Topic Content:
- Pastoral Farming
- Nomadic Farming
- Ranching
- Arable Farming
- Ley Farming
- Mixed Farming
- Taungya Farming
- Apiculture or Bee Farming
- Heliculture
- Horticulture
1. Pastoral Farming:

This branch of agriculture deals with the raising or grazing of livestock, such as; cows, sheep, goats, etc. Livestock farming involves the raising of animals for human benefit.
Types of Pastoral Farming:
Pastoral farming includes nomadic herding and ranching.
Let’s take a look at the types of Pastoral farming.
a. Nomadic Farming:
This involves the herdsman moving from place to place, with his animals, in search of greener pastures and water supply. It is practised by the Fulani tribe of Northern Nigeria.

b. Ranching:
Here, animals are kept on a large but enclosed expanse of land, where food, water, maintenance, and drugs are provided for the animals.

2. Arable Farming:
Arable farming only deals with the cultivation and production of crops. It does not involve the rearing of livestock. The crops grown by arable farmers are useful to both human beings and animals. It can be performed on a small scale, commercial, or on large agricultural farms.
This farming practice is mainly used to fulfil the rising demand for food and a healthy lifestyle. It mainly involves the cultivation of annual crops, for example, vegetables, grains, legumesA legume is any plant that bears its fruit inside a pod. Legume is an umbrella term that includes beans and pulses. Thus, all beans are considered a legumes, but not... More, and potatoes.
There are two major types of crop farming:
1. Food Crop Farming: The crops that are grown to feed livestock or the family. There are a number of food crops grown in the country. Examples of food crops are rice, maize, wheat, yam, cassava, potatoes, beans, etc.
2. Cash Crop Farming: A cash crop is one that is cultivated to be sold in the market to earn profits from the sale. Well-known cash crops include coffee, tea, cocoa, cotton, and sugarcane.

3. Ley Farming:
Ley farming is simply defined as the cultivation of food crops with pasture crops. Pasture or forage crops are plants cultivated for feeding livestock such as cattle, sheep and goats. The planting of pasture can follow the harvest of arable crops e.g. cereal.
In this system, pasture crops are alternated with crop production. The pasture in this system is usually a mixture of grasses and legumes.

4. Mixed Farming:
Mixed farming is a type of farming which involves both the growing of crops and the raising of livestock.
Mixed system type of farming is mainly practised on commercial farms where large units of livestock such as poultry, pigs, etc. are kept alongside the cultivation of crops like maize, rice, and vegetables. It can also be practised by small peasant farmers who do not have enough land to separate crops and livestock.

5. Taungya Farming:
This involves the planting of both arable food crops and forest trees on the same piece of land at the same time. It is a way to grow forests where farmers can grow crops for the first few years.

6. Apiculture or Bee Farming:
This deals with the management and keeping of bees to provide honey for human consumption.

7. Heliculture:
This is the rearing of snails for the provision of meat. Snails are found to be very rich in protein and low in sodium and fat.

8. Horticulture:
This is the science of growing flowers, fruits, vegetables, and ornamental plants.
Ornamental Plants are also referred to as garden plants and are grown to beautify the environment. They are usually grown in the flower garden for display of their flowers. Ornamental plants include whistling pine, acalypha, oleander, Ixora, lantana, hibiscus, croton, etc.
