Crop Rotation : definition , principle and advantage

Crop Rotation:

It is a practice of growing different crops one after the other with a view of getting maximum economic aspects without impairing, soil fertility. It is mentioned for a specific piece of land during a fixed period.

Principle of crop rotation:-

1. Legume crops should be taken after non-legume crops. Ex. Wheat after Soybean.

2. Shallow-rooted crops should be sown after deep-rooted crops. e.g. Fenugreek/pea after Cotton, Sugarcane/Kodo millet after Red gram

3. Low fertilizer-requiring crops should be taken after high fertilizer-requiring crops. Ex.- Green gram after Potato, Gram after Paddy.

4. Low-water-requiring crop should be taken after high-water-requiring crops. E.g. Gram after Paddy.

5. Less cultural practices requiring crops should be taken after heavy cultural practices requiring crops.

E.g. Wheat after Sugarcane, Tobacco after Potato

6. Vegetables, oil seeds, and pulses should be involved to fulfill family needs.

Precautions during estimation of crop-rotation intensity:-

1. Mixed crops are counted as a single crop. Soybean + Maize = 1 crop
2. Green manure and fellow land are not counted in the number of crops Intensity is always expressed in percentage It is never less than
3. 100% The intensity of rain-fed farming and dry areas is always 100% because of Mono-cropping
4. Crop rotation always starts from Kharif
5. The duration of sugarcane as well as Ratoon is considered as one year while calculating crop rotation intensity.
6. The crop of pigeon peas stands for two seasons in the field.

Some crop-rotation and their intensities:

Annual rotation:

• Fellow land-Mustard
• Stover-Clover
• Paddy Wheat Green gram
• Maize-Potato-Tobacco
• Apple gourd (Tinda)-Potato-Radish – Bitter gourd
• Okra-Radish-Cauliflower-Bitter gourd.

Biennial cropping system

• Cotton-Pea-Fellow-Wheat
• Maize-Barley- Fellow-Wheat
• Sorghum + Cluster bean-Chick pea-Pearl millet-Lentil

Crop rotation for 3 years:

• Green manure – Potato – Sugarcane- Ratoon
• Groundnut + Pigeon pea – Sugarcane – Green gram – Wheat-Green gram
• Cotton-Fenugreek-Sugarcane-Sorghum  Wheat

Crop rotation for 4 years:

Cotton-Fenugreek-Sugarcane -Ratoon-Sun hemp- wheat

Advantages of crop rotation:

1. Maintains soil fertility and health.
2. Reduces pest and disease pressure.
3. Suppresses weed growth.
4. Increases crop yields over time.
5. Diversifies farm income.
6. Conserves water and enhances drought resilience.
7. Promotes sustainable agricultural practices.
8. Improves long-term soil management.