• Includes a new part called Changing Agriculture that focuses on sustaining and improving cropping and animal activities for the future, and looks at some of the future challenges facing farming.
• Looks at farming as a combination of production, profit and sustainability and how these concepts are related to each other.

Part 1 Introduction

Chapter 1 Understanding Agriculture

Introduction

World Population

Food supply and demand

Science and economics in managing productive systems

Part 2 Resources and Farming in Australia

Chapter 2 Agricultural Resources of Australia

Climate in Australia

Land

Irrigation water

Agricultural production around Australia

Chapter 3 Farming

Introduction

The farm economy

Part 3 Fundamental Processes of Plant Production

Chapter 4 Principles of Plant Production

Introduction

How crop and pasture plants grow

Soil fertility and plant growth

Chapter 5 Practice of Plant Production

Introduction

Agricultural field crops

Pasture plants

Crop or pasture establishment

Protection from weeds, insect pests and diseases

Managing soil fertility

Part 4 Fundamental Processes of Animal Production

Chapter 6 Principles of Animal Production

Introduction

Animal functions

Environmental adaptation

Feed conversion

Feed requirements

Pastures and grazing

Chapter 7 Practice of Animal Production

Beef

Lamb

Wool

Milk

Intensive controlled-environment animal activities

Poultry for eggs

Poultry for meat (broilers)

Broilers

Part 5 The Whole Farm Business

Chapter 8 Whole Farm Analysis: Principles

Introduction

Four principles and the one approach to farm management analysis

Chapter 9 Whole Farm Analysis: Practice

Introduction

Farm performance

Whole farm financial management

Analysing change on farms

Risk and agricultural production

Part 6 Changing Agriculture

Chapter 10 Sustaining Agriculture

Introduction

Sustainability

Sustaining the state of natural resources

Towards more sustainable farming systems

Chapter 11 Improving Cropping Activities

Introduction

Improving the profitability of dryland cropping

Chapter 12 Improving Grazing Activities

Introduction

Improving profitability from grazing land

Improving high-rainfall pastures in southern Australia

Chapter 13 Changing Climate

Introduction

Greenhouse gases and global climate

Climate change and future global climates

Future Australian climates

Adaptation of Australian agriculture to climate change

Mitigation of greenhouse gases in agriculture

Appendices

Glossary

Index

Bill Malcolm – Associate Professor, School of Land and Environment, University of Melbourne

Peter Sale – Associate Professor and Reader, Department of Agricultural Sciences, La Trobe University

Brian Leury – Associate Professor, School of Land and Environment, University of Melbourne

Snow Barlow – Professor, School of Land and Environment, University of Melbourne