History, Trends, Issues and Challenges in Plant Science

What’s a farm?

Plot of land that produces ag products

Ratio of farmers to consumers

1 to 150

What % of available land is used for farms?

50%

Ratio of acre to hectare

1 acre : 0.4 hectares

Average farm size (in acres)

466

4 most common crops in the U.S.

Corn, soybeans, wheat, and cotton

6 most common crops in WI

Hay, grain corn, soybeans, corn silage, oats for grain, and vegetables

Most common crop in WI

Hay

Second most common crop in WI

Grain corn

Sustainable agriculture is a system in which…

1. Resources are kept in balance w/ their use through conservation, recycling, + renewal

2. Practices preserve ag resources + prevent enviro damage to the farm + offsite land

3. Production, profits, and incentives remain at acceptable levels

4. Works in concert w/ socioeconomic realities

Ag is the #1 user of…

Water

Food security

Everyone has access to enough safe and nutritious food

4 current challenges to ag

1. Rising affluence in developing countries

2. Food waste

3. Land management

4. Political issues

3 Ps of sustainability

Profit, planet, people

How much income defines a farm?

$1,000

Agronomy

Science + tech of using food, fuel, fiber + reclamation

Horticulture

Art, science + tech of using plants for food + aesthetic purposes

What are the 2 branches of agriculture?

1. Agronomy + soil science

2. Horticulture

What are the 3 categories of agronomy?

1. Range science

2. Forages

3. Grain crops

What are the 2 categories of soil science?

1. Soil morphology

2. Soil fertility

What are the 3 cetegories of pomology?

1. Tree fruits

2. Small fruits

3. Nuts

What are the 4 categories of horticulture?

1. Pomology

2. Viticulture

3. Environmental horticulture

4. Olericulture

What are the 3 categories of viticulture?

1. Wine grapes

2. Table grapes

3. Raisins

What is the 1 category of olericulture?

1. Vegetable science

What are the 4 categories of environmental horticulture?

1. Arboriculture

2. Floriculture

3. Landscape management

4. Turfgrass science

What are the 2 categories of arboriculture?

1. Trees

2. Shrubs

What are the 3 categories of floriculture?

1. Floral design

2. Greenhouse management

3. Interiorscaping

What are the 2 categories of landscape management?

1. Landscape design

2. Landscape maintenance

Range science

Animals ranges

Forages

Plant material eaten by grazing livestock; clover, alfalfa

Grain crops

Use of the seed (for people or animal food)

Turfgrass science

Grasses: lawn, athletic field

What is the driftless region?

No glacial coverage during ice age

Where is the driftless region?

SW Wisconsin, NE Iowa, SE Minnesota

4 reasons that agriculture developed

1. To secure food supply

2. To feed more people

3. Climate change

4. Natural step from hunting + gathering

6 crops native to North America

1. Plum

2. Pecan

3. Sunflower

4. Blueberry

5. Cranberry

6. Tepary bean

1862 Homestead Act

Granted 160-acre parcels

1862 Morrill Act

Establish land grant universities

1890 Land Grant Universities (HBCU)

Established land grant universities in the south

1914 Smith Lever Act

Established extension for dissemination of ag research

Government Price Supports

To stabilize ag prices during the Great Depression

Soil Conservation Service

Help farmers take better care of the land - Natural Resource and Conservation Service (NRCS)

1887 Hatch Experiment Station Act

Established connection between the USDA + land grant universities to provide funding for ag research

What is the Green Revolution?

Effort by Ford + Rockefeller to end world hunger by improving crop performance

The Green Revolution included research + information about what 4 topics?

1. New cultivars

2. Use of fertilizers and irrigation

3. Control of pests through pesticides

4. Use of mechanization for cultivation, planting + harvest

Era of Resource Regeneration and Conservation

Research + ag policies developed to aid farmers in preserving land resources

What 4 topics + practices were the focus of the Era of Resource Regeneration + Conservation?

1. Crop rotation

2. Moisture conservation

3. Use of legumes in crop rotations

4. Application of manure + organic matter

What was the first commercialized GMO?

Round-Up-Ready corn

What do farm bills do?

Provide funds to support ag programs and the USDA

At what interval should farm bills get passed?

Every 5 years