Aquaculture, Biology, and Agriculture: Core Concepts & Practices

Aquaculture: Farming Aquatic Organisms

Aquaculture, also known as aquafarming, is the farming of aquatic organisms such as fish, crustaceans, molluscs, algae, and other aquatic plants. Aquaculture involves cultivating freshwater, brackish water, and saltwater populations under controlled or semi-natural conditions, and can be contrasted with commercial fishing, which is the harvesting of wild fish. Farming implies some sort of intervention in the rearing process to enhance production, such as:

• Regular stocking
• Feeding
• Protection from predators

Particular Kinds of Aquaculture

Fish Farming (Pisciculture)

Fish farming or pisciculture involves the commercial breeding of fish, usually for food, in fish tanks or artificial enclosures such as fish ponds. It is a particular type of aquaculture, which is the controlled cultivation and harvesting of aquatic animals such as fish, crustaceans, molluscs, and so on. Worldwide, the most important fish species used in fish farming are, in order: carp, salmon, tilapia, and catfish.

Mariculture (Marine Farming)

Mariculture or marine farming is a specialized branch of aquaculture involving the cultivation of marine organisms for food and other animal products in enclosed sections of the open ocean (offshore mariculture), or in fish farms built on littoral waters (inshore mariculture), or in artificial tanks, ponds, or raceways which are filled with seawater (onshore mariculture).

Shrimp Farming

Shrimp farming is an aquaculture business that exists in either a marine or freshwater environment, producing shrimp or prawns for human consumption.

Oyster Farming

Oyster farming is an aquaculture (or mariculture) practice in which oysters are bred and raised mainly for their pearls, shells, and inner organ tissue, which is eaten.

Algaculture

Algaculture is the farming of algae species including microalgae and macroalgae. The majority of algae that are intentionally cultivated fall into the category of microalgae. Macroalgae, commonly known as seaweed, also have many commercial and industrial uses.

Integrated Fish Farming

Integrated fish farming is a system of producing fish in combination with other agricultural or livestock farming operations centered on the fish pond. The farming sub-systems, e.g., fish, crop, and livestock, are linked to each other in such a way that the byproducts or wastes from one sub-system become valuable inputs to another sub-system.

Uses of Aquaculture

Aquaculture serves different purposes such as food production, restoration of threatened and endangered species populations, wild stock population enhancement, the building of aquariums and fish cultures, and habitat restoration.

Importance of Biology in Daily Life

Scientific research and the development of new tools and techniques have undoubtedly improved the quality of our lives. Generally, biology's relevance is its importance to human society and humankind. Biology is also important to our everyday life because it allows human beings to better understand their bodies, their resources, and potential threats in the environment. Biology, being the study of living things, helps us to understand every organism.

As a field of science, biology helps us to understand the living world and the ways its many species (including humans) function, evolve, and interact. Advances in medicine, agriculture, biotechnology, and many other areas of biology have brought improvements in the quality of life. Fields such as genetics and evolution give insight into the past and can help shape the future, and research in ecology and conservation informs how we can protect this planet's precious biodiversity. Biology has also helped us to understand the characteristics of living things, the similarities between plants and animals, as well as how germs work and help us stay healthier.

Agriculture: Sustaining Life Through Cultivation

The food that we consume is the result of agriculture. Agriculture is defined as producing commodities that sustain life, including foods, fibers, forest products, agricultural crops, horticultural crops, and their related services. Agricultural crops mean food or fiber commodities grown for resale or commercial or economic purposes that provide foods, clothing, or animal feeds, and include nursery products and florist items while under cultivation by a nursery grower. The global major agricultural products can be broadly grouped into foods, fibers, fuels, and raw materials (such as rubber).

Myanmar's agricultural exports include: rice, maize, blackgram, greengram, pigeonpea, chickpea, sesame, onion, tamarind, raw rubber, vegetables, and fruits. Commercially cultivated agricultural crops in Myanmar are mainly cereals, pulses, and oilseed crops. Myanmar's farms are well diversified, with most farms producing rice paddy during the monsoon season and other crops such as beans, pulses, oilseeds, and maize during the cool and dry seasons.

Major Agricultural Products & Practices

Rice (*Oryza sativa*) Production

Rice (*Oryza sativa*) production is based on its environment, resulting in rain-fed lowland rice, winter rice, deep-water rice, upland rice, and irrigated rice. Out of the three distinct seasons, the monsoon season is the main rice production season as rice paddies rely on copious amounts of water. There are two dominant rice production systems: rain-fed lowland and irrigated lowland. The traditional method for cultivating rice is flooding the fields while or after setting the young seedlings. This simple method requires sound irrigation planning but reduces the growth of less robust weed and pest plants that have no submerged growth state and deter vermin. While flooding is not mandatory for the cultivation of rice, all other methods of irrigation require higher effort in weed and pest control and a different approach for fertilizing the soil during growth periods.

Wheat (*Triticum aestivum*) Cultivation

Wheat (*Triticum aestivum*) is a grass widely cultivated for its seeds, a cereal grain that is a worldwide staple food. Wheat can be cultivated once a year. It is sown by four methods:

• Broadcasting
• Behind the local plough
• Drilling
• Dibbling

The zero-tillage technique is a new method of wheat cultivation that is used in the Rice-Wheat cropping system. The wheat crop requires a well-pulverized but compact seedbed for good and uniform germination.

Maize (*Zea mays*) Cultivation

Maize (*Zea mays*) is a tropical plant that prefers warm, humid weather. It is a short-day plant, very sensitive to excess or deficit soil moisture, and cannot withstand frost at any stage of growth. Maize seeds are sown with dibbling or drilling methods depending on sowing purposes, maize types, varieties, and farm conditions. Seeds should not be sown more than 5-6 cm deep in the soil.

Pulse and Bean Production in Myanmar

Among the ASEAN countries, Myanmar is the leading pulse and bean producer. Globally, Myanmar is the third-largest producer of pulses after India and Canada. About 18 types of pulses are produced in Myanmar, led by:

• Blackgram (*Vigna mungo*)
• Greengram (*Vigna radiata*)
• Pigeonpea (*Cajanus cajan*)
• Chickpea (*Cicer arietinum*)
• Groundnut (*Arachis hypogaea*)

This also includes a number of "other pulses" and sesame (*Sesamum indicum*).

Horticulture: Cultivating Plants for Purpose

Horticulture is a branch of agriculture. It is defined as the applied science of cultivating and growing plants for both consumption and aesthetic or ornamental purposes. Horticulture involves plant propagation and cultivation to improve plant growth, yields, quality, nutritional values, and resistance to insects, diseases, and environmental stresses. It also includes plant conservation, landscape restoration, soil management, landscape and garden designs, construction and maintenance, and arboriculture. The word "horticulture" is derived from the Latin words 'hortus' and 'cultura', which mean 'garden' and 'cultivation'.