Crop rotation
Topic: Primary Activities: Gathering, Pastoralism, Agriculture and Mining · NCERT: Class 7, Ch 1 "The Story of Indian Farming"; Class 8, Ch 1 "Natural Resources and Their Use"; Class 12, Ch 4 "Primary Activities"
Meaning
Crop rotation means growing different crops one after another on the same field. A cereal might be followed by a legume (a pulse crop such as gram or beans) or a fodder crop. Legumes add nitrogen back to the soil, and changing crops breaks the cycle of pests and diseases. This keeps the soil fertile without leaving the land empty. It is a key practice in mixed farming.
Example
In the Indo-Gangetic plain of Uttar Pradesh, farmers often follow a cereal crop with a pulse such as gram or moong on the same field to restore soil fertility.
Don't confuse with
- Intercropping: here two or more crops grow together on the same field at the same time. In crop rotation the crops follow one another over seasons.