Subject > Biology > Biology I > Food Resources Sustainable Agriculture

Food Resources Sustainable Agriculture

Mixed Farming

While modern day farmers specialize in one agricultural sector, either dairy or growing potatoes, their predecessors kept a wide array of farm animals and planted many different kinds of field crops. Their farms were remarkably self sufficient, producing eggs, meat, milk, vegetables and grains for the family and all the fodder and hay for the farm animals. The manure piled up in manure pits was sufficient for fertilizing the fields. The oxen were used to draw water from the well and help plough the fields. In this system of farming there is a natural cycle where products and even waste from one sphere of activity is put to good use in another sphere. Hence, mixed farming can be defined as a system of farming on a particular farm to sustain and satisfy the essential needs of the farmers. Several farmers still practice mixed farming, which includes crop production, raising of livestock, poultry, fish and bee keeping and piggery.

The sustainability of mixed farming system depends largely on quality of soil and livestock, location, topography, water facilities, available technology and economic considerations.

A sustainable system ensures continued fertility and efficient utilization of all resources in relation to farming system. Some of the important farming systems are: