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111`1111111111111111111 1Agricultural science 1st term

Scheme of work
JSS ONE

1 Introduction
2 Importance of Agricultural science
3 Importance of Agricultural science (2)
4 Forms of Agriculture
5 Forms of Agriculture (contd)
6 Forms of Agriculture (contd)
7 Parts of plant
8 Aquatic and terrestrial plant
9 Classification of crops ; Biannual ,perennial
10 and 11 Revision
12 Examination

Agriculture JSS1 First Term

Week 1

Topic: MEANING AND IMPORTANCE OFAGRICULTURE

Contents:*.What is Agriculture?*.

Branches of Agriculture*.Importance of Agriculture to man and natural economy

A. What is Agriculture?
Agriculture means all the activities involved in rearing of animals and cultivation of crops for man’s and
the nation’s benefits. The word agriculture was derived from two Latin words which are ‘agar’ and
‘culture’ meaning ‘land’ and ‘cultivation’. Agriculture is often defined by many people as the cultivation
of land. As a science, it deals with the systematic study of plants and animal lives in their environment
and seeks to provide natural conditions for them so as to produce the best quality which are used directly
or indirectly by man

C. HISTORICAL DEVELOPMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Agriculture began when man started to exist on earth. The early men lived by gathering wild fruit and
hunting wild animals because they are wanderers. The type and quantity available at that time was
irregular and uncertain and was subject to the prevailing weather and luck. They continued with this
nomadic life until large population of the families and properties necessitated the building of huts, so they
changed from their nomadic way of life to a more settled life. Agriculture and its practices i.e farming
started by accident about 12,000 years ago, when the early men discovered that seed and other
propagative parts of remains of their food germinate, grow to maturity and reproduce their kinds, they

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also discovered that certain animals were friendly, so they began to domesticate them. Moreover crops
and animals from different parts spread to other countries by the early missionaries, explorers and traders.
Agriculture has undergone significant developments since the time of the earliest cultivation. The Fertile
Crescent of Western Asia, Egypt and India were sites of the earliest planned sowing and harvesting of
plants that had previously been gathered in the wild. Independent development of agriculture occurred in
northern and southern China, Africa’s Sahel, New Guinea, parts of India and several regions of America.
Agricultural techniques such as irrigation, crop rotation, the application of fertilizers were developed
soon after the NeolithicRevolution but have made significant strides in the past 200 years. The Haber-
Bosch method for synthesizing ammonium nitrate represented a majorbreakthrough and allowed crop
yields to overcome previous constraints.In the past century, agriculture in the developed nations, and to a
lesser extent in the developing world, has been characterized by enhanced productivity, the replacement
of human labor by synthetic fertilizers and pesticides, selective breeding, and mechanization. The recent
history of agriculture has been closely tied with a range of political issues including water pollution,
biofuels, genetically modified organisms, tariffs, and farm subsidies.

Week 2 and 3

D. IMPORTANCE OF AGRICULTURE
The three major importance of agriculture to man are
*.Food
*.Clothing
*.Shelter
Other importance of agriculture to nation are

*.Provision of raw materials for agro-allied industries

*.Employment or job opportunity
*.Foreign exchange Earning
*.Source of income
*.Provision of market for industrial goods
*.Revenue

WEEK 4 and 5
Topic: Forms of Agriculture Introduction

Agriculture is defined as the cultivation of the land to produce crops and the rearing of animals for man’s
use. Agriculture has many branches. The form of agriculture practiced in an area depends on the size of
the farm, purpose, availability of land, the type of soil in the area, topography of the land and the
prevailing climatic condition.

Crop Farming : A crop is a plant grown for a specific purpose. Farming is the centre of activity where
land is cultivated for the production of either plants or animals or both. Crop farming therefore involves
the cultivation of land for the production of useful crops for the benefit of man. When different types of
crops are planted on the same piece of land, it is called Mixed Cropping. Crops that may be planted are
maize, cowpea,yam, cocoa yam, groundnut, soya bean,tomato, pepper, okra, sorghum and some perennial
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crops.

Horticulture: This is the study of how to grow fruits, vegetables and ornamental plants. It is a special
branch of crop science which is not well developed in Nigeria. Those who specialize in the production of
fruits, vegetables and flowers are called horticulturists. Fruits and Vegetable grown by horticulturists
include citrus, pawpaw, mango, guava, cashew, pineapple, plantain, garden egg, tomato,lettuce, cabbage,
pumpkin, cucumber, cashew, banana. Ornamental plants grown are hibiscus, croton, rose flowers, zinnia,
hyacinth, iris, lily, Queen of the night. Ornamental crops are used for beautifying our surroundings.

Livestock farming: This is the system of keeping or rearing different farm animals for different
purposes. Animals commonly kept include cattle, poultry, sheep, goats, pigs. Livestock farming may be
settled (ranching) or unsettled (normadic herding).

Bee Farming :Apiculture or Bee farming is the process of deliberately keeping or culturing bees in
wooden boxes or hives for different reasons.
Types of Bees
1.Solitary Bees – Most bees in the world are solitary. Mated female live alone in a hole or burrow into
well drained soil or soft brick mortar. They have a short life span.Adults live for about 6 to 8 weeks. They
do not sting because they do not store honey. Solitary bees are used for pollinating flowers.
2.Bumble Bees – These bees live together in colonies and store honey and pollen in wax as food to be
used in time of food shortage. There are two types; Bombus bumble bees and Cuckoo bumble bees.
Bombus have three social class, a female queen, partially developed female workers and male drones. A
colony can contain 1 queen, 300 workers and few drones. Cuckoo have the males and females living
separately except during the period of mating. They have no workers.3.Honey Bees – They live as a
large colony in a large cavity or man made hives. They have three castes, 1 queen, 70,000 wokers and300
male drones. At the centre, the queen bee lays eggs which developinto workers. The drone eggs are laid
later. A typical honey bee hive may contain1 queen250 t0 300 drones20,000 female forages40,000
female house bees5000 to 7000 eggs7000 to 11000 larvae being fed16,000 to 24,000 larvae developing
into Eggs

Importance of Bee Farming

1.Bees are pollinators of crops and this is important for genetic stability
2.Bees are kept for honey, bee wax, pollen and propolis which are used for food, medicine or
manufacturing other products
3.The social life of honey bee colony provides a strong basis for the study of the structure of societies
4.Bees are used for research and education

WEEK 6

Fishery : This is a special area of Agriculture which deals with the production and management of fish
and other aquatic animals of agricultural importance. Such animals include lobster, squids, shrimps, cray
fish, oyster, prawns, periwinkles and crabs. These animals are rich sources of protein.

Snail Farming or Heliculture : Snails are invertebrates with soft bodies that are covered with hard
calcareous shells. They belong to the phylum called mollusca. Heliculture, commonly known as snail
farming, is the process of raising land snails specifically for human use, either to use their flesh as edible
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escargot, or more recently, to obtain snail slime for use in cosmetics, or snail eggs for human
consumption as a type of caviar.

Importance of Snail farming*.

1. Source of Protein – Snail meat has high protein of about 37% – 51%.
2. It contains almost all the essential amino acids*.
3. Source of Iron – The iron content ofsnail is 45 -59mg/kg. This high iron content is considered in
the treatment of anaemia*.
4. Treatment of different ailments – Snail can be used for the treatment of whooping cough, ulcers,
asthma, high blood pressure, constipation, poor eye sight and pile.
5. *.Preparation of Animal feed – The shell of snail contains phosphorus and calcium and it can be
crushed for the preparation of animal feed.

WEEK 7

Parts of a Plant | Functions of Plant Parts

A plant is made up of many different parts. The three main parts are: the roots, the leaves, and the stem.
Each part has a set of jobs to do to keep the plant healthy. The roots absorb water and minerals from the
soil and anchor the plant in the ground. The stem supports the plant above ground, and carries the water
and minerals to the leaves. The leaves collect energy from the Sun and make food for the plant, using an
amazing process called photosynthesis.

WEEK 8

Plant Forms

Aquatic plants : are plants that have adapted to living in

aquatic environments (saltwater or freshwater ). They are
also referred to as hydrophytes or macrophytes . These
plants require special adaptations for living submerged in
water, or at the water's surface.

The principal factor controlling the distribution of aquatic

plants is the depth and duration of flooding. However,
other factors may also control their distribution,
abundance, and growth form, including nutrients,
disturbance from waves, grazing, and salinity.
One of the largest aquatic plants in the world is the
Amazon water lily ; one of the smallest is the minute
duckweed . Many small aquatic animals use plants like
duckweed for a home, or for protection from predators,
but areas with more vegetation are likely to have more
predators. Some other familiar examples of aquatic
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plants might include floating heart , water lily , lotus , and
water hyacinth .

A terrestrial plant: is a plant that grows on or in or from land.

WEEK 9
Classification of crops based on life span

Annual, Perennial, Biennial

Annual plants - Plants that perform their entire life cycle from seed to flower

Annual Plains Coreopsis

to seed within a single growing season. All roots, stems and leaves of the plant die annually. Only the
dormant seed bridges the gap between one generation and the next.

Biennial plants - Plants which require two years to complete their life cycle.

Perennial Plants - Plants that persist for many growing seasons. Generally the top portion of the plant
dies back each winter and regrows the following spring

Perennial Purple Coneflower

from the same root system (e.g. Purple Coneflower). Many perennial plants do keep their leaves year
round and offer attractive borders and groundcover (e.g. Tickseed, Shasta and Ox-Eyed Daisy).

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