Growing up on a small 30-acre farm in Southern Illinois was a definite challenge to one’s social life. You don’t work nine to five.

You’re up at the crack of dawn to tend to animals and you may spend all day in the field riding a tractor and plow back and forth.

When it’s time to socialize you’re pretty well done at 9 PM. Making it all the way through a movie is a real challenge.

Not too many second dates for farmers.

But there are some up sides to farming plus it’s been around for a long time.

Here are some fun facts about farming.

Fun Facts About Farming

Farming has been with us since around 10,000 B.C. Sometimes referred to as the First Agricultural Revolution.
Farming first began with 8 “founder crops.” Emmer Wheat, Einkorn Wheat, Hulled Barley, Peas, Lentils, Bitter Vetch, Chickpeas, and Flax.
The Second Agricultural Revolution took place between 1700 and 1900 as technology began to make farming faster and more efficient.
The 20^th Century ushered in the Third Agricultural Revolution with vast population growth and increases in biotechnology, genetic engineering, chemical fertilizers and the mass production of crops to store shelves.
Currently there are around 2.2 million farms in the United States.
Figs were one of the first cultivated fruit crops. Other fruit farming came along between 6,000 and 3,000 BC.
They say an apple a day keeps the doctor away. If that’s true, then doctors are in trouble. There are over 6,000 different kinds of apples. Production leaders include China (Number 1), followed by the US, Iran, Turkey, Russia and India.
Beef cattle is the largest part of American agriculture. We know a little about that in Montana. The US is the leader in beef production with about 34 million cows slaughtered each year.