Kollam has a prominent place in the field of agriculture. The total extent of land under cultivation is 2,18,267 hectares. The principal crops are paddy, tapioca, coconut, rubber, pepper, banana, mango and cashew. About 70 per cent of the work force is engaged in agriculture.

Agriculture has been the primary occupation of the people of the district. More than 42 per cent of the total population depend on agriculture. Cultivable land may be classified as wet, dry, garden and plantations. Paddy is the most important crop cultivated in the wet lands. Tapioca and pulses are the important dry land crops. Coconut, one of the most important crops of the district, is cultivated in an area of 84,308 hectares and the annual production is about 516 million nuts.

Agriculture forms the mainstay of the population of the district. The soil in the three natural divisions generally fall under three types. In the highland region it is laterite. In the midland, the soil is a red ferruginous loam of laterite origin with an admixture of clay and sand. The coastal strip is sandy. Diversity of crops and heterogeneity in cultivation are the key notes of agriculture here.

The marketing of coffee was fully regulated by the Coffee Board till 1992 and the entire coffee grown in the district had to be pooled to the Board. But in the Coffee Policy of 1995 - 96 , the Government exempted small scale growers possessing land less than 10 hectares from the obligation of pooling. Those growers with more than 10 hectares of coffee plantation were obliged to provide 60 percent of their produces to the Coffee Board.

This high altitude district is characterised by the cultivation of perennial plantation crops and spices. Coffee, tea, cocoa, pepper and lately, plantain, vanilla are the main cash crops. Besides cash crops, the most important crop in the district is rice. Dams and aqueducts have been constructed to take water to the otherwise dry areas in the district.