UNIT I:

Part 1
Nature and Importance of
Agriculture

UNIT OUTLINE:
q Data and Facts about Philippine Agriculture
q Problems, Status and Prospects of Philippine Agriculture
q The Nature and Features of Philippine Agricultural Systems
q The Nature of Agriculture as a Field Study
qAgricultural Development Origin, Domestication and
History of Some Important Crops
q World Food Situation and Centers of Production
q Philippine Agriculture (National Research Centers)
q Meaning and Scope of Crop Sciences
 AGRICULTURE Latin: Ager (field) + cultura
(cultivation)
§ Agriculture is the science and practice of producing plants,
other crops, and animals for food, other human needs, or
economic gain.
§ Agriculture is the art and science of growing plants and other
crops and raising animals for food, other human needs, or
economic gain
§ Two main division: (1) Crop Production & (2) Animal
Production

The primary aim of agriculture is to

cause the land to produce more
abundantly, and at the same time,
to protect it from deterioration and
misuse
 Agriculture as an art, science and
business of crop production

qIt embraces knowledge of the way to

perform the operations of the farm in
a skillfull manner.
qIt involves physical and mental skill

Agriculture as an art,science and

business of crop production
q It utilizes all modern technologies developed
on scientific principles such as crop
improvement/breeding, crop production, crop
protection, economics, etc., to maximize the
yield and profit.
q Hybridization, transgenic crops, biotechnology
etc.
 Agriculture as an art,science and
business of crop production
q Agriculture is commercialized to run as a business
through mechanization. Agriculture as a business
aims at maximum net return through the
management of land, labor, water and capital,
employing the knowledge of various sciences for
production of food, feed, fiber and fuel. In recent
years,

DATA AND FACTS ABOUT PHILIPPINE AGRICULTURE

Land Area
üLand area: 30 Million Hectares
ü47% is Agricultural land
ü13 million hectares for
agricultural crops

FAOSTAT (2017)
 DATA AND FACTS ABOUT PHILIPPINE AGRICULTURE
Agriculture Labor Force
ü 10.66 M persons employed in Agriculture in 2021 (PSA, 2022)
Agriculture Labor Force (million persons)

10.66
10.8
10.6
10.26
10.4
10.2
10
10 9.75
9.8
9.6 9.33
9.4
9.2
9
8.8
8.6
2017 2018 2019 2020 2021

Agriculture Labor Force (million persons)

DATA AND FACTS ABOUT PHILIPPINE AGRICULTURE

Agriculture Employment and Wages (2020)

Ave. Daily Basic Pay of Wage and

Salaried Agricultural Workers

Php 270.62
DATA AND FACTS ABOUT PHILIPPINE AGRICULTURE
Central Luzon 14%
AGRICULTURE OUTPUTS BY REGION (2020)
Northern Mindanao 9.9%
3.6
2.1 1.7 Western Visayas 9.8%
14
4.1 CALABARZON 8.3%
4.2 SOCCKSARGEN 7.3%
4.5 Davao Region 7.1%
9.9
Ilocos Region 6.9%
4.8 Percent Share in Agricultural Cagayan Valley 6.7%
Production by Region BARMM 5.1%
5.1
9.8 Bicol Region 4.8%
Central Visayas 4.5%
6.7 Zamboanga Penninsula 4.2%
8.3 Mimaropa Region 4.1%
6.9
Eastern Visayas 3.6%
7.1 7.3
CARAGA 2.1%
CAR 1.7%

DATA AND FACTS ABOUT PHILIPPINE AGRICULTURE

Top 5 Crops by Area Planted Top 5 Crops by Volume Produced

Palay: 4.8M hectares Sugarcane: 26M tons

Coconut: 3.6M hectares Palay: 20M tons

Corn: 2.6M hectares

Coconut: 15M tons

Banana: 450K hectares Banana: 9M tons

Sugarcane: 420K hectares Corn: 8M tons

 2018
DATA AND FACTS ABOUT PHILIPPINE AGRICULTURE

DATA AND FACTS2018

2018 ABOUT PHILIPPINE AGRICULTURE
Agricultural Exports and Imports (2020)
 DATA AND FACTS2018
2018 ABOUT PHILIPPINE AGRICULTURE
Self-Sufficiency Ratio (SSR) on Selected
Agricultural Crops (2021)

*SSR shows the magnitude of production in relation to domestic utilization. It indicates the extent to which a
country relies on its own production resources, i.e. the higher the ratio the greater the self-sufficiency.

PHILIPPINE AGRICULTURE: Problem & Prospects

LOW/INSUFFICIENT BUDGET
FOR AGRICULTURE SECTOR -
A low budget in the
Agriculture sector may cause
many problems that may
affect our farmers and
economy
PHILIPPINE AGRICULTURE: Problem & Prospects

Agriculture Sector Budget 2024

DBM-2024-Peoples-Proposed-Budget

PHILIPPINE AGRICULTURE: Problem & Prospects

qLow Productivity
§ Increase agricultural production in the country
can solely come from productivity improvement
(increasing output per unit of area)
§ No new area can be opened up for new
cultivation
§ Philippines land area: 30 million ha. – 47% is
agricultural land (13 million ha.)
§ Prime agricultural lots are located around main
urban and high density areas
§ According to land capability, 78.31% of the
alienable and disposable land are prime
agricultural areas, 6.1 million ha. Are highly
suitable for cultivation.
 PHILIPPINE AGRICULTURE: Problem & Prospects

PHILIPPINE AGRICULTURE: Problem & Prospects

qLimited access to credit and agricultural insurance

ü Farmers in the Philippines have more

than double the poverty rate of their
counterparts in Vietnam, Indonesia, and
Thailand.
ü39% of the farmers did not have access to
formal credit
üPoverty is largely due to our defective
agricultural credit system
 PHILIPPINE AGRICULTURE: Problem & Prospects
qLow farm mechanization and inadequate postharvest facilities
üPhilippine is 2.77 horsepower per hectare (hp/ha) farm mechanization
level (PhilMech as of October 2024)

Other Asian Country Farm Mechanization Level

Japan 7.0 hp/ha

South Korea 4.11 hp/ha
China 8.4 hp/ha( year 2011)
Vietnam 1.56 hp/ha

PHILIPPINE AGRICULTURE: Problem & Prospects

qInadequate irrigation

üOf 13.508 M agricultural land, 3.3 M is

consider as irrigatable up to 3% slope
(NIA)
ü6.1 M ha as irrigatable, including areas
that are relatively more difficult to
irrigate and up to 8% slope (World
Bank)
üIn 2018, of 3.1 M irrigatable areas, 61%
areas were served by irrigation facilities
ü1.2 M hectare remaining to be develop
 PHILIPPINE AGRICULTURE: Problem & Prospects
qScant support for research and R&D Expenditure (% of GDP) in the
development (R&D) Philippines (2020-2022)

ü Ideal average spending of R&D

should be 1% of the country’s gross
domestic product (GDP) according
to World Bank.
ü Research and development
expenditure (% of GDP) in the
Philippines has remained constant
at 0.16 percent. this was forecast to
remain the same in 2022.

PHILIPPINE AGRICULTURE: Problem & Prospects

 PHILIPPINE AGRICULTURE: Problem & Prospects
qLow number of researchers/scientist
ü Total number of R&D personnel is 75,037
ü 24% or 2,480 are researchers in agricultural science
ü 1,283 (52%) are in the government
ü 47.8% worked in the public (1,145) and private HEI’s (41)
ü 11 researchers (0.44) are in private non-profit organization

UNESCO
Phil. No. Req’t
R&D
Personnel 330/M
population
708/M
pop’n in
2018

PHILIPPINE AGRICULTURE: Problem & Prospects

qSoil and Water Degradation
ü25 billion tons of top soil/year are
lost – deforestation and
overgrazing
ü Based on a classification by the
GLASOD(Global assessment of
soil degradation), about 70% of
the country’s land area has been
degraded with soil erosion as
the dominant forms of land
degradation (Briones, 2009).
 PHILIPPINE AGRICULTURE: Problem & Prospects
§ Agriculture, which accounts for 70 percent
of water withdrawals worldwide, plays a
major role in water pollution.
§ Farms discharge large quantities of
agrochemicals, organic matter, drug
residues, sediments and saline drainage into
water bodies.
§ Exploding demand for food with high
environmental footprints, such as meat
from industrial farms, is contributing to
unsustainable agricultural intensification
and to water-quality degradation. (FAO
&WLE)

PHILIPPINE AGRICULTURE: Problem & Prospects

§ Nitrate from agriculture is now the
most common chemical contaminant
in the world’s groundwater aquifers.
§ Aquatic ecosystems are affected by
agricultural pollution; for example,
eutrophication caused by the
accumulation of nutrients in lakes and
coastal waters impacts biodiversity
and fisheries.
§ Despite data gaps, 415 coastal areas
have been identified experiencing
eutrophication.
 PHILIPPINE AGRICULTURE: Problem & Prospects
qClimate change and natural resources
degradation
üAdverse impacts such as flooding
incidence, drought soil degradation,
water shortage and increase pest and
diseases constantly threaten agricultural
output and productivity
üThe Philippines is third among the 173
countries in the world in terms of
disaster risk index (World Risk Report,
2011)

PHILIPPINE AGRICULTURE: Problem & Prospects

qWeak extension services
üDue to decentralization of Agricultural Extension
Service
üDA’s resource allocation for the decentralization of
agricultural services is not felt at the local level.)
üIt hampers diffusion and adoption of
recommended farm practices and technologies
üThis attributed to:
§ Inadequate operational fund
§ Lack of human resources
§ Ageing number of extension workers (43 to 64
years old)
 PHILIPPINE AGRICULTURE: Problem & Prospects
qAging Filipino Farmers
üAverage life expectancy of a Filipino: 71
years (Knoema, 2017)
üThe average age of Filipino farmers: 57
years old
üSurvival rate of male Filipino at 65 years
old: 64.8%
üSurvival rate of female Filipino at 65 years
old: 79.4%

PHILIPPINE AGRICULTURE: Problem & Prospects

Number of Students Enrolled in
Agricultural, Forestry, Fisheries, Vet Med. (2014-
2019)

143,182

125,526 127,287

106,006
100,922

2014-15 2015-16 2016-17 2017-18 2018-19

 PHILIPPINE AGRICULTURE: Problem & Prospects
q Rice Tariffication Law (R.A. 11203)
§ “An Act Liberalizing the Importation,
Exportation and Trading of Rice, Lifting for the
Purpose the Quantitative Import Restriction on
Rice, and For Other Purposes”
§ Principal Author: Sen. Cynthia Villar
§ Signed by Pres. Duterte on February 14, 2019

PHILIPPINE AGRICULTURE: Problem & Prospects

qThe image shows the prices of rice

and categorizes countries into
importers and exporters.
qIMPORTERS: Philippines,Indonesia
and china as importers,with their
respective rice prices.
qEXPORTERS: Vietnam and Thailand
are listed as exporters,again with
their corresponding prices.
 PHILIPPINE AGRICULTURE: Problem & Prospects
Salient Provisions of Rice Tariffication Law (R.A 11203)
1. NFA lose some of its mandates
• Sole importation of rice and issuing import licenses/permits
• Undertaking direct importation ONLY for maintaining buffer
stock
2. All rice importers to secure sanitary and phytosanitary import
clearance from BPI prior to importation
3. Removal of import restrictions and imposition of:
• 35% tariff for ASEAN member state
• 50% tariff for non-ASEAN member state
4. Creation of Rice Enhancement Competitive Fund (RCEF)
• PHP 10 billion yearly appropriation

PHILIPPINE AGRICULTURE: Problem & Prospects

EFFECTS OF RICE TARIFFICATION LAW

POSITIVE: NEGATIVE:
1. Increased rice supply 1. Lower farm income for some
2. Lower rice prices farmers
3. RCEF 2. Market volatility
4. Improved farm income 3. Changes in implementation (RCEF)
4. Dependency on imports

Source: The Impact of Rice tariffication Law on Farmers

(2021). POLITICO.ph
 The Nature and Features of Philippine Agricultural Systems

Agricultural Systems

Assemblage of components
which are united by some
form of interaction and
interdependence and which
operate within a prescribed
boundary to achieve a
specified agricultural objective
on behalf of the beneficiaries
of the system.

The Nature and Features of Philippine Agricultural Systems

Major Agricultural Systems in the

Philippines:

q Low land farming systems

• Mainly grow rice and sugarcane
q Rainfed farming systems
• Mainly coconut, corn and cassava
q Upland farming systems
• Mainly legumes and some vegetables
 The Nature and Features of Philippine Agricultural Systems
Commodity-based Production System

• Crop production
Crop-based system • Rice, corn, coconut, vegetables etc.

Livestock & • Swine, Cattle, Carabao, and other

small livestock
Poultry based • Poultry production (chicken, ducks
system etc.)

• Fishery based production

Fisheries system • Small-scale or commercial fishing

The Nature of Agriculture as a Field of Study

§ Agriculture is the method of producing

grain, feed, fiber and many other desired
items through the cultivation of some
plants and the raising of domesticated
animals (livestock).
§ For maximizing profits from agriculture,
proper planning from the levels of crop
selection to selling the produce in the
market are important.
§ Agriculture deals with different field like
crop science, soil science, crop protection,
animal science and others.
 The Nature of Agriculture as a Field of Study

Field of Study in Agriculture

§ Crop Science - is the study of the world's main food, feed, turf, and fiber crops
and their climate. It is a broad discipline encompassing reproduction, genetics,
development, and management.
§ Soil Science - the study of soil formation, classification and mapping; physical,
chemical, biological, and fertility properties of soils; and these properties in
relation to the use and management of soils
§ Crop Protection – It is the science and practice of controlling pests, plant
diseases and other insect species that affect agricultural crops is crop
protection.
§ Animal Science - it is focuses on the science and industry of domestic animal
processing, including, but not limited to, beef cattle, dairy cattle, horses,
chickens, sheep, and pigs.

The Nature of Agriculture as a Field of Study

Field of Study in Agriculture

§ Economics - it is the branch of knowledge dealing with the production,

consumption, and transfer of resources is economics.
§ Marketing - It is the action or business of the promotion and sale, including
market research and advertisement, of goods or services.
§ Farm Management - It is the decision-making and execution for optimum
output and benefit of the decisions involved in planning and running a farm.
§ Agricultural engineering- deals with farm mechanization.
§ Agro-forestry- deals with integrated crop and forest plant production.
§ Fisheries – deals with pisciculture (rearing and managing of fish.)
 PHILIPPINE AGRICULTURE NATIONAL RESEARCH CENTERS

State
Department Universities
of and
Agriculture Colleges
(UPLB,
(DA-BAR) BSU, etc.)

National Specialized
Commodity Discipline
Research AGRICULTURE Oriented
Center DEVELOPMENT Research Center
(DA-BIOTECH
(PhilRice, CENTER)
PCA, SRA)

International
Research DOST-
Center (IRRI, PCAARRD
ICRISAT)

PHILIPPINE AGRICULTURE NATIONAL RESEARCH CENTERS

1. State colleges and universities offering degrees in agriculture

2. Department of Agriculture Research Networks
3. National commodity research centers
§ FIDA – Fiber Industry Development Authority
§ NTA – National Tobacco Authority
§ PhilRice – Philippine Rice Research Institute
§ PCA – Philippine Coconut Authority
§ SRA – Sugar Regulatory Administration
§ PRCRTC – Phil. Rootcrops Research and Training Center
§ NPRCRTC – Northern Phil. Rootcrops Research and Training Center
§ NARC – National Abaca Research Center
 PHILIPPINE AGRICULTURE NATIONAL RESEARCH CENTERS

4. Specialized discipline-oriented research centers

§ IPB – Institute of Plant Breeding
§ NCPC – National Crop Protection Center
§ NPGRL – National Plant Genetic Resources Laboratory
§ PHTRC – Postharvest Horticulture Training and Research Center
§ BIOTECH – National Institute of Molecular Biology and Biotechnology
5. Private seed companies
§ East West
§ Monsanto
§ Pioneer
§ Syngenta
§ Allied Botanical

PHILIPPINE AGRICULTURE NATIONAL RESEARCH CENTERS

Major International Research Organization

§ IRRI – International Rice Research Institute (Philippines)
§ CIMMYT – Centro International de Mejoramiento de Maize y Trigo (Mexico)
§ CIP – Centro International de Patatas (Peru)
§ ICRISAT – International Center for Semi-arid Tropics (India)
§ CIAT – Centro de International de Agricultural Tropical (Colombia)
§ ICARDA – International Center for Agricultural Research for Dry Areas (Syria)
 Part 2
Agricultural Development

What is Agricultural Development?

❑ Agricultural development should be such that agriculture development
brings about a revolution in the agriculture industry to give birth to an
agriculture which is profit giving and at the same time eco-friendly.
❑ Agricultural development promotes the proper conditions for farming so
that planting, harvesting, and processing can be done effectively, which
ultimately can reduce poverty and save lives.
What is Agricultural Development?
A. Seeds
B. Fertilizer and Chemicals
C. Irrigation
D. Transportation
E. Research Extension and Communication
F. Credit Facilities
G. Technological advancements

History of Agricultural Development in the World

❑ Neolithic Era
✔ 7000 BC- sowing and harvesting reached Mesopotamia.
- In Greece and the Aegean, evidence of emmer and einkorn
wheat, barley, sheep, goat, and pigs.
✔ 6000 BC- farming was entrenched on the banks of Nile River;
agriculture was developed in the Far East, probably in China, with rice
(Oryza sativa) rather than wheat (Triticum aestivum) as the primary crop.
- Indus Valley- presence of wheat and some legumes.
History of Agricultural Development in the World
❑ Neolithic Era
✔ 4500-6000 BC- archaeological evidences of domestication of plants and
animals were found in Iberian Peninsula.
✔ 5500 BC- Ceide Fields (Ireland)- oldest known field systems in the world.
✔ 5000 BC- domestication of rice and sorghum in Sahel Region of Africa.
✔ 4000 BC- horse was first domesticated in Ukraine.

History of Agricultural Development in the World

❑ Neolithic Era

✔ 3500 BC- Indus Valley- advanced cotton growing and cotton textiles were quite
advanced.
✔ 3000 BC- farming of rice had started in the valley.
✔ 3000-2700 BC- maize (Zea mays) was first domesticated in the Americas.
✔ 2500 BC- rice was an important component of the staple diet in Mohenjodaro
near Arabian Sea.
- Indians had large cities with well-stocked granaries.
-Three regions of Americas independently domesticated corn, squashes,
potatoes and sunflowers.
History of Agricultural Development in the World
❑ Roman era
✔ Romans laid the groundwork for the manorial economic
involving serfdom, which flourished in the Middle Ages.
FOUR SYSTEMS OF FARM MANAGEMENT
1. Direct work by owner and his family;
2. Slaves doing work under supervision of slave managers
3. Tenant farming or share farming;
4. Farm was leased to a tenant.

History of Agricultural Development in the World

❑ middle ages (1500-500 AD)
Muslim farmers in North Africa and the Near East developed and
disseminated agricultural technologies including the ff:
✔ irrigation systems based on hydraulic and hydrostatic principles;
✔ use of machines such as norias;
✔ use of water raising machines
✔ construction of dams and reservoirs
History of Agricultural Development in the World
❑ middle ages
✔ location-specific farming manuals were developed;
✔ wider adoption of crops including sugarcane, rice, citrus fruit, apricots,
cotton, artichokes, aubergines, and saffron;
✔ lemons, oranges, cotton, almonds, figs, and sub-tropical crops such as
bananas were brought to Spain.

History of Agricultural Development in the World

✔ 1400s-1500s- Explorers introduced plants and agricultural products from

Asia and the Americas into Europe.
✔ Early 1700s- New crop rotation methods evolved in Europe’s Low
Countries and in England, improving previous systems.
✔ 1701- Jethro Tull- introduced the seed drill to English farmers; Father of
Tillage
History of Agricultural Development in the World
✔Late 1700s- Robert Bakewell (England)- pioneered the selective
breeding of cattle and sheep to produce meatier animals.
✔ 1793- Eli Whitney (United States)- invented the cotton gin, a machine
that separated fiber from seed much more quickly than people could do it by
hand.
✔ 1834- Cyrus Mc Cormick (United States)- the first practical reaper or
grain harvesting machine.
History of Agricultural Development in the World
1837- John Deere (United States)- patented the steel plow.
✔ 1842- John Bennet Lawes (England)- founded the first factory to
manufacture superphosphate.
✔ 1850s- 1900s- development of railroads and steamship lines were
expanded.
✔ 1866- Gregor Mendel’s studies in heredity were published in Austria;
Father of Genetics.
History of Agricultural Development in the World
Early 1890s- first gasoline-paved tractors were built, replacing steam
powered tractors and animals for draft.
✔ 1890s- combine harvester were built.
✔ Late 1920s- scientists improved the seeds from which farmers grew corn.
✔ 1939- introduction of DDT; it is also a beginning of agriculture’s heavy use
of chemical pesticides in developing countries.
History of Agricultural Development in the World
1945-1970- machines and increased productivity in industrialized
countries sharply reduced the number of people working in agriculture.
✔ 1950s- 1960s- developing countries, including Philippines, experienced
Green Revolution.
✔ 1970s- Present- age of genetic engineering began.
✔ 1980s- developed countries- farmers began to use computers.

Agriculture Developments in the Philippines

pre-colonial period
✔ Indo- Malayan migrants brought with them wet-rice agriculture, with
carabao as a source of animal power for cultivation. This type of agriculture
predominated near bodies of water like rivers and lakes.
Slash-and-burn or kaingin culture or non-plow farming predominated in
other areas.
✔ This indicated shifting agriculture rather than sedentary type of rice culture
and the tribes were mainly nomadic.
Agriculture Developments in the Philippines
❑ pre-colonial period
Main crops consisted of;
oRice o Citrus
o Taro o Ginger
o Yams o Clove
o Bananas o Cinnamon
o Corn Millet o Nutmeg
o Coconuts

Agriculture Developments in the Philippines

❑colonial period
✔ This period introduced a non-producing class for which Filipinos produced
surpluses, leading to an increase in agricultural production.
✔ The development of haciendas allowed for the introduction of
technological innovations in production and processing like steam or
hydraulic-powered sugar mills.
Agriculture Developments in the Philippines
❑ colonial period
Introduced crops are:
✔ Mulberry
✔ Cocoa
✔ Wheat
✔ Cucumber
✔ Cantaloupe
✔ Watermelon
✔ Coffee

Agriculture Developments in the Philippines

❑ Post war period
✔ Introduction of technological improvements.
✔ 1950’s-1960’s- campaign for use of modern farm inputs and
farm mechanization.
- building up of market for tractors and power tillers.
Agriculture Developments in the Philippines
❑Post war period
✔ Establishment of the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI).
✔ Introduction of high yielding rice varieties which was also termed
the green revolution.
✔ Further development and expansion of international agricultural
trading especially coconut and its by-products, tobacco, sugar,
pineapple, etc.

Part 3
Philippine Agriculture
❑Philippines is still primarily an agricultural country.
❑ Most citizens still live in rural areas and support themselves
through agriculture.
❑ 4 sub-sectors of agriculture: farming, fisheries, livestock, and
forestry.
❑ Country’s most agricultural crops: rice, corn, coconut,
sugarcane, banana, pineapple, coffee, mangoes, tobacco and
abaca.

❑Secondary crops; peanut, cassava, camote, garlic, onion,

cabbage, eggplant, calamansi, rubber, and cotton.
❑ Export countries: USA, Japan, Europe, and ASEAN
countries.
❑ Export products: banana, pineapple, copra, rubber, tobacco
❑ Imported products: rice, wheat, corn, various vegetables
and fruits, edible oils.
❑Concerns of Agriculture
▪ rampant conversion of agricultural land for commercial uses;
▪ farmer’s continued reliance on chemical based fertilizers or
pesticides;
▪ environmental damage (water pollution, coral reef
destruction, forest destruction);
▪ lacks funding for critical projects i.e. irrigation systems;

Part 4
Introduction to Crop Science
Philippines is also home to many plant
species…
❑ According to International Union for the Conservation of
Nature (IUCN), the Philippines ranks fifth in the world in
terms of species diversity and endemism.
❑ A total of 39,100 species of flora and fauna have been
identified in the country, of which a high 67% are endemic.
Plants found only in the Philippines…

ABACA (Musa textilis)

Plants found only in the Philippines…

PILI (Canarium ovatum)

Plants found only in the Philippines…

Kapa-kapa (Medinilla magnifica)

Plants found only in the Philippines…

Lubi-lubi (Niyog- niyugan)

Plants found only in the Philippines…

DUHAT (Syzygium cumini)

Plants found only in the Philippines…

JADE VINE (Strongylodon macrobotrys)

Plants found only in the Philippines…

KAHOY-DALAGA (Mussaenda philippica var

‘aurorae’)

Plants found only in the Philippines…

WALING-WALING (Vanda sanderiana)

 Meaning and Scope of
CROP SCIENCE

DEFINITION
❑ SCIENCE: Systematically accumulated and tested
knowledge. It refers to the ordered knowledge of
natural phenomena and the rational study of the
relationship between the concepts in which these
phenomena are expressed.
❑ PLANT: Any organism belonging to the kingdom
Plantae, typically lacking of active locomotion or
obvious nervous system or sensory organs and has
photosynthetic ability.
DEFINITION
❑ CROP:
Domesticated/cultivated
plants grown for profit. It
usually connotes a group or
population of cultivated
plants.

What is CROP SCIENCE?

It is concerned with the observation and
classification of knowledge concerning economically
cultivated crops and the establishment of verifiable
principles regarding their growth and development
for the purpose of deriving the optimum benefit from
them.
AGRONOMY
It came from the Greek word “agros” meaning field
and “nomos” meaning to manage. Thus agronomy
deals with the principles and practices of managing
field crops and soils.

HORTICULTURE
❑It came from the Latin words “hortus”, which means a “garden”, (a
term derived from the Anglo-saxon word “gyrdan”, which means “to
enclose”) and “colere”, which means ‘to cultivate”.
❑ The concept of gardens and plants within an enclosure is distinct
from the culture of field crops- A MEDIEVAL CONCEPT.
❑ It includes pomology (fruits), ornamentals (floriculture), vegetables
(olericulture), nursery management, and landscape gardening.
CROP PRODUCTION as a Science, Art
and Business
As a science, it is derived from the adoption or application of
basic sciences of chemistry, mathematics, physics and from
various applied sciences like physiology, meteorology, anatomy,
plant breeding, etc.

As an art, it requires skills to produce crops with little or no

scientific training.
As a business, plants are not grown simply to satisfy human needs
but to realize at some profit in the process of production.

Trivia and Current

Events in Crop
Science
 Some chemical compounds found in
crops
Calcium oxalate – chemical substance that
causes itchiness in gabi
Sulfuric acid – chemical present in onion
Capsaicin – white crystalline compound that
causes hotness in some pepper varieties

Some chemical compounds found in

crops
Solanine – glykoalkaloid chemical present in potato
tuber which causes greening when exposed to
sunlight
Momordicin – substance that causes bitter taste of
ampalaya
Allicin – substance found in garlic; can heal
common cold; can reduce/improve blood pressure
and cholesterol, can be used to heal an-an and warts
THANK YOU FOR LISTENING!!!