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Introduction:

Biological production by plants is clearly vital to all of us people and other animals, or fungi and all other creatures that cannot produce own food through photosynthesis. Humans have become very good in controlling this biological production - to a degree that about a quarter of the terrestrial biological production on Earth is used by humans. Consider this stunning figure for a while. It means that our one species, Homo sapiens, which only amount to a fraction of a percent of all the biomass (the dry weight of the organism) on land, consumes nearly a fourth of all the biomass that is produced on land. Some of this is what we eat and drink, another large part is eaten by the animals we use and consume, much is grown for fibers such as cotton, or wood for building materials or energy. Into this figure is also calculated the amount of biomass destroyed every year because of agricultural fires or bushfires started by humans, or destroyed because of deforestation and erosion. 
 
This one quarter is the global average. In parts of the world, especially in Asia and Europe, humans are already appropriating more than 60 (in areas up to close to 100%) of the natural production. The obvious question is how large a percentage of the biological production humans can take, before the natural systems break down. 
 
The percentage of biological production that humans use will certainly increase as the human population grows and the use of biomass for energy is increased. 
 
It is evident that there are many reasons for farmers, and in fact all of us, to know much about how plants grow, what they need and what to do to improve growing conditions. The world will need biological plant production to be as efficient and sustainable as possible to feed a population of maybe 10 billion people some decades from now.

Directive:

<ol>
	<li>Read the file "Basic Knowledge for Garden Farmers &ndash; Plants and their Food"</li>
	<li>Decide on at least three main factors that affect plant growth and make a draft series of posters or PowerPoint slides to illustrate why this factor is important for plant growth, how it affects the plant and what the farmer can do to give the plant the best conditions in relation to this factor.</li>
	<li>Show your draft product to some of your colleagues, farmers or students in order to get comments and improve the message.</li>
	<li>Produce the final version of at least three posters/slides, which you can later use at an Open Sunday, Garden Day or other public event, and send a photo or copy of them to your tutor.</li>
</ol>

File: 
 
F1. Basic Knowledge for Garden Farmers &ndash; Plants and their Food, by Christian Fenger, Course Material, ISET/OWU, 2010.

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