AGRICULTURAL REVOLUTION! Directions: Read each document, and take a minute before you read to annotate (underline the important information) Document #1 Crop Rotation Document #2 Seed Drill Document #3 Selective Breeding Document #4: Enclosure Movement Summary: The Agricultural Revolution led to better food production. As a result of this increase in food, people became healthier and the population began to increase. As a result of the population increase, the old system of making clothes and other goods by hand could no longer meet people’s demands. The Industrial Revolution was the change from producing goods using human power, to producing goods using machines in factories. Once factories were built, unemployed farmers began moving into cities to work in factories. Since the Middle Ages, farmers had planted the same crops in a given field year after year. Every three years, they left the field unplanted to prevent the soil from wearing out. In the 1730s, Charles Townshend discovered that fields did not have to be left unplanted if farmers would rotate the crops they planted in a field. He suggested that farmers grow wheat or barley in a field for one or two years and then plant clover or turnips in the field for one or two years. Crop rotation is the practice of planting a different crop in a different field each year. The invention of new farm machines also increased food production. Up until this period, farmers planted the seeds for crops by carrying the seeds in a bag and walking up and down the field throwing or broadcasting the seed. The problem with this method was that it did not give a very even distribution. It was not, therefore, an efficient use of the seed and much of it was wasted. Jethro Tull developed a seed drill that planted seeds in straight rows. The seed drill not only planted seeds at regular intervals, but also planted them at the right depth and covered them with earth. This was a big improvement over the old method of scattering seeds at random, which made fields a tangle of crops and weeds. The years 1700 to 1770 had seen some interesting changes in livestock (animal) farming caused by the improved harvests and the introduction of crop rotation . Previously, most cattle and sheep were slaughtered before winter set in, since there was no food to feed them and they provided meat during the coldest months. Crop rotation allowed livestock to be fed during the winter. This increased the number of animals. Some livestock experts, such as Robert Bakewell, introduced selective breeding programs to improve the quality of the animals. Bakewell crossed different breeds of sheep to select their best characteristics. This sheep had long, coarse wool and produced a high quality and yield of meat. The Agricultural Revolution began with the enclosure movement . Britain’s Parliament passed new laws that allowed landowners to fence off their land. For hundreds of years, local villagers had rented the land from landowners and divided it into small strips, each worked by a family. Now the villagers were told they could not use the land the way they wanted. The enclosure movement made agriculture more efficient because wealthy landowners farmed larger amounts of land and experimented with new crops. However, it forced many small farmers off the land.

I.R. - Agricultural Rev - Docu. Notes & C4U...Jethro Tull developed a seed drill that planted seeds in straight rows. The seed drill not only planted seeds at regular intervals, but

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Page 1: I.R. - Agricultural Rev - Docu. Notes & C4U...Jethro Tull developed a seed drill that planted seeds in straight rows. The seed drill not only planted seeds at regular intervals, but

Summary:

The Agricultural Revolution led to better food production. As a result of this increase in food, people became healthier and the population began to increase. As a result of the population increase, the old system of making clothes and other goods by hand could no longer meet people’s demands. The Industr ia l Revolut ion was the change from producing goods using human power, to producing goods using machines in factories. Once factories were built, unemployed farmers began moving into cities to work in factories.

Since the Middle Ages, farmers had planted the same crops in a given field year after year. Every three years, they left the field unplanted to prevent the soil from wearing out. In the 1730s, Charles Townshend discovered that fields did not have to be left unplanted if farmers would rotate the crops they planted in a field. He suggested that farmers grow wheat or barley in a field for one or two years and then plant clover or turnips in the field for one or two years. Crop rotat ion is the practice of planting a different crop in a different field each year.

The invention of new farm machines also increased food production. Up until this period, farmers planted the seeds for crops by carrying the seeds in a bag and walking up and down the field throwing or broadcasting the seed. The problem with this method was that it did not give a very even distribution. It was not, therefore, an efficient use of the seed and much of it was wasted. Jethro Tull developed a seed drill that planted seeds in straight rows. The seed drill not only planted seeds at regular intervals, but also planted them at the right depth and covered them with earth. This was a big improvement over the old method of scattering seeds at random, which made fields a tangle of crops and weeds.

The years 1700 to 1770 had seen some interesting changes in livestock (animal) farming caused by the improved harvests and the introduction of crop rotat ion. Previously, most cattle and sheep were slaughtered before winter set in, since there was no food to feed them and they provided meat during the coldest months. Crop rotation allowed livestock to be fed during the winter. This increased the number of animals. Some livestock experts, such as Robert Bakewell, introduced se lect ive breeding programs to improve the quality of the animals. Bakewell crossed different breeds of sheep to select their best characteristics. This sheep had long, coarse wool and produced a high quality and yield of meat.

The Agricultural Revolution began with the enc losure movement . Britain’s Parliament passed new laws that allowed landowners to fence off their land. For hundreds of years, local villagers had rented the land from landowners and divided it into small strips, each worked by a family. Now the villagers were told they could not use the land the way they wanted. The enclosure movement made agriculture more efficient because wealthy landowners farmed larger amounts of land and experimented with new crops. However, it forced many small farmers off the land.