Since I have a bit of time this morning, I’ll tell a little bit about the agriculture and farming of Poland, based on what I have seen so far.
Much of Poland seems very rural, with towns of varying sizes scattered here and there between very small villages. villages are just some clusters of houses, maybe a few small shops, sometimes none at all. The roads are all quite winding, following the natural lay of the landscape for the most part. There can be sharp turns and even some steep grades. I won’t even mention the way people drive, but I’m glad I’m not sitting in the front seat!
The farms all appear rather narrow and elongated. The houses and other farm buildings are along the roads, and then the fields stretch way back, eventually bordering on some other farms located on another road. Since the roads are curvy and winding, the farms are not necessarily rectangular either. But often the crops are planted long and narrow too. That is to say, a hay field may be next to a grain field, both rather narrow, then more of the same, alternating. I suppose some is for drainage and erosion.
The types of farming are quite varied by region and also by soil type. I’ve seen dairy farms and cows, lots of those. I’ve seen an occasional goat, and a few flocks of geese, even some swans. I have not seen any pigs, however.
As for crops, this is just a partial list of what I’ve seen:
- Apple orchards
- Raspberrie
- Strawberries
- Currants (black currants, I believe)
- Elderberry
- Wheat
- Rye
- Hay
- Corn
- Potatoes
- Cabbage
- Hops
- Sugar beets
…and many more that I’m forgetting at the moment. And perhaps more to come, we’ve only seen a part of Poland so far.
So, Poland has a great deal of diversity in their agriculture and farming, which is very good as it makes them a very self-sufficient nation. Add to that their abundant mineral features such as coal, etc., and you have a quite productive country.
With the recent downturn of the worlds economies, I am told that only Poland and Poland alone did no suffer any decline. That is to say, they did not lose value such as their stocks, etc. The ceased to grow much, but never went below where they had been, such as the US stock market decline. Of the Eurpoean Union, Poland alone did not go below zero, how amazing that it. And a lot of it is a testament to very hard working and productive people who are proud and glad to be free, and show it every day. It is truly an amazing country.
