Progress in Agriculture
Objective: Summarize historical agriculture discoveries that increased the global production of food and fiber
Progress Through Engineering
Little progress in agriculture is recorded before 1800 AD
The use of Iron revolutionized American and European agriculture
Most of the world did not catch on as fast
Progress Through Engineering
Mechanization helps 2% of America’s work force meet the food and fiber needs of our nation
There has been a reduction of 90% in production farming in the last 200 years
Eli Whitney Invented the cotton
gin 1793 Transformed cotton
to a usable product Removed cotton
seed from cotton fiber
Eli Whitney’s Cotton Gin
Katherine Greene Widow of
Revolutionary general, Nathaniel Greene
Whitney worked on Ms. Greene’s farm
Some say Ms. Greene invented the cotton gin
Cyrus McCormick
Invented the grain reaper
1834 Cut grains
Cut wheat, oats, and other crops
Cutting Grain With the sickle
or reaping hook one man could cut from one-half to one acre in a hard day's work.
The cut grain was later bound by hand
The Reaper
The Reaper
While this first machine required only 2 people for operation (a person to ride the horse and a man to rake the cut grain from the platform), it cut as much grain in one day as 12-16 men with reaping hooks.
Grain Reaper
McCormick Reaper
Cast Iron Plow
Invented in the early 1800’s
Thomas Jefferson
Rough surface that dirt stuck to
Steel Moldboard Plow
Invented 1837 John Deere Smoother surface Rich clay soil did not
stick to it Made plowing easier
and faster
Corn Picker Invented in 1850Edmund QuincyHelped speed
up the harvesting of corn
Corn Picker
Modern Corn Picker
Milking Machine Invented in 1878Anna BaldwinUsed vacuum
suctionReplaced hand
milking
Modern Milking Machine
Modern Milking Machine
Tractor
Invented in 1904Benjamin HoltReplaced the
mule as a source of power Horse power
1849 - 1920
Steam powered Caterpillar tractor built by Holt in 1908.
Trends in Agriculture
World OutlookThe world
population will continue to grow because More children
are surviving to adulthood
More adults are living longer
World OutlookPopulation growth will:
Add stress to environmental systems of air, water, soil, and natural resources
Create challenges to meet the demands for food and fiber (clothing and shelter)
World OutlookAgriculture will always be an essential
industry Increased commercialization of
agriculture will continueNew types of farming such as
aquaculture will be used as well as traditional farming methods
World OutlookThe science of food production,
processing, and distribution will require: College graduates to fill roles as scientists,
engineers, and other professionals Careers in agriscience products and
distribution to grade, transport, process, package and market agriculture commodities.
World OutlookThe projection is for the average size of
farms in the U.S. to increase while the number of farms decrease.
Commodities In the mid 1990s, the number one meat
export as far as tonnage shipped from the U.S. was poultry.
CommoditiesCorn ranks in the top five U.S. grain
exports year after year.
Commodities In North Carolina the top three
agricultural commodities in terms of cash receipts in the late 1990s were hogs, broilers, and tobacco.
CommoditiesSoybeans are the world’s most
important source of vegetable oil and provide basic materials for hundreds of products.
Green Revolution vs. Green Industry
Green RevolutionThe Green Revolution was the process
where many countries became self-sufficient in food production by using improved crop varieties and practices.
Green IndustryGreen Industry is the modern
horticulture industry with emphasis on turf and landscape plants.