The period from 1500 to 1800 also known as the early modern era was the beginning of agricultural development in the world. Agricultural development has been a crucial part of every revolution that arose during the early modern era. The agricultural transformation that took place during the early modern era reformed the world in different ways due to the events that occurred when these reforms were implemented.
The Columbian Exchange was one of the causes why updated agricultural reforms were adapted by the new world. The Columbian Exchange was when the Spanish empire took interest in trading crops like potatoes and corn from the Americas with horses, sugarcane and wheat.
After this exchange, colonization followed which caused people from different nations to learn new things about agriculture. The Europeans learned to grow crops like potatoes and corn which were widely used as a staple crop in the new world. The Chinese learned that they could grow corn in areas not climatically suitable for wheat and rice. Hence, corn gradually replaced the main crops like millet and rice to be used as the principal food crop of the period. Farms were growing high quality crops which gave the people energy to work in factories and industries. There was an abundant amount of food crops that were being cultivated which reduced diseases, increased life expectancy and reduced morality.
Moreover, the Europeans traded other crops and fruits for livestock like horses, cattle and swine which brought quite significant environmental effects to the new world. In the regions of Central Mexico, where people used to grow crops like maize and squash, the Spanish brought herds of sheep and cattle who reproduced in great amounts in no time which destroyed the whole lands because of their hooves and search for food. This caused the land to be barren and no crops could be grown on it hence people starved from hunger in these areas.
The introduction of livestock had several positive and negative outcomes to the farming sector. The livestock was very efficient and time saving. The same amount of work several farmers would do was being done by cattle in no time. The horses and cattle were helping to make farming less labor intensive and much more productive.
The livestock was also a source of meat for the people because of its rapid breeding which gave energy to workers. It was also producing a significant amount of fertilizer which was used to enhance the quality of the crops that were grown. Addition of fertilizer gave a boost to the production rate of the farms because of the nutrients it provided to the soil.
Cash crops like sugar and tobacco were in huge demand in most parts of Europe which made the Europeans to clear trees and other vegetation for land to farm. Europe lacked in farming land, so this was basically an opportunity for both Europeans and Asians.
Plantations of export crops like sugar and tobacco provided jobs to a lot of peasants which helped increase their standard of living. Although, clearing out forests and lands interrupted the living habitats of animals. “the Spanish chopped down lush tropical and semitropical forests to make way for sugar plantations” [Rosenberg, 432]. These actions often caused environmental problems like deforestation and soil depletion.
There was a variety of crops that were being grown to improve the European diet. This had a major influence on the lives of people because there were times when crops would fail causing famine but with abundant supplies of potatoes and corn decreased famines and dependency on one crop for survival.
