Gro-pedia

an agricultural good

this term generally refers to crops that are traded on international markets; corn, soybeans, wheat, rice and other grains are among the most common commodity crops

Common fells are uplands where sheep flocks from several different farms graze freely without fences or walls.

the compression of air spaces in the soil by heavy machinery

A ‘feed compounder’ or ‘feed mill’ that produces animal feed for sale. Usually they produce a fixed specification feed using a blend of a variety of ingredients to produce the required specification at least cost using a computer program.

This involves the use of animals to gather fodder from other areas and concentrate them in the homestead where the animals are tethered. Animals graze round the areas for fodder and the digested fodder is excreted around the house thus helping to conc-entrate nutrients around the homestead.

A management system for growing crops that is based on three principles that should be applied together and reinforce each other: minimum physical soil disturbance (no tilling); permanent soil cover with live or dead plant material (mulching or growing cover crops); and crop diversification in space and time (growing complementary […]

refers to farm and agricultural methods that employ synthetic chemicals; the opposite of organic agriculture

a nationwide system for disseminating agricultural knowledge to farmers; the system is closely affiliated with the USDA, 4-H, and the nation’s land-grant universities

the part of a corn plant containing the corn cob, husk, and kernels

the leaf like layer on the outside of corn ears, also known as a “shuck”

See Cake

a tool used for gathering a crop once it is finished growing

Varying from year to year what is grown on a particular piece of land. This practice helps to avoid the build-up of pests and diseases specific to a particular crop. One crop may also put back into the soil nutrients taken out by another.

Sheep produced by crossing two different recognised breeds Often leads to a stronger, more disease-resistant animal.

Individual partitions withing a cattle shed. The partitions are not separated by barriers, the lying areas are separated by barriers where cows can lie inside buildings. They differ from stalls in that the animal is not fastened in the stall and can come and go as it pleases.

Ewes that have reached the end of their productive life on the farm.

to improve the land by plowing and fertilizing