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In agriculture, multiple cropping or multicropping is the practice of growing two or more crops in the same piece of land during one year, instead of just one crop. When multiple crops are grown simultaneously, this is also known as intercropping. This cropping system helps farmers to double their crop productivity and their income. [1]
Polyculture is the growing of multiple crops together in the same place at the same time. It has traditionally been the most prevalent form of agriculture. [1] Regions where polycultures form a substantial part of agriculture include the Himalayas, Eastern Asia, South America, and Africa. [2]
Intercropping is a multiple cropping practice that involves the cultivation of two or more crops simultaneously on the same field, a form of polyculture. [1] [2] The most common goal of intercropping is to produce a greater yield on a given piece of land by making use of resources or ecological processes that would otherwise not be utilized by a single crop.
Diagram of interactions within a rice polyculture, in this case rice-fish, showing mutual benefits of the crops and advantages to the farmer [4] [5] [6]. Several animal species have been raised in rice fields, offering the possibility of multiple crops and a variety of ecological and agro-ecological benefits.
Multiple cropping describes essentially the same general method. A catch crop refers to a specific type of succession planting, where a fast-growing crop is grown simultaneously with, or between successive plantings of, a main crop. Succession planting has been touted as a way to minimize the risks of crop failure for small farmers. [10]
Monoculture is the practice of growing a single crop in a given area, where polyculture involves growing multiple crops in an area. Monocropping (or continuous monoculture) is a system in which the same crop is grown in the same area for a number of growing seasons.
The cultivation of crops alongside the rearing of animals for meat or eggs or milk defines mixed farming. [4] For example, a mixed farm may grow cereal crops, such as wheat or rye, and also keep cattle, sheep, pigs or poultry. Often the dung from the cattle serves to fertilize the crops. Also some of the crops might be used as fodder for the
Crop rotation is also used to control pests and diseases that can become established in the soil over time. The changing of crops in a sequence decreases the population level of pests by (1) interrupting pest life cycles and (2) interrupting pest habitat. [10] Plants within the same taxonomic family tend to have similar pests and pathogens.