\tThe Nongzheng quanshu \u519c\u653f\u5168\u4e66 "Whole book on agricultural activities" is an agricultural encyclopaedia compiled by the lateMing period \u660e (1368-1644) scholar Xu Guangqi \u5f90\u5149\u542f (1562-1633), courtesy name Xu Zixian \u5f90\u5b50\u5148, style Xuanhu \u7384\u6248. He came from Shanghai \u4e0a\u6d77 and earned his jinshi degree with the age of 36 sui. In 1604 he participated a second time in the metropolitan examination and in 1632, as an elderly man, was appointed Minister of Rites (libu shangshu \u793c\u90e8\u5c1a\u4e66) and Grand Academician (daxueshi \u5927\u5b66\u58eb) of the East Pavilion \u4e1c\u9601. A year later he was transferred to the post of Grand Academician of the Hall of Literary Profundity \u6587\u6e0a\u9601 but he died soon thereafter. His posthumous title is Duke Wending \u5f90\u6587\u5b9a\u516c. Xu Guangqi is very famous for his cooperation with the Jesuit missionary Matteo Ricci (Chinese name Li Madou \u5229\u739b\u7aa6) together with whom he translated European treatises in astronomy, mathametics and mechanics, like Euclid's "Elements" (original Greek title Stoichéia, in Chinese as Jihe yuanben \u51e0\u4f55\u539f\u672c). He also compiled a treatise about the amelioration of the Chinese calendar, the Chongzhen lishu \u5d07\u796f\u5386\u4e66. Xu Guangqi was also very interested in firearms because of their usefulness in the campaigns against the Jurchens (that were soon to become the Manchus).<\/p>\n
\tThe 60 juan "scrolls" long Nongzheng quanshu is only one of several book on agriculture that Xu Guangqi had authored. Others were Nongyi zashu \u519c\u9057\u6742\u758f, Tunyanshu \u5c6f\u76d0\u758f, Zhong mianhua fa \u79cd\u68c9\u82b1\u6cd5, Ganshushu \u7518\u85af\u758f, Zhongzhu tushuo \u79cd\u7af9\u56fe\u8bf4, Yikenling \u5b9c\u57a6\u4ee4, Nongji \u519c\u8f91 and Beigenglu \u5317\u8015\u5f55. The Nongzheng quanshu is divided into 12 chapters that include a general introduction into agriculture (Nongben \u519c\u672c), an overview of the field systems (Tianzhi \u7530\u5236) of China through history, basic themes of farming (Nongshi \u519c\u4e8b) like ploughing and the observation of weather and climate, hydraulics (Shuili \u6c34\u5229), farming tools (Nongqi \u519c\u5668), the art of tree cultivation (Shuyi \u6811\u827a), sericulture (Cansang \u8695\u6851 and Cansang guanglei \u8695\u6851\u5e7f\u7c7b), the cultivation of plants (Zhongzhi \u79cd\u690d), cattle breeding (Muyang \u7267\u517b), the processing of agricultural products (Zhizao \u5236\u9020), and famine relief (Huangzheng \u8352\u653f). The greatest part of the book consists of quotations from older texts that was only slightly amended or altered. Xu Guangqi nevertheless was able to bring these quotations in such a form that the text of theNongzheng quanshu appears in a coherent shape. He also commented many statements for clarification and rectification, based on his own research in agriculture. The Nongzheng quanshu is a complete overview of all aspects of farming in traditional China and shows the level that agriculture had reached in the seventeenth century.<\/p>\n
\t \tThe Nongzheng quanshu was actually not completed during Xu Guangqi's lifetime, but this task was left to Chen Zilong \u9648\u5b50\u9f99 who amended the text and rearranged it. It was first printed in 1639 by Zhang Guowei \u5f20\u56fd\u7ef4 and Fang Yuegong \u65b9\u5cb3\u8d21. It is estimated that Chen Zilong cut about about a third of the whole original text, mostly redundant statements, and instead added some more text, constituting about 20 per cent of the original. Instead of his revision the text still includes a lot of errors.<\/p>\n
\tThe oldest print of the Nongzheng quanshu is known as the Pinglu Hall edition \u5e73\u9732\u5802\u672c. It was again published in 1837 in Guizhou (the Guizhou edition \u8d35\u5dde\u672c), in 1843 in Shanghai by Wang Jiakang \u738b\u5bff\u5eb7 (the Shuhai Hall edition \u66d9\u6d77\u697c\u672c) and in 1874 by the public Shandong press \u5c71\u4e1c\u4e66\u5c40 (the Shandong edition \u5c71\u4e1c\u672c). In 1956 the Zhonghua shuju press \u4e2d\u534e\u4e66\u5c40 published a modern edition with a commentary written by Zou Shuwen \u90b9\u6811\u6587, and in 1979 the Shanghai guji press \u4e0a\u6d77\u53e4\u7c4d\u51fa\u7248\u793e launched an edition with a commentary by Shi Shenghan \u77f3\u58f0\u6c49, the Nongzheng quanshu jiaozhu \u519c\u653f\u5168\u4e66\u6821\u6ce8.<\/p>\n
\tThe Nongzheng quanshu is included in the imperial collectaneum Siku quanshu \u56db\u5e93\u5168\u4e66.<\/p>\n
\t <\/p>\n
| \n \t\t\t\t\tContents<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \t\t\t\t\t1.-3. \u519c\u672c Nongben<\/em> The roots of agriculture |