Agricultural Science
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Welcome to the most lucrative branch of Agricultural Science
Agricultural science is a broad multidisciplinary field of biology that encompasses the exact, natural, economic and social sciences used in the practice and understanding of agriculture. (Veterinary science, but not animal science, is often excluded from the definition.)
Agricultural sciences, sciences deal with food and fibre production and processing. They include the technologies of soil cultivation, crop cultivation and harvesting, animal production, and the processing of plant and animal products for human consumption and use.
Food is the most basic human need. The domestication and cultivation of plants and animals began more than 11,500 years ago to ensure this need was met. But, then as now, these activities also fit with the relentless human drive to understand and control Earth’s biosphere.
With a bachelor’s or master’s degree in agriculture, students can secure high-paid jobs in government and private sectors. For example, they can be appointed as agricultural research scientists, agriculture officers, production managers, farm managers, etc. Interested students can also opt for teaching, banking, and insurance jobs.
Major Division in Agricultural Science
The agricultural sciences can be segregated into six parts. In all fields, the general study of progress toward the solution of specific problems or the realisation of possibilities is:
- research to more precisely define the functional needs to be served;
- design and development of products, processes, and other means of better serving these needs; and
- extension of this information to introduce improved technologies to the agricultural industries.
This has proved to be a tremendously successful approach and is being used worldwide.
Soil and Water Sciences
Soil and water sciences deal with the geological generation of dirt, mud and water physics and chemistry, and other factors relevant to soil fertility. Soil science began with the formulation of the theory of humus in 1809. Later, Liebig introduced experimental science, including soil with mineral nutrients. In the 20th century, a general idea of soil fertility developed, embracing soil cultivation, the enrichment of soil with humus and nutrients, and soil preparation following crop demands. Water regulation, principally drainage and irrigation, is also included. Soil and water research have made possible the use of all land classes in more effective ways.
In contrast, soil erosion and deterioration control have made other advances even more striking. Because the amount of water available for plant growth is one of the major limiting factors in crop production. Improved tillage and terracing practices have been devised to conserve soil moisture, soil management and land use. In addition, techniques have been developed to increase the infiltration of snow, rain, and irrigation water, thereby reducing losses caused by runoff.
Plant Sciences
The plant sciences include applied plant physiology, nutrition, ecology, breeding and genetics, pathology, weed science, and crop management. They deal primarily with two major types of crops:
- those representing natural human food, such as cereals, vegetables, fruits, and nuts.
- those that serve as feed and forage for food, companion, laboratory, and recreational animals.
Particular branches of these sciences have been developed to deal with the numerous classes of plant crops—e.g., vegetables, small fruits, citrus fruits and other tree fruits, and flowers and other ornamental plants. Other specialities concern the production of raw materials for the industry—cotton, hemp, sisal, and silk—although some are losing economic importance in competition from synthetic fibres. Finally, branches of the plant sciences that deal with such tropical crops as coffee, tea, cocoa, bananas, coconuts, sugarcane, oil palm, and pineapples, to the contrary, promise to retain their importance.
Although scientifically based plant production came of age at the end of the 19th century, it started much earlier. Instructions on sowing dates are reported in Egypt by 2000 BCE.
Numerous treatises have included recommendations on achieving higher and more efficient yields throughout the centuries.
Food Sciences and other post-harvest Technologies
A group of sciences and technologies underlie the processing, storage, distribution, and marketing of agricultural commodities and by-products. Modern post-harvest technology helps provide inexpensively and various food supplies for consumers, meet the demands of different industrial users and even creates replacements for fossil fuels.
Research having particular significance to post-harvest technology includes genetic engineering techniques that increase the efficiency of various chemical and biological processes and fermentations for converting biomass to feedstock and producing chemicals (including alcohols) that can replace petroleum-based products.
The expected outcomes are manufacturing new products from reconstituted ones and recovering by-products that would otherwise be considered waste.
Agricultural Engineering
Agricultural engineering includes appropriate mechanical, electrical, environmental, civil engineering, construction technology, hydraulics, and soil mechanics. Agricultural production presents many engineering problems and opportunities.
Agricultural operations—soil conservation and preparation; crop cultivation and harvesting; animal production; and commodities transportation, processing, packaging, and storage—involve large tonnages, heavy power, and critical factors of time and place.
Facilities to aid farm operations help farmworkers minimise routine jobs’ time and energy requirements.
Agricultural Economics
Agricultural economics includes finance, policy, marketing, farm and agribusiness management, rural sociology, and agricultural law.
The idea that the individual farm enterprise forms a unit—affected by location, production techniques, and market factors—originated during the 19th century.
It was later supplemented by the theory of optimum utilisation of production factors by selecting product lines.
Further refinement came about through applications of modern accounting methods.
Research into farm and agricultural business management led to mathematical planning systems and statistical computation of farm-enterprise data, and interest has been drawn to decision-making behaviour studies of farm managers.
Courses & Eligibility
To start a professional career in agriculture, you will need to pursue courses in this field. Students have a variety of options to pursue courses in the agriculture field. Some popular courses are listed here:
Certificate Courses:
- Certificate in Agriculture Science
- Certificate course in Food & Beverage Service
- Certificate course in Bio-fertilizer Production
Diploma Courses:
- Diploma in Agriculture
- Diploma Courses in Agriculture and Allied Practices
- Diploma in Food Processing
Bachelor Courses (B.Sc):
- Bachelor of Science in Agriculture
- Bachelor of Science (Honors) in Agriculture
- Bachelor of Science in Crop Physiology
Master Courses (M.Sc):
- Master of Science in Agriculture
- Master of Science in Biological Sciences
- Master of Science in Agriculture Botany
Doctoral Courses:
- Doctor of Philosophy in Agriculture
- Doctor of Philosophy in Agriculture Biotechnology
- Doctor of Philosophy in Agricultural Entomol
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