What is the Historical background of agriculture?

Answer 1

Agriculture involving domestication of plants and animals was developed at least 10,000 years ago, although some forms of agriculture such as forest gardening and fire-stick farming date back even earlier to prehistoric times.[1][2] Agriculture has undergone significant developments since the time of the earliest cultivation. The Fertile Crescent ofWestern 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 and several regions of the Americas.[3] Agricultural practices such as irrigation, crop rotation,fertilizers, and pesticides were developed long ago but have made great strides in the past century. The Haber-Bosch method for synthesizing ammonium nitrate represented a major breakthrough and allowed crop yields to overcome previous constraints.

In the past century, agriculture has been characterized by enhanced productivity, the replacement of human labor by synthetic fertilizers and pesticides, selective breeding, andmechanization. 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. In recent years, there has been a backlash against the external environmental effects of mechanized agriculture, and increasing support for the organic movement and sustainable agriculture.

Answer 2

Agriculture dates back to around 10,000 BCE when humans began domesticating plants and animals. The shift from hunting and gathering to farming marked the beginning of settled communities and the development of civilizations. Farming techniques evolved over time, leading to advancements like the plow, irrigation systems, and crop rotation, which significantly increased food production.