AGRICULTURE - Database

Source
Agriculture Characteristics
Adapted from: Stolbovoi V., G. Fischer, B. Sheremet, and S. Rozhkova (Kravets), 1997. The IIASA-LUC Project Georeferenced Database of the Former U.S.S.R., Vol. 6: Agricultural regionalization, Interim Report IR-97-088, International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis, Laxenburg, Austria, 22.

State Land Account
Loiko P. and V. Tretiakov, Land Resources of Russia CD-ROM.

Technical Description
The map of agricultural regionalization was created at the scale of 1:4 million.

Table Definition
State Land Account database files have been placed on the CD-ROM for download for the years 1993-1997. For a general description of the State Land Account please refer to the Agriculture Description.

Coverage Definition

Attribute Description

Dominant crops
1. Grain crops (wheat, rye, barley, oats, maize).
2. Tilled crops (maize, sunflower, sugarbeet, potatoes).
3. Industrial crops (sunflower, flax, sugarbeet, cotton).
4. Perennial grasses (forage grass for green-cut fodder and hay, haylage silage, etc., clover, lucerne, esparto, timothy, red-tailed fescue, meadow grass, orchard grass).
5. Improved hay- and grassland (increased productivity of natural grassland by using technical, hydrotechnical, or agrotechnical measures).
6. Forage production (crops cultivated for feeding, fodder grasses, root plants, melons, silage, grain-forage and grain legumes).
7. Meadowland (production of hay and green-cut forage in natural and improved hayland and pastures).
8. Early-mature vegetable growing.
9. Vegetable growing (cabbage, carrots, red beet, onions, tomatoes, cucumber, radish, garlic, vegetable marrow, aubergine, peppers).
10. Potatoes growing (management methods to cultivate potatoes of high quality).
11. Beet growing (management methods to cultivate sugar beet of high quality).
12. Flax growing (management methods to grow flax-fibre of high quality).
13. Sunflowers (management methods to obtain high yields).
14. Soybean (management methods to obtain high yields).
15. Rice growing (specialized in growing rice and fodder crops).
16. Fruit growing (cultivation of seed, stone, and nut-fruited crops).
17. Viticulture (growing of commodity species).
18. Tobacco growing (cultivation of high quality tobacco).
19. Tea plantations (cultivation and production of high quality tea).
20. Melonfields (cultivation of cucurbitaceae crops - melons, water melons, vegetable marrows, patissones).
21. Cotton growing (65-70% of the areas are covered by cotton, the rest by lucerne and maize).
22. Silkworm breeding (branch of agriculture dealing with cultivation of mulberry trees and breeding of silkworms for cocoons).
23. Subtropical fruit crops (orange, lemon, mandarin, grapefruit, pomegranate, fig, olive trees, almond, pistachio, nut trees).
24. Subtropical crops (eucalyptus, bamboo, baytrees sugar-cane, tea, cotton).
25. Subsidiary farming (growing of plants privately basically for internal consumption).

Crop rotations
1. Grain-grass-tilled crops rotation (cultivation of cereals, tilled crops and legumes, the proportion of cereals is not more than 50% of areas, in every field the crops of different groups are annually changed, for instance: 1 - bare fallow, 2 - winter wheat, 3 - sugarbeet, 4 - spring cereals combined with grass, 5 - perennial grasses, 6 - winter wheat, 7 - sugarbeet, 8 - grain-leguminous crops, 9 - winter wheat and rye, 10 - maize for grain, millet, pea. This rotation type is widely spread in Non-Chernozem zones, in the forest-steppe regions of European Russia as well as in dry regions under irrigation).
2. Grass-grain-tilled crops rotation (is similar to #1, but perennial grasses occupy more than 50% of cropland, cultivation of cereals and tilled crops is interrupted by perennial grasses in two or more fields).
3. Green manuring-grain-tilled crops rotation (similar to #2, but several fields are occupied by cultivation of green manure crops).
4. Grain-grass-fallow rotation (similar to #3, but tilled crops are changed by cropped fallow).
5. Grain crop-fallow rotation (cultivation of cereals in most areas of cropland which are interrupted by bare fallow every 2-4 years; for example, 1 - bare fallow, 2 - spring wheat, 3 - spring wheat, 4 - oats + barley. Widespread in dry regions of the northern Kazakhstan and in steppe regions of Siberia).
6. Grain-tilled crops rotation (50% and more of cropland are under cereals, rotated with tilled ones every 1-3 years; for example, 1 - tilled, 2 - grain, 3 - grain, 4 - tilled, 5 - grain crops. This rotation type is usually applied in the northern Caucasus, in the central part of the Chernozem zone, and in the forest-steppe regions of the Ukraine).
7. Grain-fallow-tilled crops rotation (apart from cereals and bare fallow, tilled crops are also used; cereals occupy 50-70% of cropland; for instance, 1 - bare fallow, 2 - grain crops, 3 - grain crops, 4 - tilled crops, 5 - grain crops. Widespread in steppe and forest-steppe regions of Russia, Ukraine, the Middle and Lower Transvolga region, and in semidry regions of the Northern Caucasus and Southern Ural).
8. Cropped fallow (fallow field, covered by early matured crops in the first half of the summer; sometimes tilled crops are grown; inter-row tillage is implemented as a bare fallow).
9. Bare fallow (no seeding during the whole vegetation period. This is considered an efficient means for water accumulation and control against droughts in regions of rainfed farming).

Reclamation measures
1. Drainage (hydrotechnical methods of drying out excessive water from the root layer of the soil and improving soil aeration).
2. Irrigation (water supply to plants suffering from drought by increasing the water content in root layer; hydrotechnical methods of supplying water in the plant root layer of the soil).
3. Rainfed farming (cultivation of agricultural crops without irrigation in dry climatic regions).
4. Soil-protective measures (agrotechnical measures, oriented to protect soil from erosion: cross-slope tillage, seeding of perennial grasses, terracing, etc.).
5. Water accumulation in soil (a set of measures oriented to maintain sufficient water in the plant root layer: decreasing runoff, snow storage, fallow, etc.).

Application of fertilizers
1. Liming (chemical reclamation of acid soil by adding lime to neutralize excessive soil acidity).
2. Organic and mineral fertilization (6-15 tons/ha).
3. Considerable doses of organic (3-15 tons/ha) and mineral (0.5-1.7 centners/ha) fertilizers.
4. Increased doses of fertilizers.
5. Relatively small doses of organic fertilizers (3-6 tons/ha).
6. Small doses of organic (<3 tons/ha) and mineral fertilizers.

Types of breeding
1. Dairy (2-3 kg of beef per 100 kg of milk; milling cows number more than 60%).
2. Dairy-meat (4-6 kg of beef per 100 kg of milk; milling cows number less than 60%).
3. Meat and milk (7-11 kg of beef and more per 100 kg of milk; milling cows number 35-40%).
4. Meat (no milk, beef production only).
5. Pig-breeding (livestock-breeding branch, specializing in the production of pork and by-products).
6. Cattle fattening (fattening combined with green forage, silage, and wastes of food industry).
7. Poultry (livestock-breeding branch specializing in the production of poultry meat, eggs and by-products).
8. Sheep-breeding (livestock-breding branch specializing in the production of wool, lamb, and fell).
9. Pedigree sheep-breeding (husbandry, dealing with pedigree sheep of high quality).
10. Pedigree fine-fleeced sheep-breeding.
11. Pastoral sheep-breeding (fattening on pastures during the year).
12. Stall-pastoral sheep-breeding (fathering on pastures located far from the farm).
13. Astrakhan sheep-breeding (livestock-breeding branch specializing in the breeding of pedigree sheep.
14. Camel breeding (livestock-breeding branch, specializing in the breeding of camels).
15. Herd horse-breeding (breeding of horses on pastures during the year).
16. Maral-breeding (breeding of reindeer under natural conditions).
17. Reindeer-breeding (livestock-breeding branch, specializing in the breeding of domesticated reindeer).
18. Cattle-breeding, specializing in production of milk and meat.

Cattle feeding types
1. Cattle-breeding based on fodder production.
2. Cattle-breeding based on mainly natural pastures and hayland (field fodder cropping and imported forage play a subsidiary role).
3. Cattle-breeding based imported forage.
4. Cattle-breeding based on improved pastures and hayland (forage reserves are obtained in areas under irrigation).
5. Cattle-breeding, mainly combined with summer grazing on piedmont and mountain pastures (natural grassland in different vertical belts).
6. Cattle-breeding with winter grazing.
7. Cattle-breeding featuring grazing during the whole year.

References

Rakitnikov A.N. (ed.), 1989. Agricultural regionalization of the U.S.S.R. Map at the scale of 1:4 million. Government Administration for Geodezy and Cartography, Moscow [in Russian].

Rakitnikov A.N. 1970. Geograp hy of Agriculture: Problems and Methods of Research. "Mysl," Moscow, 341 pp. [In Russian].

Definitions of Agricultural Regions
Vladimir Stolbovoi

1.    Highly intensive (suburb) (situated around big cities, not further than 100 km radius from the city). Growing of vegetables, potatoes, berries, fruits as well as dairy production. Agro-industrial complexes are well developed and represented by agricultural production, manufacturing, waste utilization from the food industry; a great diversity of types of agriculture.

2.    Intensive cattle-breeding (rotations of different crops, including fodder to enrich the soil; high proportion of fodder crops (35–50%) especially perennial grasses (20–35%), cereals). Considerable part of natural and improved hayland and pastures (0.2–0.4 ha per 1 ha of cropland). Sometimes bare fallows.

3.    Intensive crop and cattle-breeding (one type of agricultural use which occupies vast areas). The proportion of natural grassland does not exceed 5–20%. Tilled crops that require high expenditures per ha of cropland, high doses of fertilizers, complicated rotations; bare fallows are allowed to occur in some places. The ratio between livestock and sown area is 0.3–1.0 animals per ha, fodder crops account for one-quarter to one-third of the areas under crop.

4.    Relatively extensive crop and cattle-breeding (lower degree of soil cultivation (especially non-tillage management), low inputs of fertilizers, different rotations. Croplands are mainly used for cereals (spring wheat, oats, barley). A considerable part of the cropland is left as bare fallow. Meat production is based on natural grassland. The grazing range per ha of cropland is rather low (< 0.3).

5.    Crop and cattle-breeding (the portion of plowed land is very high (76–95%). Fodder crops are cultivated for both summer and winter, and use 20–30% of cropland. The farming practice is oriented to accumulate water in the soil.

6.    Crop husbandry, including the growth of fruit crops (favorable conditions for growing of perennial woods and shrubs, fruit crops, vine, berries, tea, as well as melons and technical crops). The costs of production and labor are high compared to most field crops. There are also high expenditures to improve soil through reclamation, and to protect the plants from pests and unfavorable weather conditions.

7.    Crop and crop-cattle-breeding are based on irrigation (high cost for maintaining soil fertility). Careful attention is paid to the proportion of different land uses and different crops, rotation types, fertilizers, and the selection of cattle-breeding.

8.    Pastoral cattle-breeding on plains (for long periods: two-thirds to three-quarters of a year). Sheep, cattle, goats, horses, and camels are ranged. Conditions permit winter grazing. Specialized husbandry occurs: fine-fleeced sheep-breeding, astrakhan sheep breeding, camel breeding, etc. There is no arable land. Limited flooding irrigation is used to cultivate fodder crops).

9.    Pastoral cattle-breeding in mountains (combination of pastoral cattle-breeding and farming). Various crops and branches of cattle-breeding as well as different production operations within the same branch are confined to various vertical belts. For  instance, different fodder crops are grown in different vertical zones: croplands dominate in lower vertical zones, forests in the middle zones, and meadows for summer grazing in high vertical zones. Farming is usually well developed.

10. Cropping and cattle-breeding in mountains (this is very typical in mountain and piedmont territories). The commodity farming (rainfed or irrigated) is developed in valleys. The most widespread crops are tobacco and sugar beet. Mountain meadows are used as pastures in summer.

11. Reindeer-breeding (extensive type of husbandry, 150 ha of pasture per animal). Tundra and forest-tundra are used for summer and taiga for winter pasture. Reindeers herds are driven over hundreds of km. Ecologically sound type of livestock-breeding, because domesticated herds are the same as wild herds in number and maintenance conditions.

12. Producers-agricultural. Husbandry is oriented to fishing, seal-trapping, hunting, reindeer breeding, etc..

13. Cattle-breeding and farming. Local production of some food-stuffs, dairy products, glasshouse and garden vegetables.

Agricultural Intensity (only for types of agricultural regions)

1. Highly intensive (cropland accounts for 75–95% of areas used in agriculture)

2. Intensive (less than 75% of areas used in agriculture)

3. Little use (for instance, milk cattle-breeding combined with fodder crops and glasshouse vegetables)

4. Very limited crop farming (growing of odder crops and early-mature vegetables in open ground, sometimes winter cereals)

5. Seasonal pastures

6. Unused. (Local types of agricultural use possible under marginal natural conditions): tundra (limited hunting, fishing  and reindeer-breeding); wet forests and bogs (exploitation-industrial purposes, reserves; agricultural use is limited by small plots allocated near settlements).

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