Nature or Nurture? Explaining English Wheat Yields in the Industrial Revolution, c.1770
This article presents the first agricultural production function for the eighteenth century, thereby quantifying the effect of many new technologies coming on stream in English agriculture. It shows that some traditional technologies were effective in raising wheat yields, such as drainage and marli...
| Format: | Journal article |
|---|---|
| Published: |
Economic History Association
2004
|
| Subjects: |
| _version_ | 1797055213064945664 |
|---|---|
| collection | OXFORD |
| description | This article presents the first agricultural production function for the eighteenth century, thereby quantifying the effect of many new technologies coming on stream in English agriculture. It shows that some traditional technologies were effective in raising wheat yields, such as drainage and marling; but some innovations of the eighteenth century were much more effective, particularly turnips and seed drills. Environmental factors are incorporated into the model. Climate is shown to be a crucial factor in determining yields but soil quality was much less important. This undermines the accepted argument that England’s success was due to a superior natural endowment. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-06T19:07:52Z |
| format | Journal article |
| id | oxford-uuid:15ca875a-35e2-4bb4-8390-73b8d1f85ad8 |
| institution | University of Oxford |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-06T19:07:52Z |
| publishDate | 2004 |
| publisher | Economic History Association |
| record_format | dspace |
| spelling | oxford-uuid:15ca875a-35e2-4bb4-8390-73b8d1f85ad82022-03-26T10:27:21ZNature or Nurture? Explaining English Wheat Yields in the Industrial Revolution, c.1770Journal articlehttp://purl.org/coar/resource_type/c_dcae04bcuuid:15ca875a-35e2-4bb4-8390-73b8d1f85ad8EconomicsOxford University Research Archive - ValetEconomic History Association2004This article presents the first agricultural production function for the eighteenth century, thereby quantifying the effect of many new technologies coming on stream in English agriculture. It shows that some traditional technologies were effective in raising wheat yields, such as drainage and marling; but some innovations of the eighteenth century were much more effective, particularly turnips and seed drills. Environmental factors are incorporated into the model. Climate is shown to be a crucial factor in determining yields but soil quality was much less important. This undermines the accepted argument that England’s success was due to a superior natural endowment. |
| spellingShingle | Economics Nature or Nurture? Explaining English Wheat Yields in the Industrial Revolution, c.1770 |
| title | Nature or Nurture? Explaining English
Wheat Yields in the Industrial
Revolution, c.1770 |
| title_full | Nature or Nurture? Explaining English
Wheat Yields in the Industrial
Revolution, c.1770 |
| title_fullStr | Nature or Nurture? Explaining English
Wheat Yields in the Industrial
Revolution, c.1770 |
| title_full_unstemmed | Nature or Nurture? Explaining English
Wheat Yields in the Industrial
Revolution, c.1770 |
| title_short | Nature or Nurture? Explaining English
Wheat Yields in the Industrial
Revolution, c.1770 |
| title_sort | nature or nurture explaining english wheat yields in the industrial revolution c 1770 |
| topic | Economics |