Vocabulary Flashcards for Agricultural Competitive Examinations

This set of vocabulary flashcards provides key definitions and technical terms for students preparing for agricultural competitive exams, covering innovations, meteorology, crop science, soil properties, and management techniques.

BPL (Below Poverty Line) Parameters

In India, the parameter used to group population under BPL is consumption of less than $2100\,\text{cal/day}$ in urban areas and less than $2400\,\text{cal/day}$ in rural areas.

Green Revolution

A term first used in 1968 by former USAID director William Gaud relating to the production of novel wheat cultivars to increase food grain production.

Troposphere

The closest and densest layer of the atmosphere ($8-18\,\text{km}$ height) where temperature decreases with altitude at a rate of $6^{\circ}\text{C/km}$; it contains all weather phenomena.

Solar Constant

The energy falling in one minute in a surface area of one square cm at the outer boundary of the atmosphere, equivalent to $1.94\,\text{cal/cm}^{2}/\text{min}$.

Lapse Rate

The vertical decrease in temperature along with height; the normal rate is $6.5^{\circ}\text{C/km}$ or $3.5^{\circ}\text{F/1000\,feet}$.

Anemometer

A meteorological instrument used to measure wind speed or velocity.

Tensiometer

An instrument used to measure soil moisture tension, typically working up to $0.8\,\text{bar}$.

Albedo

Reflected radiation from a surface, which is useful in remote sensing.

Tillage

The mechanical manipulation of the soil for obtaining conditions ideal for seed germination, seedling establishment, and growth of crops.

Tilth

The good physical condition of soil after tillage in relation to plant growth.

Zero Tillage

A system where the crop is planted in unprepared soil by opening a narrow slot or trench, with weeds controlled only by chemical means.

Hulling Percentage

In rice, it is calculated as $\frac{\text{Weight of brown rice}}{\text{Weight of paddy}} \times 100$; for common rice, it is typically $70-75\,\text{per cent}$.

Biasi (Beushening)

A method of rice cultivation prominent in Chhattisgarh, Bihar, and Orissa where seeds are broadcast and the standing crop is ploughed $4-6$ times when water is standing.

Nipping

The process of plucking or tipping apical buds in Chickpea at $30-40\,\text{DAS}$ to check luxuriant growth and encourage branching.

Gynophore

Commonly known as a 'Peg' in groundnut, it is the stalk-like structure that bends downward and forces the ovary into the soil.

Retting

A biochemical process of treatment of stalks (used in Jute and Linseed) for final fiber extraction by immersion in water.

Ginning Percentage

Calculated as $\frac{\text{Weight of lint}}{\text{Weight of seed cotton}} \times 100$; for American cotton, it is typically $28-32\,\text{per cent}$.

Infiltration

The first entry of water from the upper layer of soil, generally occurring in unsaturated soil.

Field Capacity (FC)

The amount of soil moisture held in soil after excess water has drained away, usually at a suction pressure of $-0.33\,\text{bar}$.

Permanent Wilting Point (PWP)

The moisture content of a soil at which plants permanently wilt and cannot recover turgidity, typically occurring between $10$ and $20\,\text{atm}$ of tension.

Water Use Efficiency (WUE)

The ratio of marketable crop produced per unit of water used, expressed in $\text{kg/ha-cm}$.

Allelopathy

Inhibition or stimulation of a target plant due to different chemicals (exudates) released by weeds or crops.

Stale Seedbed

A technique where initial flushes of weeds are destroyed before planting a crop by soaking the field to allow germination followed by shallow tillage or non-residual herbicides.

Soil Texture

The relative percentage of sand, silt, and clay sized particles in the soil material.

Pedology

The science that studies the origin, classification, and description of soil as a natural body.

Hidden Hunger

A term describing a plant that shows no obvious symptoms, yet nutrient content is not sufficient to give the top profitable yield.

Vermiculture

The technology of using earthworms as natural bio-degraders of non-toxic organic wastes for soil improvement and nutrient mobilization.

Fertigation

The sophisticated method of applying fertilizers or mineral fertilizers along with irrigation water in an irrigation system.

Precision Farming

A site-specific crop management approach using technology like GPS and GIS to apply agro-chemicals in an economical and environmentally sound fashion.

Land Equivalent Ratio (LER)

The ratio of the area needed under sole cropping to that under intercropping to give an equal amount of yield; values $> 1.0$ indicate an advantage.