Agriculture Directory is an Essential Aid in Modern World

An online agriculture directory is an excellent aid that can support modern day farming. These days, agriculture resembles an industrial activity, very different from the farming practices of our forefathers. Today's cultivator needs equipment like tractors and harvesters, input materials like seeds, pesticides and weedicides, services like soil analysis and expert consultancy on different matters. The term agriculture today includes more than cultivating the land for grains. It also means horticulture, grazing, vineyards, timber growing, dairy farming, poultry farming and fish farming, for example. Considering this wider meaning, the materials, services and information needs of the modern day agriculturist is wide-ranging. An online directory that provides instant access to sources of supplies and information is indeed a great support facility for the agriculturist.

Topics Covered by an Agriculture Directory The topics covered by an agriculture directory these days are wide-ranging. Extracts from the main categories of a major agriculture directory illustrates the variety:

• Bees and Honey
• Cattle
• Horse
• Insurance & Financing
• Import Export
• Rabbits
• Barns & Structures
• Arts & Crafts
• Seed Companies
• Equestrian Sport
• Agritourism
• Equipment Dealers
• Government
• Fencing
• Sustainable Agriculture
• Plant Diseases
• Hydroponics
• Horticulture
• Animal Bedding
• Education
• Forestry
• Veterinary Medicine
• Rural Sociology

The above is only a sample meant to illustrate the variety of topics relevant to agriculturists.

Basic Functions of Agriculture Directories Serving the needs of agriculturists is a prime function of the directories. Agriculturists need seeds, fertilizers, pesticides, weedicides, tractors, harvesters, soil analysis services; best practices case histories and other inputs for their agricultural activities. They also need marketing support in the forms of information on markets, lists of marketing agencies, government support programs and so on. A good agriculture directory provides links to relevant resources for meeting these requirements. Agriculture is not just cultivation and todayís agriculture directories also include links to such resources as horse racing, farm tourism, government regulations, rural arts and crafts and so on. Promoting the agricultural activities in a country is another objective served by national agriculture directories that focus on the suppliers in one particular country. . Exporters in the country would be supported by information about export possibilities, lists of overseas importers, details of government support programs and so on. Importers in other countries would be better able to source their requirements with the help of such regional directories.

Different Kinds of Agriculture Directories Considering the many areas covered or touched by agriculture, it offers scope for many niche directories. We look at a few and their significance below.

EQUINE WEB SITES: Includes links to horse breeders, riding stables, horse racing and such equine topic related web sites.

REGIONAL DIRECTORIES: National directories listing agricultural suppliers located in a country are quite common.

AGRICULTURAL RESOURCES: With links to universities, publications, weather, news and other resources of value to agriculturists and related businesses. Here again, we have only touched upon the variety. If you look around, you would find a resource that caters to your particular agriculture related niche.

Conclusion Agriculture is not confined to cultivating the land. In today's context, it includes even such apparently different activities as equine sports, farm tourism and rural arts, in addition to conventional resources like coco peat, seeds, fertilisers, pesticides, tractors, harvesters, etc required by cultivators. The agriculture directory of today will also include links to resources needed by animal, poultry and fish farmers, horticulturists, forestry and other activities covered by the term agriculture. Agriculture directory resources will also cover support activities like insurance, finance, marketing, education and news. Agriculture today is more like an industry that needs information and technology, in addition to conventional inputs outlined earlier.

About the author : Boyce Agro - Manufacturer and exporter of Coco peat from India and Srilanka.