Crop Rotation & Intercropping

Crop Cultivation & Harvesting

If you grow the same crop on the same land season after season, the soil becomes tired. Nutrients get used up, pests and diseases keep building, and yields drop. To avoid this, farmers practice crop rotation and intercropping — age-old methods that modern science also strongly recommends.

🌱 1. Crop Rotation (Changing Crops Each Season)

What it means: Planting different types of crops on the same land in different seasons.

Why it helps:

  • Prevents soil nutrient depletion.
  • Breaks pest and disease cycles.
  • Improves soil fertility (especially with legumes).

Example Rotations:

  • Wheat (Rabi) → Maize (Kharif) → Vegetables (Zaid).
  • Rice (Kharif) → Peas (Rabi) → Okra (Summer).
  • Mustard (Rabi) → Green gram (Kharif) → Tomato (Summer).

👉 Golden rule:

Don't grow the same family of crops back-to-back. (Example: Don't grow tomato → chili → brinjal continuously, since all are nightshade family).

🌿 2. Intercropping (Growing 2 or More Crops Together)

What it means: Growing two or more crops side by side in the same field.

Why it helps:

  • Better use of sunlight, water, and nutrients.
  • Reduces risk — if one crop fails, the other survives.
  • Some crops protect others from pests.
  • Adds extra income from the same land.

Examples:

  • Maize + Beans → maize gives support, beans fix nitrogen.
  • Groundnut + Sunflower → sunflower roots go deep, groundnut stays shallow.
  • Tomato + Marigold → marigold repels pests from tomato.

🌍 3. Benefits of Crop Rotation & Intercropping

Here's why these practices are beneficial:

  • Soil health improves: Legumes (peas, beans) add nitrogen naturally.
  • Less chemical fertilizer needed.
  • Fewer pests: Pests that live in soil Don't get the same crop every season.
  • Higher yield & profit: Multiple crops from the same field.
  • Resilience: Even if one crop suffers from weather, the other provides income.

🧑‍🌾 Traditional Farmer Wisdom

In villages, farmers often say:

👉 Dal ko fasal ke beech mein lagao, mitti khud khaad ban jaati hai.
(Plant pulses between crops, and the soil itself becomes fertile).

This is exactly what science confirms — pulses fix nitrogen from the air and enrich the soil.

✍️ Practical Exercise for You

Try this simple activity:

  • Take a small bed (3x6 ft).
  • Plant maize in rows 1 ft apart.
  • In between maize rows, sow beans.
  • Observe: Beans climb on maize for support, while maize grows stronger with nitrogen from beans.