General Agriculture and Agricultural Systems

Vocabulary flashcards covering the branches of agriculture, historical agricultural evolution, systems of farming, land tenure laws and principles, and major agricultural regulatory bodies in Nigeria.

Agriculture

The art and science (or management) of cultivating crops and rearing animals for man's use, derived from the Latin words 'ager' (field) and 'cultura' (cultivation).

Agronomy

The branch of crop production dedicated to the study of crops.

Crop Pathology

The branch of crop science dealing with the study, production management, and control of plant diseases.

Entomology

The branch of agricultural science focused on the study, management, and control of insect pests of crops.

Apiculture

The art and practice of domesticating bees for the commercial or local production of honey and wax.

Heliculture

The practice of snail rearing (or snailry), which serves as an important source of animal protein, iron, and industrial calcium.

Neolithic Revolution

The profound transition occurring around 10,000 to 12,000 years ago where human societies shifted from nomadic hunting and gathering to intentional plant cultivation and animal domestication.

Shifting Cultivation

A primitive farming method where cultivators clear a plot of land, farm it, and abandon it once soil fertility declines to clear new forest or grassland.

Animal Traction

The practice of utilizing domesticated draft animals such as oxen, donkeys, and horses to pull plows and transport heavy loads.

Farming

The act or practice of cultivating land, growing crops, and raising livestock to produce food, feed, fiber, and other raw materials.

Subsistence Farming

An agricultural system where a farmer cultivates small, fragmented plots of land and rears animals primarily to feed themselves and their immediate family, using simple hand tools.

Commercial Farming

A large-scale, capital-intensive agricultural system where crops and livestock are produced primarily for sale and profit in domestic or international markets.

Mixed Farming

An agricultural system in which a farmer carries out both crop cultivation and livestock rearing on the same farm simultaneously, creating mutual benefits between crops and animals.

Arable Farming

The cultivation of temporary, annual crops (such as cereals, legumes, and tubers) on land that can be ploughed and tilled, without raising livestock for market.

Monoculture

The agricultural practice of growing a single cash crop extensively over a large area of land.

Agricultural Laws

Legal enactments, rules, and regulations established by the government to guide, control, and regulate agricultural activities, land ownership, trade, and natural resource management.

Agricultural Reforms

Intentional policy shifts, restructuring, and strategic interventions executed by the government to boost productivity, modernize farming, and resolve structural constraints.

Land Use Act of 1978

A military legislation promulgated on March 29, 1978, by General Olusegun Obasanjo, vesting all state land in the Governor to hold in trust and issuing Certificates of Occupancy (C of O).

Certificate of Occupancy (C of O)

A legal document granted under the Land Use Act of 1978 that confers statutory land usage rights to citizens, which can also serve as collateral for securing bank loans.

Operation Feed the Nation (OFN)

A national agricultural initiative launched in 1976 under General Olusegun Obasanjo to mobilize citizens, students, and workers into active farming to achieve food self-sufficiency.

Green Revolution Programme

An agricultural policy initiated in 1980 by President Shehu Shagari aiming to achieve food self-sufficiency in five years and restore export cash crop production via mechanization.

River Basin Development Authorities (RBDAs)

Agencies established under Decree No. 25 of 1976 to harness water resources for flood control, irrigation development, dry-season farming, and rural water supply across Nigeria.

Agricultural Credit Guarantee Scheme (ACGS)

A scheme established in 1977 by the Central Bank of Nigeria and the Federal Ministry of Agriculture that guarantees up to 75% of default on commercial agricultural loans.

Land Tenure System

The legal, traditional, or customary system governing how land is held, owned, utilized, or transferred within a society.

Communal Ownership System

A land tenure system where land belongs to the entire community, clan, or village collectively, held in trust by the village head or traditional ruler.

Leasehold System

A contractual land tenure agreement where a landowner (lessor) grants temporary usage rights to a tenant farmer (lessee) for a designated timeframe in exchange for rent.

Suitability Principle

The land use principle requiring that land be allocated based strictly on its soil type, topography, and inherent fertility.

Agroforestry

A land management practice integrating agricultural crop production and tree cultivation on the same piece of land to optimize productivity and ecosystem health.

National Agricultural Land Development Authority (NALDA)

A federal government agency responsible for land preparation, large-scale clearing, farm plot allocation to youth, and establishing integrated rural farm settlements.

FADAMA Development Project

A joint Federal Government and World Bank initiative aimed at utilizing low-lying floodplains for year-round irrigation cropping and empowering rural community associations.

Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON)

A federal regulatory agency responsible for setting quality benchmarks, conducting product inspections, and certifying agricultural inputs and foods through MANCAP and NIS.

Zoonoses

Infectious diseases that can be transmitted between animals and humans, including rabies, anthrax, avian influenza, and Lassa fever.