleolithic and Mesolithic periods * Hunter gatherers * Stone tools helped with hunting and gathering * **Neolithic Period** * New stone age * Emergence of agriculture * Mesopotamia * Cultivating crops and raising animals * **Americas** * Native Americans grew squash, sunflowers, sumpweed, and chenopod * 800 AD corn becomes major crops in North America * 1000 AD corn, beans, and squash * **Three Sisters** * Corn stalk provides support for beans to grow up * Beans make nitrogen for soil * Squash prevents weeds from growing and retains moisture * **Crops Domesticated by Native Americans** * 1/3 of crops grown worldwide * Corn, squash, beans, sunflower, tobacco, tomato, pumpkin, chocolate, chili pepper, cotton, potato, pear, peanut, rubber, vanilla * **Colonies** * **Jamestown** * Planned to produce agriculture for trade * Grew corn and exported tobacco * Almost all colonists died in the first two years * Communal cultivation * One big farm that everyone would work * Abandoned quickly * **Southern Colonies** * Produced tobacco, rice, indigo, cotton, corn, wheat, cattle, and pigs * Shaped by Jamestown’s failures and successes * Produced mostly for export * Soil would lose nutrients * Work large plantations * Lose productivity * Move to find more fertile land * **Northern Colonies** * Pilgrims * 1621 not focused on agriculture * Nearly starved * Brought over cattle in 1623 * Each man got 1 acre to farm * Produced beef, pork, wool, cheese, butter, corn, and wheat * Soil filled with stones * Removed stones to make fences to separate farms ## Colonial Tools * Used extensive hand labor * Axes, hoes, mattocks, and spades * Plows * 2 men with 2-3 horses or 4-6 oxen could plow 1–2 acres a day * Sickle * Could harvest 1 acre a day * Cradle scythe * 1750s * Could harvest 3 acres a day * Why is she saying scythe? * Used until civil war ## United States * Late 1700s * 90% of colonists lived on farms * Doing fairly well * Northern farmers grew wheat and raised livestock * Southern farmers grew tobacco, indigo, and cotton * Problems until invention of cotton gin * Tobacco was overproduced and did not make money ## Improvements to The Plow * Early 1800s * Thomas Jefferson designed a better plow * Jethro Tull developed plow with iron and steel replaceable parts * Carey plow had a metal tip ## McCormick Reaper * 1831 * Harvest 10–12 acres a day ## Mechanized and Other Developments * Combine * Reaps and threshes crops * Up to 25 acres a day * Steel plow * Grain drills and mechanical threshers * Horse drawn corn planters * Department of agriculture and Morrill land grant college act * Barbed wire * Cattle drive * Gang and sulky plows * Gang plow = 2 or more trenches at a time * Sulky plow = farmer rides on plow * Steam-traction engines * Gas powered combines * Fordson tractor * Not first tractor * Affordable tractor * Tractor was first gift to Martha:D ## 1914 * Smith Lever Act * Established extension programs * Can call ag extension agents with any questions * Tell farmers about improvements to ag ## Recent Developments * 1950s = confinement raising * 1960s = green revolution * 1990s = biotech * Today = US farmer is most productive in history of the world * One farmer produces food for 166 people * Modern day combines can harvest 20 acres an hour # Plant Morphology ## Plant Cells * Simplest part of a plant * Eukaryotic * Complex cells * Contain organelles * Contain a nucleus * Surrounded by a cell membrane ## Plant Cell Structures * Cell membrane * Allows substances in or out of cell * Nucleus * Contains genetic information of plant * Mitochondria * Powerhouse of the cell! * Produces ATP energy * Ribosomes * Make protein * Also found in animal cells * Cell Wall * Surrounds cell membrane * Made of cellulose * Provides structure and rigidity to cell * Vacuole * Liquid-filled cavity * Maintain pressure in cell * Contain chloroplasts * Where photosynthesis occurs ## Structures of a Plant * Roots * Absorb water and nutrients * Anchor plant into soil * Stem * Transports water and nutrients * Supports leaves * Leaves * Where photosynthesis occurs * Flower * Reproduction * Seeds * Produced from reproduction ## Root Structures * Root cap * Lots of cellular regeneration * Pushing down into soil * Bottom of root * Site of constant cell division * Root hair * Very fine roots * Where water and nutrients are absorbed * Apical meristem * Stem cells of root * Undifferentiated cells * Where new root cells are produced * Xylem * Transports water and nutrients up plant * In middle of root * Phloem * Transports products of photosynthesis down plant * Xylem + Phloem = vasculature of plant * Veins of plant ## Stem Structures * Node * Point where leaf is attached to stem * Internodes * Segments of stem between nodes * Shoot apical meristem * Apical bud * Same as root apical meristem * Where stem grows from * Axillary buds * Where leaves branch off of stem * Meristem tissue * New growth * Xylem and Phloem * In stem too * Same as in root * Shoot and root apical meristem * Outermost layer * Protoderm * Give rise to outer covering of root and stem * Ground tissue * Middle layer * Connects protoderm to innermost layer * Procambium * Gives rise to xylem and phloem ## Water Movement * Occurs in xylem * Passive * Evapotranspiration * Evaporation and transpiration * Transpiration moves water up plant * Moves from low concentration to high concentration of solute * High concentration of sugar at top of plant * Osmosis * Stoma release water from leaves ## Leaf Structures * Cuticle * Waxy coating on leaf * Surrounds entire leaf * Epidermis * Outer layer of cells * Skin cells of leaf * Directly underneath cuticle * Mesophyll * Middle cells * Where photosynthesis occurs * Stoma * Pores in epidermis * Stomata = plural * Where gas exchange occurs * Where water leaves plant * Guard cells * Part of epidermis * Surround each stoma * Regulate gas exchange and water loss * Can close or widen pores * Petiole * Connects leaf to stem * Grows from node * Blade * Flattened portion of leaf * Basically entire leaf * Veins * Contain xylem and phloem * Transport of nutrients and water ## Vegetative Organs * Roots, stem, and leaves * Do not contribute to reproduction of plant ## Flower Structures * Receptacle * Base of flower * Attaches flower to stem * Sepal * Shoot off from receptacle * Protects flower as it develops * Petal * Protect structures within flower * Attract pollinators ## Pistil * Female reproductive structures * Stigma, style, and ovary ## Stigma * Sticky surface for pollen to attach to ## Style * Connects stigma to ovary ## Ovary * Contains ovules * Where seed development occurs ## Stamen * Male reproductive structures * Filament and anther ## Filament * Stalk that holds up anther ## Anther * Top of filament * Holds pollen sacs * Where pollen is * “perfect flower” ## Perfect Flower * Has both male and female reproductive structures ## Dioecious Flowers * Do not have male and female reproductive structures * Separate male and female plants ## Monecious * There is male and female spinach?? * Separate male and female flowers * Grow on same plant # Plant Classifications * Dicot and Monocot * Based on number of seed leaves * Cotyledons * Monocot * One cotyledon * Fibrous roots * Scattered vasculature * Parallel veins on leaf * Flower structures in multiples of 3 * Dicot * Two cotyledons * Tap roots * Ringed vasculature * Net like veins on leaf * 4 or 5 structures on flowers # Food From Plant Parts * Roots * Sweet potato, beet, radish * Stems * White potato, sugar cane, asparagus * Leaves * Cabbage, kale, spinach * Petioles * Celery, rhubarb * Seeds * Pea, navy bean, lima beans * Fruits * String bean, apple, squash # Plant Physiology ## Photosynthesis * Process of plant making food * In: CO2, sunlight, water * Out: oxygen and sugars * Occurs in chloroplasts * $6CO_2 + 6H_2O + sunlight \rightarrow C_6H_{12}O_6 + 6O_2$ ## Photosynthesis Products * Glucose * Fructose * Same chemical formula * Puts simple sugars together to make more complex sugars * Cellulose is chain of 1-4 glucoses * Starch is different chain of 1-4 glucoses * Sucrose * Found in fruits * Glucose and fructose ## Plant Reproduction * **Asexual reproduction/vegetative propagation** * Portion of one plant creates another plant that is genetically identical * Natural or artificial * **Natural asexual reproduction** * **Runners** * Parts of stem that run along surface of ground * At points they form new plants * **Rhizomes** ­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­ * Similar to runners * Rhizomes are underground * White potato * **Artificial asexual reproduction** * **Cutting** * Cut off portion of plant * Plant and let grow * Must have portion of stem, leaf, and at least one axillary bud * **Grafting** * Combining two different plants * Tissues from one plant inserted into tissue of another plant * 2 sets of vascular tissue join together * **Sexual reproduction** * Requires gametes (egg and sperm) * Not genetically identical to parent plant * Requires pollination * Wind, insects, birds, bats * When pollen reaches stigma, it grows down into the style to the ovary * When pollen reaches ovule, two sperm cells are released * One fertilizes egg * Other fertilizes polar nuclei * Results in endosperm * Provides nutrients for the embryo ## Germination * Process of a seed growing * Requires water * **Monocot germination** * Single cotyledon * Cotyledon remains in soil entire time * **Dicot germination** * Cotyledons emerge above ground ## Gravitropism * Roots always grow down * Stem always grows up # Plant Nutrition * 17 essential elements ## Macronutrients * Micronutrients * Carbon, hydrogen, oxygen * From air and water * Nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium * NPK! * From soil * **Nitrogen** * Necessary for plants to make protein and chlorophyll! * Deficiency = reduced growth and yellowing of leaves * **Phosphorus** * Necessary for photosynthesis * Deficiency = reduced growth, some leaves have purple pigment * **Potassium** * Water regulation * Deficiency = leaves curl up, speckling of leaves, marginal leaf burn ## Secondary Macronutrients * Calcium * Magnesium * Sulfur ## Micronutrients * Boron * Chlorine * Copper * Iron * Manganese * Molybdenum * Zinc ## Determination of Deficiencies * Visual examination * Chemical analysis ## Nutrient Cycling * Nutrients cycle in out of soil frequently * **Addition of nutrients** * Fertilizers * Biological fixation * Nutrients from atmosphere * Microbial breakdown of organic matter * Weathering * **Loss of nutrients** * Air * Erosion * Leaching * Nutrient Fixation * Nutrients bound tightly to soil * Nutrients seep so low in soil roots cannot access * Plant uptake ## Fertilizers * Fertilizer grade * Percent total N * Percent available P * Percent water soluble K ## Fertilizer Application * Starter application * Applying fertilizer at time of planting * Broadcast application * Spread fertilizer over soil with no pattern * Deep band application * Use equipment to spread fertilizer where plants have the most access to it ## Split Application * Divide fertilizer into specific amounts to be applied at various stages of growth ## Side or Top Dress * Apply fertilizer next to plant after it has started to grow ## Fertigation * Apply fertilizer through irrigation water * Common in greenhouses ## Foliar * Apply fertilizer to leaves as a liquid spray * Do not have to know how works!!! ## The Nitrogen Cycle * Rhizobium bacteria * Bacteria form nodules on roots of plant * Have symbiotic relationships with some plants * Fix nitrogen ## Nutrient Absorption * **Passive Transport** * Nutrients diffuse into plant * **Active Transport** * Plant requires energy to absorb nutrients * 30-70% of N * 5-30% of P * 50-80% of K # Soils ## What is Soil? * Upper layer of earth in which plants grow * Dynamic natural body composed of mineral and organic materials and living forms in which plants grow ## What Does Soil Provide? * Physical support * Nutrients ## Hydroponics * Growing plants in water instead of soil * Need to provide support * Make sure all nutrients are in water * Really expensive and small scale ## Soil Formation * From weathered rock * Physical weathering * Chemical weathering * Process of rocks breaking down into progressively smaller parts ## Rate Depends On * Parent material * Climate * Topography * Time * Biota ## Soil Profiles * Soil has different layers/horizons * **O Horizon** * Has organic material, top layer * Referred to as organic horizon * **A Horizon** * Referred to as mineral horizon * Minerals accumulate for plants to access * Lots of root growth * **B Horizon** * Layer of accumulation * End of root growth * **C Horizon** * Unconsolidated matter * More loosely packed * **Underneath** * Parent material * Bedrock * Minecraft mentioned! ## Plowed Soil * **O Horizon** * Referred to as humus * **A Horizon** * Referred to as topsoil * Plowable layer * **B Horizon** * Referred to as subsoil * Root penetration hindered by hard pan * Hard pan = sodium accumulation, forms very dense layer of soil, very hard, E layer?? * Broken by subsoil plow * **C Horizon** * Referred to as weathered rock fragments * Bedrock ## Soil Components * Good soil = 50% solid, 50% open space * Open space contains air, water, minerals, and organic material * Solid components called clay, sand, silt, or loam ## Soil Types * Sand * Biggest particles * Low ability to hold nutrients and water * Silt * Smaller particles than sand * Medium ability to hold nutrients and water * Clay * Smallest particle size * High ability to hold nutrients and water * Ideal = combination of all 3 types * Combination is called loam * Loam * Soil that combines sand, silt, and clay * Goldilocks soil ## Soil pH * Most crops grow best in a pH of 4.8-6.5 * pH measures the number of hydrogen ions * Lower pH = higher acidity * Higher pH = more alkaline/basic * Neutral pH = 7 * Adding limestone raises pH of soil # Plant Genetics ## p=g+e * Phenotype = genotype + environment * Phenotype * Observable/physical characteristics of plant * Genotype * The genetic material of the plant * Environment * Where and how plant is grown ## Genes * Basic unit of heredity * Found on chromosomes * Alternative forms of same gene are called alleles ## DNA * Deoxyribonucleic acid * Consists of structures called deoxyribose * Sugars * Phosphate groups * Forms of phosphorus * Nitrogenous bases * deoxyribose + phosphate + nitrogenous base = nucleotide * DNA = chains of nucleotides * 3 nucleotides * Codons * DNA alphabet * ACGT * 64 possible codons * Codons code for amino acids * Amino acids make proteins ## Central Dogma of Genetics * DNA coding for amino acids * Amino acids link to form protein * DNA → RNA → protein * DNA is read to create copy called RNA * RNA used to create proteins * Translated into a protein ## Mendel’s Laws * For each gene, offspring inherits one allele from each parent * **Mendel’s 1st Law** * Law of segregation * A pair of alleles separate independently during gamete formation, so only one allele from each parent ends up in the gamete * **Mendel’s 2nd Law** * Law of independent assortment * Traits controlled by different alleles have no genetic connection ## Mitosis * Normal cell division * DNA is copied * Cell splits * Two genetically identical cells * Daughter cells have 2 alleles for each gene and are genetically identical ## Meiosis * Gamete production * DNA is copied * Cell divides twice * Only one allele for each gene is in a daughter cell * Daughter cells are not genetically identical ## Qualitative Traits * Something you can physically see * Usually controlled by one or a couple genes * **Examples** * Flower color * Very easy to breed for ## Quantitative Traits * Traits that can be measured with numbers * Controlled by many genes * **Examples** * Plant height * Leaf length * Leaf width ## Plant Breeding Goals * Increase yield * Improve quality * Crop adaptation to climate * Change morphology * Disease resistant ## Hybrids * Cross between two parents that differ in one or more inherited traits * Results in heterosis * Ability of offspring to perform better than average of parents ## Traditional Breeding * Long duration * Limited to crossing within species * Lower selection efficiency # Biotechnology * Any technological application that uses biological systems, living organisms, or parts of them to develop agricultural products * **Traditional plant breeding** * Goal is to get a combination of genes to get the best possible plant * **Transgenic plants** * Combine genes to get best plant possible * Make plant as useful and productive as possible * Don’t need to parent plants * Insert genes into plant that get passed on to offspring * Can add genes from different species ## Electroporation * Uses electricity to create pores in the cell membrane * DNA is inserted through pores ## Gene Gun * Microprojectile bombardment * Inject DNA coated pellets into cells ## Agrobacterium * Parasitic bacteria that infects plants by inserting DNA into its genome * Can modify bacteria DNA to incorporate DNA of desired gene * Use the bacterial modified DNA to add the gene to the plants genome ## Identifying Genetically Modified Crops * Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) * Tests for presence of a protein * Need a different ELISA for each protein * Fast and fairly inexpensive * Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) * Tests for presence of DNA * Single test can test for about 85% of genetic modifications in crops * Much more expensive ## Goals of Biotechnology in Agriculture * Have crops that are resistant to herbicides * Crop resistance to diseases * Crop resistance to insects * Increase nutritional value * Atmospheric nitrogen fixation * Tolerance to flooding * Cold tolerance * Longer shelf life * Enhanced production of plant chemicals used in the pharmaceutical industry and food industry ## Concerns * Human health * Allergies * Eating foreign DNA * Change in nutrient level * Damage to environment * Monarch butterflies * Crop to weed gene flow * Reduction in spraying? * Herbicide-resistant weeds and wild crops * Disruption of current farming and food production practices * Transgenic plants fertilizing non-transgenic plants * Disruption of tradition and economies of underdeveloped countries * Farmers can’t compete * **Biotechnology facts** * Commercially available for almost 30 years * 6.7 million acres of biotech crops in 29 countries * **FDA approved GMOs** * Corn * Soybeans * Cotton * Potato * Summer squash * Papaya * Canola * Alfalfa * Sugar beet * Apple * Pink pineapple * Sugar cane # Row Crops * Planted in rows ## Corn/Maize * 92% of US corn is genetically modified * Number 1 crop in US * Technically grass * Mainly grown in Midwest ## Types of Corn * Dent corn * Primary corn produced in US * Dent in kernels * More for livestock feed * Production of ethanol * Flint corn * Harder seed * Good for popcorn * Blue corn * Is blue * Blue tortilla chips and corn meal * Sweet corn * Corn we consume * Human consumption * Sweeter than other corns * Less starch more simple sugars ## Corn Growth * Monoecious flower * Tassel = stamen * Mainly wind pollinated * Silk = pistil * Style and stigma * Tassel pollinates silk * Each kernel has own strand of silk * Not pollinated silks make blank spots on ear of corn ## Stages of Kernel Development * Silk stage * Silk grows and is fertilized * Blister stage * Silk falls off and kernel begins to develop * Milk stage * Kernel shaped like small balloon and filled with milky liquid * Dough stage * Milky liquid starts to solidify and becomes doughy * Dent stage * Liquid dries completely and kernel shrinks * Where dent in dent corn comes from * Maturity * Milk line is completely gone * Embryo is formed ## Corn Kernel * Endosperm * Lots of starch and protein * Pericarp * Outer covering * Fiber * Germ * Embryo * High in oil * Tip cap * Point of attachment to cob * Mostly fiber ## Soybeans * One of first crops domesticated * Dicot * 94% are genetically modified * Legume * High in protein * Roots fix nitrogen ## Soybean Uses * Soybean meal * Protein source for animals * Soybean oil * Used for cooking oils, salad dressings, margarine * Soybean hulls * Fiber for livestock feed ## Growing Soybeans * Commonly rotated with corn * Can “double crop” with wheat in southeast ## Sorghum * Also called milo * Monocot * Grain sorghum * Used for livestock feed * Sweet sorghum * Anything produces in southeast is sweet * Used to make syrup ## Peanuts * Dicot * Legume * 53% of peanut production in US from GA * Non-GMO * Peanut plants * Short, vine-like plant * Peanuts grow from underground pegs * Pegs = flower blossom stem that grows downwards * Peg goes down 2-3 inches into soil * Once peg is in soil, becomes seed(peanut) ## Peanut Harvesting * Digging * Cut off roots * Pick up plant and flip over * Picking * Plant dries out for a couple days * Picks peanuts off vines * Dumps vines back onto field ## Peanut Types * Runner * Most common * Used for peanut butter * Virginia * Used for roasted peanuts * Largest type of peanut * Spanish * Higher fat concentration * Used in candy production * Valencia * Used for boiled peanuts * More peanuts in each pod ## Peanut Processing * Dried and shelled * Blanching * Removing outer skin ## Peanut Products * Peanut butter, peanut paste, peanut flour, peanut oil, roasted peanuts ## Cotton * Dicot * 94% genetically modified * Requires 180 frost free days * Cotton flower and boll * Starts as white flower * After self-pollination, flower turns red * 5-7 days after pollination, flower dries up and is replaced with boll ## Cotton Boll * Fruit of the plant * Contains lint/fiber * Contains cotton seeds ## Cotton Harvesting * Defoliate * Spray cotton leaves to kill them and cause them to fall off the plant * Cotton picker/stripper * Remove boll from plant ## Storage * Stored in modules before transport * Modules = bales of cotton ## Ginning * Cotton seed is separated from fiber ## Cotton Products * Lint * Spun into spread and used for making fabrics * Farmer paid for quality of lint * Seeds * Whole cottonseeds * Cottonseed oil * Cottonseed meal * Used mainly for animal feed # Cereal Grains * Not grown in rows * Cereal grains * Small grains * Grasses * Fall or spring seeded ## Wheat * US is largest exporter * 6 classes * Time or year planted and harvested * Hardness * Color * Shape of kernel * Mainly grown to produce flour ## Wheat Classes * Hard red winter * Predominant wheat grown in US * Good for breads and rolls * All purpose flour mostly hard red winter wheat * Hard red spring * Similar to hard red winter but grown at different time of year * Good for breads * Soft red winter * Softer seed coat * Good for crackers, flatbreads, and cookies * Soft white * Good for cakes and pastries * Hard white * Asian noodles * Ramen! * Durum * Hardest wheat * Good for pasta ## Wheat Products * Straw * Left in field * Livestock bedding * Seed * Endosperm used to make white flour * Bran is the outer coat of the seed and is high fiber * Germ is high protein and high fat ## Flour * Whole grain * Contains entire wheat seed * High fiber flour * Good source of vitamins * Enriched * Not using whole kernel only * Contains endosperm * High starch * Nutrients added that would be found in germ * Fortified * Not very common * Contains endosperm * Extra nutrients added that would not have been in wheat kernel ## Oats * Used for breakfast cereal * Livestock feed ## Barley * Used for beer * Livestock feed ## Rye * Used for livestock feed * Flour ## Rice * Lowland rice is the most common type * Used for human food * Some produced in US # Fruits and Nuts ## Quiz On This On * Fruit = ripened ovary of a seed plant and its contents * Nut = dry, indehiscent, one-seeded fruit with a woody pericarp * Apples * Propagated by grafting * Fruit produced 3–5 years later * Self-incompatible * Cannot pollinate themselves * Must have at least 2 apple trees to get apples ## Apple Harvesting * Harvest before fully ripe * Harvested by hand or mechanically * Can be stored long-term ## Apple Uses * Juice * Whole apples * Canned * Dried * Frozen ## Oranges * Tropical evergreen * Most trees are grafted * Can self-pollinate * Fruits produced 3–6 years later * Harvest by hand or mechanically * Mainly used for juice, then as fresh fruit ## Grapes * Propagated by grafting * Fruit produced 3 years later * Self-pollinate * Harvest by hand ## Uses * Wine * Raisins * Table grapes * Juice * Jelly ## Almonds * Propagated by grafting * Nuts produced 3–5 years later * Alternate bearing * Only fully bear fruit every other year * Self-sterile * Harvested with tree shaker ## Walnuts * Propagated by grafting or planting seeds * Produce nuts after 5–7 years * Alternate bearing * Harvested by mechanical shakers ## Pecans * Propagated by grafting * Produce nuts 5–10 years later * Alternate bearing * Self-sterile * Harvested by hand or with shaker ## Pistachios * Propagated by grafting * Produce 5–8 years later * Alternate bearing * Harvested by shake and catch # Vegetables * Definition = edible part of a plant ## Categories of Production * **Fresh Market** * Not been processed in any manner * **Processing** * Any vegetable altered from natural state * Even if it’s just washed * **Forcing** * Growing outside of normal growing season * **Niche Market** * Unique market * Ex: organic, exotic, kosher * **Home Garden** * Provide food for family use ## Fresh Market * **Truck Farms** * Large acreage enterprises * Usually located near transportation hubs * Can sell to distant markets * **Market Gardens** * Smaller acreage * Located near population centers * Not shipping products ## Processing * Four major crops * Sweet corn * Peas * Tomatoes * Snap beans * **Common processing methods** * Canning = airtight container heated above boiling in pressure cooker * Freezing * Pickling = anaerobic fermentation decreases pH via production of acids which preserves product * Large scale production * Most methods preserve product to increase shelf life ## Forcing * **Traditional greenhouse crops** * Tomatoes * Cucumbers * Lettuce * Very expensive ## Niche Markets * Specialize in nontraditional crops * Unusual or exotic vegetables * Organically grown vegetables * Herbs * Spices # Gardening * To maintain gardens throughout seasons, you must… * Weed and water * Spray and fertilize * Mulch * Transplant * Grow plants from seeds * Make compost * **Assessing a garden site** * Sunlight * Climate * Sketch of sight ## Soil Testing * Composition * pH * Soil type ## Amending Soil * Provide * Nitrogen * Phosphorus * Potassium ## Composting * Natural biological process that converts any organic material into a humus-like soil conditioner * Passive composting * Bin-less composting * Material placed on the ground and covered with plastic * Container composting * Uses a container to hold compost ## Planting Seeds * Soak hard-coated seeds in water to speed up germination * Make furrow * Drop seeds * Cover seeds ## Thinning * Must thin overcrowded areas ## Transplanting * Transplant into prepared holes in soil ## Mulching * Covering surface of soil with a layer of material ## Benefits * Weed control * Prevents soil temperature fluctuations * Preserves moisture in soil ## Spraying * Spray pesticides to keep insects away * Last resort * Other methods of pest control ## Invasive Plant Species * Kudzu * Mimosa tree * English ivy * Japanese honeysuckle # Organic Production ## Goals * Eliminate pesticides * Establish a natural balance of soil, water, air, and biology * Health philosophy * Healthy soil produces healthy plants ## Concepts * Stop use of artificial pesticides and fertilizers * Increase air in soil through mechanical aeration * Increase organic matter in soil through compost and organic fertilizers * Cover bare soil with natural mulch * Add rock powders to increase micronutrients * Encourage life biodiversity with beneficial insects * Select native plants * Do not spray to kill ## Fertilizers * **Synthetic vs organic** * **Synthetic fertilizers** * No organic matter and no micronutrients * **Organic** * More organic matter * Will have micronutrients * **Organic fertilizer examples** * Manure * Compost ## Foliar Feeding * Can serve as a fertilizer * Contains liquid seaweed and fish emulsion * Fish emulsion = liquified fish * Provides lots if nutrients to plant * Works as a fungicide * Controls insects ## Perceptions * **Organic** * Public thinks general production = genetically modified production * More expensive * Healthier * More “traditional”