Legumes benefit from ground dressed with organic matter, which lowers pH, while brassicas do best in soil with a higher pH, which discourages club root: alternating manuring and liming with these rotating crops ensures that the soil never becomes either too acid or too alkaline. The primary advantages of crop rotation include preserving fertile soil, enhancing the health of crops and minimizing the amount of pests, while the primary drawbacks and challenges include lingering fungi and pests. Example: Napiergrass – Maize or cowpea or oat. It is difficult to adhere strictly to a three plot rotation in a small garden, but the principles are sound and it is a practice to be aimed for. State its advantages. The most important example is legumes such as peas, beans, canola and lupin beans. The farmer can also see a decrease in the incidence of insect pests and pathogens when they go for crop rotation. In crop rotation, there will be a balanced uptake of nutrients of the crops during various seasons. There are practical problems in strictly following rotation. The primary advantages of crop rotation include preserving fertile soil, enhancing the health of crops and minimizing the amount of pests, while the primary drawbacks and challenges include lingering fungi and pests. Following crop rotation also helps in the weed-free cultivation of crops. It prevents the accumulation of toxic chemicals or substances secreted by some crop plants. Still, information about the different planting techniques are easily available and the farmer should be vigilant as well as ready to practice them as required. The underlying principles for planning effective cropping systems began to emerge in the middle years of the 19th century. If we grow the susceptible crops for an insect pest in the breeding season, it leads to heavy damage of the crop due to insects. Balanced uptake of nutrients: Nutrient uptake of crops vary from crop to crop. Obligatory crop diversification: For crop rotation to work, one has to plant different crops every time. In the Bible, chapter 25 of the Book of Leviticus instructs the Israelites to observe a “Sabbath of the Land”. Others are planned for high continuing returns with protected resources. A second reason for using rotation is to meet differing nutritional needs. A reduction in the pest population improves the quality of the soil and mitigates the amount of crops that are destroyed each season. Advantages of Crop Rotation. There are three main reasons for using rotation: to combat pests and diseases, to maintain soil fertility, and to keep the soil well cultivated. Livestock: Homesteading Lifestyle For You? In the Green Revolution of the mid-20th century, the traditional practice of crop rotation gave way in some parts of the world to the practice of supplementing the chemical inputs to the soil through topdressing with fertilizers, adding (for example) ammonium nitrate or urea and restoring soil pH with lime. It helps in increasing the soil fertility along with crop productivity. Evaluation of the crop rotation to ensure proper time management for land preparation and good utilization of available resources in order to maintain crop productivity. Crop diversification also requires investment in different planting techniques for each unique crop that costs time and money because each crop needs a different type of attention. Another major drawback is the time involved in preparing the soil for new crops. Selection of the Crops for crop rotation. The soil fertility is maintained for a prolonged period. In addition, it also results in increasing the predator and parasitoid population in the crop decreased reproductive colonization of insect pest in the crop and also prevents the movement of insect pests. Generations of experience have shown that growth and yield can be reduced if crops are grown in the same ground year after year. In such conditions, crop rotation with unrelated crops for weeds helps weed management. Potato crop rotation decreases the incidence of wilt caused by Verticilliumsp. By rotating crops, a person removes the food resource preferred by one pest. Income generation: Cultivation of different crops in different seasons provides contingency in income generation. (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); Farmvina provides free education about farming and beyond. The primary advantages of crop rotation include preserving fertile soil, enhancing the health of crops and minimizing the amount of pests, while the primary drawbacks and challenges include lingering fungi and pests. Such practices aimed to increase yields, to prepare the soil for specialist crops, and to reduce waste and inefficiency by simplifying planting, harvesting, and irrigation. Reduction in Insect pest incidence: The incidence of the insect pests can be controlled to an extent with crop rotation. In addition, crop rotation is growing of a series of different or dissimilar crops in a particular area in sequential seasons. Required fields are marked *. Fact Check: What Power Does the President Really Have Over State Governors? In 1 st year, if we go for Cotton in Kharif season, maize in rabi season and forage in the... Principles of Crop rotation:. Crop rotation plays a major and important role in AgriFarming. Throughout human history, wherever food crops have been produced, some kind of rotation cropping appears to have been practiced. Another major drawback is the time involved in … It must be alternated with other crops, because different crops take up or remove different nutrients from the soil. It affects how … The primary advantages of crop rotation include preserving fertile soil, enhancing the health of crops and minimizing the amount of pests, while the primary drawbacks and challenges include lingering fungi and pests. The farmer is not able to produce a single crop on a large scale over a long period of time because of the damage it will do to the soil. Following crop rotation also helps in weed-free cultivation of crops. Example of crop rotation:. Some of them are designed for the highest immediate returns, without much regard for the continuing usefulness of the basic resources. Legumes, especially fava beans, can extract nitrogen from the atmosphere, while brassicas need plenty of nitrogen to produce edible leaves and flower-heads; therefore, it makes sense to plant brassicas where legumes have recently grown. Rotation is an aid to pest and disease suppression, not a total prevention or cure. Close proximity of crops enables diseases or pests to spread readily to new areas; a few diseases, like clubroot and white rot, can remain viable in the soil for many years beyond a reasonable rotation period. In addition, crop rotation also improves the soil structure as well as soil texture. Therefore, that particular pest eventually dies. One has to have the skills to know what crops can be planted after the other and in which season for the process to be successful. And why should we do that? The most profitable crop must be given the best place while crop rotation. Is the Coronavirus Crisis Increasing America's Drug Overdoses? There are no or least disadvantages of crop rotation. When we apply huge quantities of nutrients the crop takes the maximum amount and the remaining remains as residues in the soils.