W 941 A Beginning Farmer’s Guide to Agriculture Words, Terms and Definitions A Beginning Farmer’s Guide to Agriculture Words, Terms and Defnitions l A Compiled by: Mitchell Mote, Extension Agent, Rutherford County Andrew P. Griffth, Associate Professor, Department of Agriculture and Resource Economics Kevin Rose, Extension County Director, Giles County Troy Dugger, Program Coordinator, Center for Proftable Agriculture INTRODUCTION This document is designed as a guide to help new or beginning farmers understand agriculture terminology. There are many terms related to different aspects of agriculture that may not be known to those who have not been involved in farming or have very little farming experience. Many of these terms and their meaning can be found in this document. While this list is not exhaustive of all the terms used in the feld of agriculture, it is prepared with the hope that the terms found in this guide will be useful and provide new and beginning farmers a foundation to better understand agriculture. How to “Talk” Farming Avian HOW TO TALK FARMING A beginning farmer's guide to Agriculture Words, Terms and Definitions Acidic: A soil pH of less than 7.0. The Apiary: A place where honeybees are Avian: Pertaining to poultry and/or fowl. lower the number, the more acidic the kept; colonies of bees in hives. soil will be. The pH scale ranges from Backgrounding: The feeding and 0 to 14, with 7 as neutral. Aquaculture: The commercial management of meat animals from production of aquatic plants or animals the time they are weaned as calves Acre: U.S. standard unit of in a controlled environment. until they are on a fnishing ration in measurement for agricultural land. It is the feedlot. equivalent to 43,560 square feet. Aquaponics: A system of aquaculture in which the waste produced by Bareroot: Dormant plants, ready for Aeration: Involves the process farmed fsh or other aquatic animals transplanting, shipping or storage with of creating small holes in the soil, supplies nutrients for plants grown exposed roots (soil removed). allowing air, water and nutrients to hydroponically, which, in turn, purifes travel to the plant roots. the water. Barrow: Male pig castrated before sexual maturity. Agronomy: The science of crop Artifcial Insemination (AI): The production. mechanical injection of semen into Basis: The difference between the the womb of the female animal with a cash market price and the futures Alkaline: A soil pH of more than 7.0. The syringe-like apparatus. market price of a commodity. higher the number, the more alkaline (base) the soil will be. The pH scale Auction: A method of marketing Best Management Practices (BMP): ranges from 0 to 14, with 7 as neutral. livestock and/or produce through which A practice or combination of practices an auctioneer sells to the highest bidder. determined to be effective and practical Alliance: An association formed for (given technological, economic and mutual beneft, such as in the beef, Auction Market/Auction Barn: A institutional considerations) to manage grape/wine or other industry (horizontal facility where livestock producers nutrients to protect surface and or vertical) to improve proftability with and fruit and vegetable growers bring groundwater as well as topsoil. increased coordination of production, commodities to be sold via auction. processing and/or merchandising. This is the most common method of Biennial: A plant, or portion of a plant, marketing livestock. Auction markets that completes its life cycle in two Animal Husbandry: The proper primarily host live sales of livestock years. (Example: blackberry plants breeding, feeding and care of farm on the premises, while some auction have biennial canes and perennial animals. markets also host video sales. root systems). Annual: A plant that completes its Available Water Holding Capacity Bloat: An abnormal condition life cycle by growing from a seed (AWHC): The quantity of water held in ruminants characterized by a and producing more seed for future in soil that is available for plants to distension of the rumen due to an crops before its death in one year or use. As a rule, the deeper the soil, the accumulation of gases. Can occur growing season. greater its AWHC. in animals grazing lush, wet, legume pastures when they are hungry. Apiary A Beginning Farmer’s Guide to Agriculture Words, Terms and Defnitions l 1 Bovine Boar: Intact (not castrated) male pig. Broadcast: Method of seeding, Cockerel: A young rooster not more fertilizing or pesticide application where than a year old. Body Condition Scoring (BCS): the material is spread in a wide pattern The relative fatness of an animal as onto the soil surface. Colt: A male horse or pony 4 years determined by a visual assessment of age or younger that has not been of the amount of fat and muscle Buck: A male goat. Also referred to castrated. covering the bones of livestock. Body as “billy.” Condition is generally scored on a 1 to Companion planting: The belief that 9 scale for cattle and horses, and a 1 Bull: A sexually mature, uncastrated two plants growing near each other to 5 scale for swine, sheep and dairy bovine. produce mutual benefts. animals. Regardless of species, the Burndown: A method of preparing felds Compost: Organic residues, or a lower the number indicates a thinner for no-till seeding by using a herbicide mixture of organic residues and soil, animal. A number 1 score indicates that kills all growing vegetation. that have been piled, moistened emaciated, and the highest score and allowed to undergo biological indicates very obese. Calf: A young male or female bovine decomposition for use in fertilizer. animal under 1 year of age. Bolting: When a plant produces Conservation Tillage: Designed to fowers or seeds prematurely instead Capon: A male chicken castrated minimize soil erosion; any of several of a crop. This is usually the result of before reaching sexual maturity. farming methods providing for seed excessive heat and sun exposure. germination, plant growth and weed Caprine: Of, relating to, or being a goat. Boner: A moderate conditioned cull control while maintaining effective cow with a body condition score of 5 Carrying Capacity: Refers to the ground cover throughout the years or 6. Most well-conditioned cows fall in number of animals a pasture can and minimal disturbance of the soil. this category. sustain without degradation during a No-till is the most restrictive form of given grazing period. conservation tillage. Other practices or Boot: Stage of grass maturity right forms of minimum tillage would include before the seed head emerges. Checkoff Programs: Research and ridge till, strip-till and mulch-till. promotion programs authorized by state Bovine: Family of animals that and/or federal law and fnanced by Continuous Grazing: Refers to a includes beef and dairy cattle. assessments. The programs are paid for grazing system where animals are left to by specifc industry members, such as graze in a feld for an extended period. Breaker: Highest conditioned cull producers, importers and handlers. cow, carrying heavy fesh and having Conventional Tillage/Seeding: Refers a high dressing percent. Dressing Chisel Plow: A soil tillage tool that to a form of feld preparation and percentage is the portion (percentage) consists of a series of straight steel seeding where the soil is moldboard of the live weight that remains in shanks, which when pulled through plowed and/or disked prior to seeding. the carcass. Body condition score is the soil, till only a narrow furrow of soil. generally 7 or higher. This is considered a minimum tillage practice that helps reduce the risk of soil erosion. Compost 2 l How to “Talk” Farming Cow Calf Operation Cover Crop: A close-growing crop that Cultivate: The mechanical removal or Disc or Disk Harrow: A harrow with is grown to protect and improve soil destruction of weeds competing with sharp-edged slightly concave discs between periods of regular crops or crops for space, nutrients, water and mounted on horizontal shafts and used between trees and vines in orchards sunlight; also refers to plants grown to cut clods or debris on the surface of and vineyards. intentionally as in they cultivated a soil or to cover seed after planting. variety of vegetable crops on their farm. Cow: A mature bovine usually having Doe: A female of the goat, deer or had at least one calf. Cultivation: The act of cultivating. The rabbit family. Female goats with kids are act of caring for and growing plants; sometimes referred to as nanny goats. Cow Calf Operation: A management the ways farmers take care of crops. unit that maintains a breeding herd and Double Cropping: Raising two produces weaned calves. Cutting: A plant propagation method different crops on the same area within wherein a part of a plant is cut and one growing season. Creep Feeding: The special feeding dipped in a rooting hormone to of calves during the weaning period eventually grow into a new plant. Dressed Weight: The weight of a that helps young ruminant animals carcass following removal of hide and transition to forage-based diets. CWT: Abbreviation for hundredweight entrails. and the unit in which most prices are Crop Residue: The plant material left in quoted ($/cwt.) C for Centum — a Dry Cow: A dairy cow that goes out the feld following the harvest of a crop. hundred; and Wt. for weight. of the milk production herd during the last 45-90 days of pregnancy. The dry Crop Rotation: The practice of Dam: The mother or female parent of period is an important resting period for growing different crops in succession an animal. the dairy cow, where fresh udder tissue on the same land.