High-yielding varieties (HYVs) of agricultural crops are varieties of crops that are usually characterized by a combination of the following traits in contrast to the conventional varieties:
- Higher crop yield per unit area
- Higher quality of crops
- Improved response to fertilizers
- Early maturation
- High reliance on irrigation and fertilizers (see intensive farming)
- Dwarfness
- Resistance to many diseases and insects.
The most popular HYVs can be found among wheat, corn, soybean, rice, potato, and cotton. They are heavily used in commercial and plantation farms.
The Green Revolution in the late 1960s introduced farmers to cultivation of grains using high yielding varieties (HYVs) of seeds, although their ancestral roots may be older.[1]
Compared to the traditional seeds, HYV seeds promise to produce much greater amounts of grain on a single plant. As a result, the same piece of land now produces far larger quantities of foodgrains than was possible earlier. HYV seeds, however, need plenty of water and also chemical fertilizers and pesticides to produce best results.[2]
Development
editHYV seeds were developed by scientists to improve food supplies and reduce famine in developing countries.[3]
HYVs are developed in the field of biotechnology.[2]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ "High-yielding varieties of wheat and rice in the less-developed nations". Agriculture and Environment. 1 (2): 191–197. 1974. doi:10.1016/0304-1131(74)90052-6.
- ^ a b "What is the new green revolution?". internetgeography.net. Retrieved 7 November 2024.
- ^ "Changes in farming in developing countries". BBC; Bitesize. BBC. Retrieved 8 November 2024.
External links
edit- "Development and Spread of High-yielding Varieties Of Wheat And Rice in the Less Developed Nations" (PDF). U.S. Department Of Agriculture Office Of International Cooperation And Development In Cooperation With U.S. Agency For International Development. 1978. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2015-01-21. Retrieved 2016-11-10.