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The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge advocates the potato
Scientists of the Royal Society were enamored with the potato because it had several valuable properties. The Royal society observed that potatoes thrive even in the years that the wheat crops had failed. Better still, they noted that potatoes can be grown in almost any kind of soil and take only three to four months to mature. And potatoes produce two to four times as many calories per acre as wheat, rye or oats. The society therefore, advocated for the widespread use of potato crops. -
Jethro Tull and the Seed Drill
Tull developed a mechanical seed drill that helped with planting the seeds at regular intervals, at a consistent depth, and in a straight line. This limited waste and dramatically increased harvest yields. -
The Dutch and Rotherham swing (wheel-less) plow
The Dutch and Rotherham swing (wheel-less) plow was a wheel less plow that allowed for farmers to farm crops more efficiently and led to the development of the Agricultural Revolution. -
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Charles "Turnip" Townshend
Charles Townshend was an English statesman who served as the Secretary of State for Britain. In the 1730s, he discovered that farmers could grow a cereal grain such as wheat or barley and in the following year they could grow vegetable crops such as turnips. By doing so, a farmer could grow food in a field every year without diminishing the ability of the soil. -
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Arthur Young
Arthur Young was an important propagandist for the Agricultural Revolution. He advocated for innovations such as the seed drill, improved crop rotations, and the use of marl as fertilizer. He promoted the Enclosure Movement and his many books on agriculture were highly influential in their day. -
Robert Bakewell, Thomas Coke, and Selective Breeding
Robert Bakewell and Thomas Coke introduced selective-breeding to Europe in the mid-18th century. The purpose of this practice was to stabilize certain desirable traits in animals and to increase the population of those genetic superior traits in livestock. -
Norfolk Four Course System
In the Norfolk four-course system, crops were grown on a field on a four year rotational basis. Wheat was grown in the first year, turnips in the second, along with barley, lover and rye grass grown in the third, and the clover and rye grass were grazed or cut for feed in the fourth year. -
Enclosure Act
The Enclosure Acts of Britain were policies that fenced in and consolidated fields in order to farm more effectively, at the expense of poor peasant who relied on common fields for farming and pasture. -
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Land Conversion, Drainage, Land Reclamation
During this time period, governments enacted land policies that served to strengthen the economy. Land conversion was the transformation and consolidation of land to commercialized farms. Drainage was the transformation and draining of water sources in order to promote economic transportation of goods. Land reclamation was the policy of transforming adjusted lands back to how it was before it was transformed. -
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Development of a National Market
With the development of the Agricultural and Industrial Revolutions in Europe, the idea of national markets were established in European nations. The economies of these countries became nationalized and unified rather than divided.