Small Scale Agriculture

This farming system takes place on a small area (1 to 5 hectares) to produce food crops, cash crops and small-scale livestock farming aimed at providing the essential needs of the family.

1. Labor force involves the use of members of the families
2. Implication of simple tools like hoes, pangas to cultivate and few cases they use animals.
3. There are varieties of ways to improve the fertility such as the use of organic manure, mulching (covering the top soil with dead crops and animal remains to retain moisture).
4. Many crops are grown at once. You can find the farm with mixed crops such as beans, maize, sunflower and some watermelon.
5. Very little or no surplus. This is because subsistence agriculture is for consumption.
6. The land cultivated for subsistence farming is always small.
7. Little or no use of technology in form of seeds, manure and tools.
8. The common are maize (African staple food), millet, sunflower, fruits and vegetables.

1. It is cheap because of the use of simple tools, local manure and local seeds.
2. It provides food required to feed the population eg. Maize, millet and wheat.
3. Provide employments to the family members.
4. It provides raw materials for the industries like cotton, tobacco, tea and coffee.
5. It has encouraged the development of settlement among the farmers.
6. It needs small area of land hence encourages the environmental conservation aspect.

1. There is low production due to the use of simple tools, poor methods and poor diseases control.
2. Poor quality of products due to the use of poor farming methods and failure to control diseases.
3. Poverty among the farmers due to low production.
4. Poor use of fertilizers can cause soil exhaustion.
5. Poor storage facilities which lead to losses.

Rapid population is the demographic situation where number of people at a given area is greater than the available resources. The available resources may include land, water, minerals etc.

Over population is sometimes called population pressure. Continuous increase in the number of people is serious problem facing small-scale agriculture because:

1. It leads to pressure for land.
2. It leads to land degradation.
3. Amount of rainfall decrease because of clearing vegetation.
4. There occurs shortage of food leading to starvation or famine.
5. Poor health among the farmers due to shortage of food.
6. It reduces the average size of land.
7. Over exploitation which lead to reduced soil fertility. In the other side, increasing population has increased amount of labor force in agriculture.

There are two types of small-scale agriculture:

1. Shifting cultivation — non sedentary
2. Bush fallowing — rotational

Is the system in which a peasant keeps on shifting from one area to another as a result of soil exhaustion. Done by burning of trees on a given area and set the area ready for cultivation. The crops grown most of them being scanty crops it involves slashing and burning of bushes and grasses.

The cultivators do not have permanent settlements since they expect to leave any time sites are selected in the virgin forest and therefore tend to be fertile.

Advantages

1. More than one crop can be harvested in a plot.
2. Burning involves production of ashes which assist in soil fertility.
3. Food supply is assured since the family cultivates for self-sufficient basics.
4. The system does not cost since simple tools are used for production.
5. Family labor is used in the production process.

Disadvantages

1. Deforestation and soil erosion.
2. The use of fire kills the natural habitats and wild animals.
3. The system can be applied on the low populated areas.
4. Low productivity because the plots are small and due to poor control of pests and diseases.
5. Destruction of ozone layer due to burning of bushes and grasses.

Decline of Shifting Cultivation

1. Increased population, rapid increase of population has resulted in the shortage of land for cultivation.
2. Advancement of science and technology.
3. Influence of government policy, which encourages on sedentary and other farming types, which are environmental friendly.
4. Reaction from environmentalists.
5. Engagement of people in other economic activities.

Is the system of farming in which peasant cultivates in a certain area until it gets exhausted and leave it for a certain period to regain its fertility.

It differs from shifting cultivation in that farmers are settled and hence are rotating rather than shifting to a new home. Rotational bush fallowing is the simplest form of sedentary farming. This system took place after shifting cultivation failed to perform well due to increase in population.

Characteristics of Rotational Bush Fallowing

1. Simplest tools are used through slightly more advanced technology than shifting cultivation.
2. Slashing and burning of bushes.
3. The community can involve or engage itself into other activities like fishing, hunting etc.
4. Farmers are settled but the farms are the ones, which are rotating.

Advantages

1. Since the people are settled, they engage fully and effectively in the production process.
2. Slashing and burning involved in the farm preparation adds fertility to the land.
3. Fallowing gives room for the improvement of the soil and encourages the recovery of vegetation.
4. It takes places where there is high population unlike shifting cultivation.
5. Farmers can involve in other economic activities such as fishing.

Disadvantages

1. There is low production because of the use of low technology and simple tools.
2. Slashing and burning can lead to environmental degradation as well as loss of biodiversity.
3. Poor trade among communities.

1. Proper ways of using fertilizers and pesticides etc.
2. To educate farmers on good farming methods/practices.
3. To discourage some traditional ways of life i.e. sex preference.
4. Farmers should be given loans.
5. To establish market for selling crops.
6. The government should facilitate good transport and communication network.
7. To encourage people to have permanent settlements so that they can organize their farms.