Cash Crops and Plantation Crops
NCERT Class 8 • Resources and Development • Chapter "Agriculture" | NCERT Class 10 • Contemporary India II • Chapter "Agriculture"
Cash Crops and Plantation Crops
Cash crops are grown mainly for sale and for industry rather than for the farmer's own food. They link agriculture to manufacturing, exports and rural employment. Plantation crops are a special kind of cash crop grown on large estates, usually on hill slopes, with heavy capital and hired labour.
Major Cash Crops
- Sugarcane is a tropical and subtropical crop needing hot humid weather and 75 to 100 cm rainfall; Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Bihar, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu are important growers.
- It is the raw material for sugar, gur, khandsari and molasses.
- Cotton needs high temperature, bright sunshine and black soil of the Deccan; Maharashtra, Gujarat, Telangana and Punjab are leading states.
- Jute, called the golden fibre, grows on well drained fertile floodplain soil in West Bengal, Bihar, Assam and Odisha.
- Jute is used for gunny bags, mats, ropes and handicrafts, and faces competition from cheaper synthetic fibre.
- Oilseeds include groundnut, mustard, soyabean, sesame, sunflower and castor; groundnut is a kharif crop and mustard a rabi crop.
- Rubber needs a hot humid climate with more than 200 cm rain, grown in Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and the Andaman Islands.
Plantation Crops
- Tea needs warm moist climate, deep fertile well drained loamy soil and sloping land so water does not stand at the roots.
- Assam and the Darjeeling hills of West Bengal, plus the Nilgiri region, are the main tea areas.
- Coffee was first grown in the Baba Budan hills and is now concentrated in Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu.
- Spices such as pepper, cardamom, turmeric, chilli and ginger are important export crops of the south and north-east.
- Horticulture — fruits and vegetables — has grown fast and now gives higher income per hectare than cereals.
- Mango, banana, citrus, apple and grapes are the main fruit crops, each tied to its own climate belt.
- Plantation crops depend heavily on export demand, so world prices affect the grower directly.
| Crop | Climate Need | Leading Area |
|---|---|---|
| Sugarcane | Hot and humid | Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra |
| Cotton | Hot, bright sun, black soil | Maharashtra, Gujarat |
| Jute | Fertile floodplain, high humidity | West Bengal, Bihar |
| Tea | Warm moist, sloping land | Assam, Darjeeling |
| Coffee | Warm, hilly shade | Karnataka, Kerala |
Hindi me samjhein
बागानी फसलों में एक ही फसल बड़े क्षेत्र में उगाई जाती है, अधिक पूंजी लगती है, और मजदूर रखे जाते हैं। इसीलिए चाय, कॉफी और रबड़ को बागानी फसल कहा जाता है।
Exam me kaise aata hai
- Jute is called — the golden fibre
- Cotton grows best in which soil — black soil
- Coffee was first grown in India in — the Baba Budan hills
- Tea needs what kind of land — sloping, well drained
UPSC/State PSC ke liye
- Tea is grown on slopes because standing water rots the roots, which is why drainage matters more than total rainfall.
- Jute's decline is a classic case of a natural fibre losing to a cheaper substitute, which is why the packaging sector's jute obligation matters to that industry.
Yahan confuse hote hain
✗ Cotton grows best in alluvial soil | Cotton grows best in black soil | ✓
✗ Jute is a rabi crop | Jute is a kharif season fibre crop | ✓
✗ Groundnut is a rabi crop | Groundnut is a kharif crop; mustard is rabi | ✓
Ek nazar me
- Cash crops are grown for sale and for industry.
- Sugarcane, cotton, jute and oilseeds are the main cash crops.
- Jute is the golden fibre; cotton needs black soil.
- Tea, coffee, rubber and spices are plantation crops.