Essay Sample on Agricultural Technology

Introduction

Technological developments in medieval Europe played a critical role in the industrial revolution. The medieval technological developments drew from the classical antiquity, Asian, and Islamic societies. Through the medieval creativity that was embraced by numerous people, various technologies sprung and were embraced which would later become the cornerstone of modern developments. Agricultural technology is an example of such medieval technology that sprung through the development of new techniques. Agricultural technology refers to the development of new techniques including the production of machines that are used to farm or facilitate farming of agricultural crops and animals. Such techniques can include machines used for tilling the soil, irrigation, and crop planting machines and techniques. Through its medieval development, agricultural technology became an important revolutionary in the field which has brought numerous impacts in the modern technology. In this regard, agricultural technology was particularly important not only in the ancient days but also imperative to the modern population.

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Agricultural technology entails various essentials that facilitated agricultural evolution such as the creation of the three-field system. Scholars such as March Bloch and Lynn White as quoted in the reading have demonstrated the significance of technology in the modern development of farming equipment. For example, some of the agrarian tools like the heavy plow played a critical role in the Mediterranean economies which grew to the modern forms of the plough. Although the olden plows were made of wood before the embracement of steel, the technology formed the basis of the modern iron and steel equipment that has become imperative in modern agriculture. In this regard, the traditional plow made of wood facilitated the development of other tools that made farming more efficient. Cultivation improved immensely by embracing such tools. It should be noted that while the Roman plows had wheels, the complete plow did not make its current appearance until the sixth century. Besides, such a plow needed a team of oxen to pull. In this regard, it can be deduced that agricultural technology developed by embracing animals to solve the technical problems in the field due to lack of appropriate tools at that time.

Agricultural technology improved significantly as time passed during the medieval period. Various farming practices were being embraced as a combination of strategies that would improve the farm yield. The three field system that was largely practiced offered a solution in farming techniques since the animals would be let to grace and later fallow land. Besides, the approaches to crop rotation to facilitate better produce became a norm and spread even in other areas of Europe. Considering that the village had a separate field, the system of farming become imperative in ensuring high yields were always maintained. Agricultural technology, therefore, embraced developments in the industry that were being realized. As noted in the book, industrial revolution played a critical role in the success of the technology in agriculture as more complicated and efficient machines were being developed. In this regard, farming practices and techniques took a great leap forward. For example, instead of harvesting grain by use of hands, sharp blades and wheeled machines were later embraced for massive harvesting. Also, instead of using sticks to beat grains, the seeds were separated from the stock by a threshing machine. Although the machines required a lot of power to perform the tasks, they showed more efficiency than the traditional human methods.

During the medieval period, the development of agricultural technology formed the basis of single unit farming which was not common during the period. It should be noted that during the period, villages were organized to grow crops like wheat, barley, and rye depending on what the climate and the soils permitted. It should be pointed out that the early times saw peasants lack basic tools that would be used in farming. Besides, they did not have modern inputs like the fertilizer and mainly relied on soil fertility. However, continued farming degraded the soils and they had to search for alternative sources of fertility which made them embrace animal manure. Without the animal manure, animal exhaustion was a common problem that faced these farmers. Another challenge that faced olden farmers was lack of pesticides and insecticides which hence damaged the farm products thereby deteriorating the produce. However, such challenges impacted on the nature of technological developments in agriculture that would be established later and in the modern days. To avert the challenges faced due to exhaustion of the soils, the farmers planted at different times for separate fields. For example, when a field was planted, the other would be plowed in preparation of the planting. In essence, the practice facilitated the development of better climatic monitoring considering that there were no sophisticated and accurate weather forecasts.

Agricultural technology showed differences with other forms of technology in the olden days considering that different crops require different approaches and are highly site-specific. For example, different crops require different inputs as well as technology for the elevation required, rainfall, and type of soil that it can grow well among other requirements. Through this realization, different farmers during the medieval period embraced agricultural technology as an important aspect of their livelihood. The use of the threefold system was imperative in ensuring the expansion of cultivation. While the main staples were wheat, rye, and barley, the use of this system expanded the number of crops that would be cultivated. For example, the second field would be used in growing oats and legumes. Although none of the crops was novel, the expansion highly depended on the gradual replacement of the biennial practice. Such practices facilitated the development of systems and practices that have been widely used today. Crop rotation is still a common practice by modern farmers who seek to ensure soil degradation is reduced. Besides, the technological approaches of using animals are still widely embraced in modern societies.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the medieval agricultural technology has significantly impacted on the modern practices. Although the basic technology regarding the agricultural machines has not changed much in the last few decades, the developments currently being embraced can be attributed to the establishments of the technology in the olden days. The modern machines are better than their predecessors which makes the harvests realized to be more. However, the machines are a development of ancient technology. It was established that various machines would be used to shred crops and even do the planting. In the modern days, various tractors are used in harvesting and shredding in larger bulks that facilitate efficiency. Such machines use less power and are more efficient as opposed to using animals or water energy that was embraced during the period. In this regard, it is evident that the medieval agricultural technology had an impact not only in the medieval society but also in the modern contemporary practices.

Bibliography

Mokyr Joel. The lever of riches: Technology creativity and economic progress. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1992.