| Macrofauna |
Organisms such as earthworms and termites (found in
soil) |
| Macronutrient |
An essential nutrient that is needed in
relatively large amounts; for example, nitrogen and phosphorus. |
| Macropore |
A pore (hole) in the soil profile that
includes channels created by cracking, old plant roots and soil fauna
(for example, earthworms). Macropores indicate good structure. |
| Madden-Julian Oscillation |
An equatorial band of anomalous rainfall that travels
across the Indian and western Pacific Oceans at approximately 6 week
intervals. |
| Maiden |
A mare,
cow or ewe that has never been mated. |
| Maintenance |
Feed needed by an animal to keep a
constant body condition. Extra feed energy is then used for production
such as meat, milk, wool, eggs, Nutritionists thus talk about
maintenance and production. |
| Mallee |
(a) Small eucalypt trees (or
large shrubs) which produce several stems from large underground
lignotubers; (b) A region in South Australia lying between the Mount
Lofty ranges and the Victorian border; (c) A region in the
north-western portion of Victoria. |
| Mammal |
Any of various warm-blooded
vertebrate animals of the class Mammalia, including humans,
characterized by a covering of hair on the skin and, in the female,
milk-producing mammary glands for nourishing the young. |
| Mane |
1. Horse: Long hair on neck and
neighbouring parts
2. Deer: Increased growth of hair on the enlarged neck of male Wapiti
and red deer during the rut. |
| Manure |
Organic waste products, largely of
animal origin, used to ameliorate soil both as a source of nutrients and as soil
conditioner. |
| Marbling |
Fat deposited within muscle |
| Mare |
A female horse more than four years
old. |
| Mark
(livestock) |
To castrate
(a lamb, calf, etc.); usually associated with other
procedures such as docking, ear-marking,
drenching, etc.
cf Brand |
| Margin (Futures) |
Payment made by trader to the
broker when a futures contract price moves unfavourably. A
one cent per kilogram adverse price movement on one beef contract
(10,000 kg) requires a $100 margin call to be met one the traders
initial deposit has been exceeded. |
| Marginal |
Economists' term for 'extra' or
'added'. |
| Marginal
Cost (MC) |
The additional cost incurred from
producing an additional unit of output. |
| Marginal
Input Cost |
The additional cost incurred by
using an additional unit of input. |
| Marginal Lands |
Land of questionable physical or
economic capabilities for sustaining a specific use. |
| Marginal
Physical Product (MPP) |
The additional physical product
resulting from the use of an additional unit of input. May be
termed Marginal Product. |
| Marginal Rate of
Substitution |
The rate at which one good may be
substitutes for another as a consumer moves along their indifference
curve i.e. the rate at which consumers are willing to give up units of
one good in exchange for more units of another good. Put another way,
the MRS of good X for good Y is the amount of good Y that a person is
willing to give up to obtain one additional unit of good X. |
| Marginal
Return |
(a) the return from one extra unit
of output. (b) the addition to gross return from using one extra unit
of input. If the marginal return of an input exceeds its marginal cost,
additional profit may be made by adding units of the input until its
marginal return and marginal cost are equalised. |
| Marginal
Revenue (MR) |
The additional income received from
selling one additional unit of output. |
| Marginal Tax
Rate |
The additional tax that results
from an additional dollar of taxable
income at a given income level. |
| Marginal
Value Product |
The additional income received from
using an additional unit of input. |
| Market
Livestock |
Animals that are fed for eventual
slaughter, not for the production of offspring. |
| Market
Value |
The value for which an asset would be sold in an open
- market transaction. (NB it may include all of the costs of getting
the item to the location where it is to be used). |
| Marketable
Securities |
Shares,
bonds, and other
financial instruments that can be readily and easily converted into
cash. |
| Marketing
Expenses |
The costs of selling an item, eg
agents' commissions, yard fees, freight, levies. |
| Marketing margin |
The difference between the price of a product (or an
input) on the farm and the retail price in the market. |
| Marking |
Involves castration, earmarking and
branding of stock up to 6 months of age, but normally 1-3 months.
Dehorning and vaccination
are usually done at the same time. |
| Mash |
A mixture of ground feeds for
feeding poultry, usually a complete ration in itself. |
| Mass Balance
Equation |
Any additions of soil water equals
losses of water plus any increase in soil storage. |
| Mastitis |
A disease of the udder that affects
milk production. |
| Material |
Existing and large enough to be
considered. |
| Materials |
Items for use as components or
inputs. |
| Mating |
The act of mating between males and
females. Animals may be joined
but not mated. |
| Mating Age |
Heifers-over
275 kg liveweight (normally 15 months and over. Gives calves at 24
months). Bulls-in full work at 2 years. Maiden ewes-over
50 kg liveweight (normally 18 months). Rams-in full work at 15-24
months. |
| Maul |
A large wooden hammer for driving
pointed stakes. |
| Maximum
residue limit (MRL) |
The maximum level of pesticide
residue in food permitted by law and formerly expressed in parts per
million (ppm) but now quoted as milligrams per kilogram (mg/kg). |
| Meadow |
A field or pasture; a piece of land covered or
cultivated with grass, usually intended to be mown for hay; an area of
low lying vegetation, especially near a river. |
| Mean |
Average. The sum of all the values
in a group, divided by the number in the group. |
| Mean weight diameter (Soil) |
An index of soil aggregate stability which is equal to
the sum of products of the mean diameter of each size fraction and the
proportion of the total sample weight occurring in the corresponding
size fraction. |
| Meat |
The flesh of animals - may contain
bone (e.g. lamb chops) or be boneless (beef). May contain
skin (pork) or refer to offal (liver).
See Meat Terminology |
| Medic |
Annual members of the genus
Medicago. |
| Mediterranean
Climate |
Climate characterised by wet and
mild winters and hot dry summers. |
| Medium
volume application |
A spray which is used at the rate
of about 200-600 litres per hectare, according to the amount of foliage
to be covered, and is halfway between low volume application and
high-volume application. |
| Medium wool |
Middle of the range of a specific
type of wool. Normally implicitly applied with respect to
fibre diameter. |
| Medullated Fibre |
A fibre consisting of a medulla or
core of air-filled cells. Under the microscope this structure
appears spongy, and when the medulla is coarse the fibres are hairy and
harsh in handle and have irregular dyeing properties. |
| Melon-holes' |
See Gilgai |
| Meristem |
Localised region of active
cell-divisions in plants from which permanent tissue is derived. The
principal meristems occur at the tips of stems and roots. |
| Mesocarp |
The middle layer (usually fleshy)
of the fruit wall of a drupe
or other fruit. |
| Mesofauna |
Organisms such as microarthropods and mites (found in
soil). |
| Metabolic
Activities |
The chemical processes occurring
within an organism or within part of it. They involve breaking down of
organic compounds from complex to simple with liberation of energy. |
| Metabolism |
The overall range of physiological
and biochemical activity of an organism. |
| Microbacteria |
Microbacteria
spp. |
| Microclimate |
The local climate of a given site
or habitat varying in size from a tiny crevice to a large land area,
but being usually characterised by considerable uniformity of climate
over the site involved and relatively local as compared to its
enveloping macroclimate from which it differs because of local climatic
factors (such as elevation and exposure). |
| Microflora |
The part of the plant population consisting of
individuals that are too small to be clearly distinguished without the
use of a microscope. It includes algae, bacteria, and fungi. |
| Microfauna |
Small organisms such as bacteria and fungi
(microorganisms), protozoa and nematodes. |
| Micron,
Micrometre |
Unit of length used to measure wool
fibre diameter. One micron equals one millionth of a
metre or 1/1000
of a millimetre. Abbreviated to µm |
| Micronised |
Reduced to a particle size which is
more easily measured in micrometres. Refers to finely ground
solids. |
| Micro-Nutrients |
Substance which an organism must
obtain from its environment to maintain health, though necessary only
in minute amounts, either vitamins
or trace elements. |
| Milk Cooling
System |
A means of cooling milk to an
approved temperature utilizing a plate cooler, a surface cooler, and
refrigeration, either singly or in combination. |
| Milk fat |
The total fat content of the
milk. Same as butter fat. |
| Milk flow
indicator |
A device for enabling the flow of
milk from the cluster
to the milk line to be observed (sight glass). |
| Milk meter |
A device between the cluster and the milk
pipeline
for measuring an animal's milk yield in either weight or volume. |
| Milk pump |
A pump that pumps milk from a
container at atmospheric pressure and discharges to a milk storage
vessel at atmospheric pressure. |
| Milk Replacer |
A milk substitute in powdered form
that is mixed with water and fed to calves. |
| Milk
- solids not fat (SNF) |
The protein, sugar (lactose), and
ash (minerals) in the milk. |
| Milk storage
vessel |
A vessel to which the releaser pump
or milk pump discharges milk. |
| Milk total solids |
The combined total of milk fat and solids not fat. |
| Milking machine |
A complete machine installation for
milking, usually comprising vacuum and pulsation systems, one or more clusters and other
components. |
| Milking ratio |
The percentage of the pulsation
cycle during which milk flows from the teat. |
| Mineral Soils |
A soil consisting predominantly of,
and having its properties determined predominantly by inorganic matter.
Usually containing less than 20 percent organic matter but sometimes
containing an organic surface layer up to 30 centimetres thick. |
| Mineralisation |
The conversion of nutrients from an
unavailable organic form to a more available inorganic form. |
| Minimum Price
Contract |
A forward price contract that
guarantees the seller a minimum price but allows a higher price if the
market is above the minimum when the commodity is delivered. |
| Minimum Tillage |
Weed control system in which only
one or two mechanical treatments with tyned (toothed) implements are
used to retain surface organic matter. cf. No-till fallow. |
| Miscible |
Refers to liquids which mix freely
without separating out into layers. |
| Mission
Statement |
A short, descriptive statement of
why the (farm) business exists and its goals. |
| Miticide |
A chemical which kills mites (see Acaricide). |
| Mitochondria |
The powerhouse of the
cell. A minute organelle present in cells in which
respiration takes place. |
| Mixed-age |
Term used to describe sheep of
mixed ages. Usually all ages other than 2-tooths. |
| Mixed Farm,
Mixed Farming |
The use of a single farm for multiple purposes, such as
the
growing of cash crops and the raising of livestock. Opposite of monoculture. See also Integrated farming. |
| Mixed sex |
A group of animals made up of both
males and females. The proportion is usually roughly about
half-and-half but can vary considerably. |
| Mob |
Group of animals (Sheep, Cattle,
Goats, Horses), usually of similar age or class. |
| Mitochondrion |
a small spherical or rod like body,
in the cytoplasm of
most cells, that contains enzymes
responsible for energy production. |
| Mob Stocking |
Putting large numbers of stock on
an area for a short period of time. |
| Model |
An explanation of the way in which
a system operates. A model is often represented by a mathematical
equation or diagram. There are three main types of model - black box,
static display and dynamic. |
| Moderate
Grazing |
A comparative term which indicates
that the stocking rate of a pasture is between the rates of other
pastures. cf. heavy grazing. |
| Mohair |
Fine hairy coat of an angora goat. |
| Moit |
Light vegetable matter
contamination of wool (also called shive). |
| Mongrel |
An animal, especially a dog, of
mixed breed |
| Monitoring |
The orderly collection, analysis
and interpretation of resource data to evaluate progress toward meeting
management objectives. |
| Monocotyledon |
A class of plants with embryos that
have one cotyledon,
such as maize and wheat. |
| Monocotyledonous |
Smaller of the two classes into
which flowering plants are divided; distinguished from the
Dicotyledoneae by the presence of a single seed leaf. |
| Monoculture, monocropping |
1. Cultivation of a single crop, as
wheat or cotton, to the exclusion of other possible uses of land.
2. The practice of producing or growing one single crop over a wide
area. Sometimes used where the same crop is grown repeatedly on the
same land. |
| Monocyclic diseases |
Diseases in which the pathogens complete only one
generation, or part of a generation, in a given year and thus
reinfection due to a new generation of pathogen does not occur during a
single year. Corn smut caused by Ustilago
maydis, for example, produces its teliospores at the end
of the season. These spores over-winter in or on soil, germinate
producing basidia and basidiospores which infect the host. It takes a
full year for completion of the disease cycle. |
| Monoecious |
Male and female flowers borne on
the same plant. |
| Monogastric |
Animals with a single stomach e.g.
pigs. |
| Monopoly |
Situation where there is only one
seller of a product or service. |
| Monozygous |
Originating from one egg.
Identical twins. |
| Moratorium |
Is an extension of time for the
performance of a legal obligation, eg. Payment of debts. State
governments have the power to order such a moratorium. Such a procedure
would normally destroy all confidence and credit, so it is only adopted
in extreme emergency. |
| Morphology |
The form and structure of an
organism, with special emphasis on external features. |
| Mortality Rates |
The death rates of livestock in a
specified period. |
| Mortgage |
The name given to loans where land
is the security. They
are usually loans for a period of years at a prescribed rate of
interest which is to be paid periodically (usually at half-yearly
intervals). The borrower gives the lender a legal claim to the property
in the event of interest not being paid, or the capital returned to the
mortgagee at the end of the period of years. In such event the
mortgagee can foreclose and sell the property at auction. If the sale
realises more than the loan plus expenses of selling, the balance is
returnable to the mortgagor. A mortgage on a property already mortgaged
is a second mortgage. It ranks after the first mortgage at settlement
in the event of foreclosure. Legal mortgage is one where the borrower,
known as the mortgagor, executes a deed charging his property in favour
of the lender, who thus becomes the mortgagee. Such a deed contains a
proviso for redemption entitling the mortgagor to a re-conveyance of
his property on repayment of principal together with interest and costs
to the mortgagee. cf Equitable
charge Lien |
| Mosaic farming |
The arrangement of vegetation types in relation to
landscape or soil characteristics to maximise long-term economic and
environmental goals. |
| Mother Hair |
Long, coarse, harsh, chalky kemps which sometimes occur on
new born lambs. They are shed and may or may not be replaced
by normal wool fibres in the same follicle. |
| Mothering |
1. Ensuring offspring are with
their dams.
2. Fostering |
| Mouldboard |
A primary tillage implement designed
to
completely turn the furrow slice over. The plough is shaped to cut and
turn over soil to bury surface residue. It is rarely used in
Australia's shallow topsoils as it brings up less fertile subsoil.
However, it has been used successfully where hard setting or crusting
occurs to bring up swelling or shrinking clay subsoil to improve
topsoil structure. |
| Moulting |
The biological process in a hen of
shedding old feathers to grow new coat annually. Usually the
first annual complete moult is undergone a the conclusion of the first
year of laying. Good producers moult late and intensely, go
very bare, and quickly come back into production. Low
producers are noted for dropping only a few feathers at a time and take
a long time before coming back into production. |
| Mounting |
1. To get up on to a
horse.
2. One animal jumping up on or riding another, which is an indication
of heat. The animal on heat is usually the one standing,
allowing another female or male to mount or ride it. |
| Mouthing, mouth |
Determining the approximate age of
an animal by looking at its teeth. See Ageing - Sheep |
| Mower |
Making hay requires the forage to
be cut. Traditionally a sickle-bar mower was used perhaps in
combination with a swather and/or conditioner.
Rotary or disc mowers are now more common. See http://www.sheepscreek.com/rural/haying.html |
| Mulch |
(a) A layer of dead plant material
on the soil surface. (b) An artificial layer of material such as paper
or plastic on the soil surface. (c) Cultural practice of placing rock,
straw, asphalt, plastic or other material on the soil's surface as a
surface cover. Mulches are applied to conserve moisture, control weeds,
and improve structure |
| Mulch-till |
A system of conservation
tillage in which the soil is disturbed anytime after
harvesting and before planting using chisels, field cultivators, disks,
sweeps or blades. Weed control is accomplished with herbicides and/or
cultivation. Mulch-till is a category that may be used to include all
conservation tillage practices other than no-till
and ridge-till |
| Mules
Operation |
The removal of skin from around the
anus of sheep to prevent the growth of wool. This is a practice which
successfully controls blowfly strike. The Radical Mules operation
removes even more skin, including a strip from the top of the tail. |
| Mulesing |
See Mules
Operation |
| Multidisciplinary |
A multidisciplinary approach is the joining together
two or more disciplines without integration. See interdisciplinary,
transdisciplinary, crossdisciplinarity. |
| Multifunctionality |
The concept that agriculture is
inextricably linked to social and environmental benefits that cannot
otherwise be produced by society. Thus it is argued that
agriculture should be provided with support to continue to produce
these social and environmental benefits. See Adler |
| Multiple Cropping |
In favourable climates, the growing
of two or more crops consecutively on the same piece of land in a
single year. |
| Multiple fruit |
A fruit composed of a number of
closely associated fruits derived from different flowers, these fruits
forming one body at maturity, e.g. pineapple. |
| Multiple Use |
Use of pastures for more than one
purpose, i.e. grazing of livestock, wildlife production, recreation,
watershed and timber production. Not necessarily the combination of
uses that will yield the highest economic return or greatest unit
output. Syn. multiple land use. |
| Muscle |
The red meat in a carcass of
animals (or white muscle in birds) made up of individual muscles which
enable the animal to move and provide protein to a consumer. |
| Muscling |
A term meant by users to indicate
that an animal or carcass has more or less muscle
than another animal or carcass. However, different users of
this term are often referring to different characteristics. |
| Mushy |
Wool which is lacking
character. Usually a sign of low fleece weight. |
| Muster |
The gathering together of sheep or
cattle, especially on large stations, to a central working
point. A clean muster leaves none behind. A
straggle muster is to collect the stragglers |
| Mutagen |
A substance that produces a sudden
change in the genetic make up of chromosomes. |
| Mutation |
A change in the genetic material
(germ plasm) of the organism. |
| Mutton |
The flesh of fully grown sheep. See
Meat Terminology |
| Mycellum |
Collective term applied to hyphae of fungi. |
| Mycoherbicide |
A naturally-occurring disease
(usually fungi or
bacteria) that can be cultivated to produce a more environmentally-safe
product than most chemical herbicides. |
| Mycoplasms |
A type of micro-organism which is
non motile, non-sporing and which lacks a true cell wall. |
| Mycology |
The study of fungi. |
| Mycorrhiza |
The association, usually symbiotic,
of fungi with the roots
of some plants. |
| Mycotoxin |
A poisonous substance produced by a fungus. |
