Agriculture Test - 6

Karnataka is the largest coffee production state in the country, accounts for nearly 71 per cent. Chikmagalur, Kodagu and Hassan districts of Karnataka are major coffee producer regions of the state.

All the above factors contribute to the reason for West Bengal being the largest producer of jute in India. The fertile soil of Ganga-Brahmaputra delta region produces 90% of country's total jute.
Coal is the main source of power for jute mills, which are obtained from Raniganj fields, which are about 190 km away.
Humid climate of West Bengal is helpful in spinning and weaving
Sufficient cheap labour is available from high density regions of West Bengal and Bihar.

Wet farming is a type of farming which depends mainly upon rain. This type of farming is prevalent in the North, North-Eastern, Eastern India and the Western slopes of the Western Ghats. Kerala lies on the Western slopes of the Western Ghats. So, in Kerala, wet agriculture is practised.

The Deccan Plateau has a dry season that lasts six to nine months. Much of its surface is covered by thorn scrub forest interspersed with small areas of deciduous broadleaf forest. The climate of the region varies from semi-arid in the north to tropical in most of the region with distinct wet and dry seasons. Rain falls during the monsoon season from about June to October. Hence, dry farming is carried out in Deccan region.

Alluvial soils vary in nature from sandy loam to clay. These soils lack in nitrogen, phosphorus and humus. However, they are generally rich in potash and lime.

Red soils develop on crystalline igneous rocks in areas of low rainfall in the eastern and southern parts of the Deccan Plateau. These soils develop a reddish colour due to diffusion of iron in crystalline and metamorphic rocks. It looks yellow when it occurs in a hydrated form.

Red soil is a type of soil that develops in a warm, temperate, moist climate under deciduous or mixed forest, having thin organic and organic-mineral layers overlying a yellowish-brown leached layer resting on alluvium red layer. Red soils are generally derived from crystalline rock. They are usually poor growing soils, low in nutrients and humus and difficult to cultivate because of its low water holding capacity.

Tubers are enlarged structures in some plant species used as storage organs for nutrients. They are used for the plant's perennation (survival of the winter or dry months), to provide energy and nutrients for regrowth during the next growing season, and as a means of asexual reproduction. Example of tuber crops are potatoes,tapioca,sugar beet and sweet potatoes.

The shifting cultivators grow food grains, vegetables and also cash crops. In fact, the grower aims at growing in his land everything that he needs for his family consumption.
Among the food grains, the coarse varieties of rice followed by maize, millet, Job's tears and small millets are the principal crops. Cotton, ginger, linseed, rapeseeds, sesamum, pineapple and jute are the important cash crops grown in jhum fields. Among the vegeta­bles, soyabeans, potatoes, pumpkins, cucumbers, yams, tapiocas, chillies, beans, onions, arums are cultivated. Tobacco and indigo are also grown.

A cash crop is an agricultural crop which is grown for sale to return a profit. It is typically purchased by parties separate from a farm. Cotton, jute and oil seeds including groundnut are cash crops, while Jowar is a food crop.

Tea is an aromatic beverage commonly prepared by pouring hot or boiling water over cured leaves. Tea leaf is used for making tea but we can use other plants too . Tea is a liquid bevarage which is prepared after tea leves( Camellia sinensis) are boiled in hot water.