Types of Intercropping
1. Strip cropping: Strip cropping is the practice of growing two or more crops side by side in broad strips so they may be handled independently. Even terrains can be used for strip cropping in agriculture. It is utilized when there is no other way to stop soil erosion or when a slope is too steep. It is used to either promote the growth of primary species or improve the condition of the soil.
2. Row cropping: Row intercropping is the practice of planting individual crops in different rows. Row crops help to fix the extra nitrogen as a result of a symbiotic relationship between legumes and bacteria from the Rhizobium species.
3. Alley cropping: Alley cropping is an agroforestry technique that combines trees into farmland systems for agriculture. Growing crops and trees or shrubs in alternate rows is known as alley cropping. To lessen the shade of crops, trees are frequently pruned. Alley cropping can also aid with nutrient cycling and erosion prevention.
4. Relay cropping: Relay cropping is a kind of cropping system where one crop is planted into a standing second crop well before the second crop is harvested. Relay planting reduces risk because you don’t have to rely just on one crop. Moreover, it results in more fair labor allocation, less insect spread, and legume growth that contributes nitrogen to the soil.
Difference Between Mixed Cropping and Intercropping
A plant is considered to be a crop that is widely gathered for financial gain and is farmed or grown on a big and small scale. Moreover, crops are raised to be traded on the open market. A cropping pattern is the percentage of land that is being cultivated for different crops at various times. Cropping pattern is a dynamic idea that varies throughout time and space. Cropping patterns vary from one area to another. It is influenced by the soils, the quantity and frequency of rain, the amount and slope of the terrain, the topography, the slope, the temperature, and the availability of irrigation water. Cropping systems are of three types:
- Monocropping: Monocropping is the practice of producing only one type of crop at a time on a specific plot of land.
- Mixed cropping: Mixed cropping can be defined as the practice of growing two or more crops on the same piece of land at the same time.
- Intercropping: It refers to the practice of simultaneously cultivating two or more crops nearby on the same plot of land using particular row patterns.