Question

What are the different patterns of cropping?

Answer 1

The different patterns of growing crops are mixed cropping, inter-cropping, and crop rotation.

• Mixed Cropping: It is a method in which two or more crops are grown simultaneously on the same piece of land, e.g. wheat and mustard, etc. This minimizes the risk of any crop failure and prevents loss.
• Inter-cropping: It is growing two or more crops simultaneously on the same field in a definite pattern. A few rows of one crop alternate with a few rows of the second crop, e.g. soybean and maize.
• Crop rotation: The growing of different crops on a piece of land in a pre-planned succession is known as crop rotation.

The availability of moisture and irrigation facilities decides the choice of crops to be cultivated after one harvest.