Fields and harvests, livestock and fisheries, and what the label says about food.
Farming words grow from a few characters: 农 (农业, 农民, 农药), 种, “to plant”, and 养, “to raise”. The planting character changes its reading with its meaning: zhòng in 种植, to grow, but zhǒng, a seed, in 播种. And English “rice” is three words: the plant in the field (水稻), the grain (大米) and the cooked rice in the bowl (米饭).
The words
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Verb (8)
务农to farm; to work the landVerb5
他退休以后回到老家务农。After retiring he went back to his home village to farm.
种植to grow; to plant; cultivationVerb5
这个村主要种植茶叶。This village mainly grows tea.
Formal; in conversation 种.
播种to sowVerb5
春天是播种的季节。Spring is the season for sowing.
The second syllable is zhǒng, “seed”.
灌溉to irrigate; irrigationVerb5
这里雨少，农民用河水灌溉庄稼。There is little rain here, so the farmers irrigate their crops with river water.
丰收to have a good harvest; bumper harvestVerb5
今年苹果大丰收，价格反而下降了。There is a bumper apple harvest this year, yet prices have actually fallen.
收割to harvest; to reapVerb5
麦子熟了，该收割了。The wheat is ripe; it is time to bring it in.
采摘to pick (fruit, tea, flowers)Verb5
很多家庭周末去郊区采摘草莓。Many families go out of town at weekends to pick strawberries.
养殖to breed; to farm (animals or fish)Verb5
他在湖边养殖鱼和虾。He farms fish and shrimp by the lake.
Noun (29)
农业agriculture; farmingNoun4
这个省的经济主要靠农业。This province's economy depends mainly on agriculture.
农民farmer; peasantNoun4
农民们天一亮就下地干活了。The farmers go out to work in the fields as soon as it is light.
农场farmNoun4
周末我们带孩子去农场喂羊。At weekends we take the children to a farm to feed the sheep.
农田farmland; fieldsNoun5
公路两边都是一片片的农田。On both sides of the road there is field after field of farmland.
耕地arable landNoun5
城市扩大以后，附近的耕地越来越少。As the city spread, there was less and less arable land nearby.
土壤soilNoun5
这里的土壤很肥沃，适合种蔬菜。The soil here is very fertile and good for growing vegetables.
The technical word; in everyday speech 土.
化肥chemical fertiliserNoun5
用太多化肥会让土地变硬。Using too much chemical fertiliser makes the soil hard.
农药pesticideNoun5
水果买回来要洗干净，以防有农药残留。Wash fruit well when you bring it home, in case there is pesticide left on it.
害虫pest (insect)Noun5
这种鸟专吃害虫，是农民的好朋友。This bird eats nothing but pests; it is a farmer's friend.
庄稼cropsNoun5
今年雨水多，庄稼长得特别好。There has been plenty of rain this year, and the crops are doing especially well.
Crops still growing in the field; the second syllable is neutral.
小麦wheatNoun4
北方人爱吃面食，因为那里主要种小麦。People in the north love noodles and buns, because wheat is the main crop there.
水稻rice (the plant)Noun5
南方气候温暖湿润，适合种水稻。The south is warm and humid, which suits growing rice.
收成harvest; crop (yield)Noun5
去年天太旱，收成很不好。Last year it was too dry, and the harvest was very poor.
How good the harvest was; the act of bringing it in is 收割.
产量yield; outputNoun5
用了新品种以后，玉米的产量提高了不少。Since the new variety was introduced, the maize yield has gone up considerably.
果园orchardNoun5
爷爷的果园里种着梨树和桃树。There are pear trees and peach trees in grandfather's orchard.
温室greenhouse; hothouseNoun5
冬天的西红柿大多是温室里种出来的。Most tomatoes in winter are grown in greenhouses.
大棚plastic greenhouse; polytunnelNoun5
有了大棚，农民一年四季都能种菜。With polytunnels, farmers can grow vegetables all year round.
拖拉机tractorNoun5
村口停着一辆红色的拖拉机。A red tractor is parked at the entrance to the village.
Measure word: 辆.
牲畜livestockNoun5
大雪来之前，牧民把牲畜赶回了圈里。Before the heavy snow came, the herders drove the livestock back into their pens.
The second syllable is chù; in 畜牧业 the same character is xù.
家禽poultryNoun5
鸡、鸭、鹅都属于家禽。Chickens, ducks and geese are all poultry.
饲料animal feed; fodderNoun5
饲料价格上涨，养猪的成本也高了。Feed prices have gone up, so raising pigs costs more too.
畜牧业animal husbandry; livestock farmingNoun5
草原地区以畜牧业为主。The grassland regions live mainly from livestock farming.
渔业fishing industry; fisheriesNoun5
这个海边小镇一直靠渔业生活。This little seaside town has always lived from fishing.
粮食grain; food (staples)Noun4
粮食来得不容易，吃饭的时候别浪费。Food does not come easily, so do not waste any at mealtimes.
Staple food as a supply: rice, wheat, maize and the like.
农产品farm produce; agricultural productsNoun5
村里的农产品现在可以直接在网上卖。The village's farm produce can now be sold directly online.
产地place of origin; producing areaNoun5
买茶叶的时候，很多人会看产地。When buying tea, many people look at where it comes from.
食品food (as a product)Noun4
这家超市的进口食品比较多。This supermarket has quite a lot of imported food.
Food on a shelf or a label; food in general is 食物.
