Mono vs Multiple Cropping

Presented to: Dr. Ahmad Sher Presented by: Muhammad YaseenRoll NO: 09B.Sc (Hons) Agriculture3rd Semester College of AgricultureBZU, Bahadur Sub Campus, Layyah2014-18

Learning Outcomes

Mono cropping

Advantages of Mono croppingDisadvantagesMultiple Cropping

DisadvantagesAdvantages

Monocropping

Monocropping is the agricultural practice of growing a single crop year after year on the same land, in the absence of rotation through other crops or growing multiple crops on the same land (poly culture).

Corn, soybeans, and wheat are three common crops often grown using mono cropping techniques.

Same crop is planted year after year, without practicing crop rotation or resting the soil.

Monocropping

Advantages of Monocropping It allows a farmer to specialize in a particular crop,

invest in machinery designed specifically for that crop, along with high-yield seeds that will generate a large volume of the crop at harvest.

Treat the whole area the same (same fertilizer, pest control, etc.)

few kinds of equipment needed.

Disadvantages

Diseases and pests spread quickly If that kind of crop doesn't do well in that

year's conditions, you are going to lose out. You don't have something else that might be doing well.

Soil depletion is also a negative effect of mono-cropping.

Disadvantages Reduces crop diversity It severely depletes the soil. This forces farmers to use

fertilizers, which can disturb the natural balance of the soil. The practice can also contribute to the proliferation of crop pests and diseases, which can be a serious liability when a farmer's land is planted exclusively with one crop.

The practice is very dangerous when natural disasters or shifting weather devastate a crop. A farmer with diverse crops could afford to take a small loss if one crop failed to yield, but in a region where only one crop is grown, the results can be catastrophic.

Multiple CroppingIn agriculture, multiple cropping is the practice of

growing two or more crops in the same piece of land during a single growing season. It is a form of poly culture.

There is relay cropping and double cropping.

Relay cropping is starting one crop among another crop that has matured.

Multiple Cropping

Relay cropping is starting one crop among another crop that has matured.

Double cropping is another form of multiple cropping where one crop is started after the growing season for the previous crop has ended.

It is used to help maintain nutrient levels in the soil.

Multiple Cropping

Advantages of Multiple CroppingBoth relay and double cropping are good for replacing

nutrients in the soil that one type of plant might have used heavily.

Different kinds of plants put different nutrients in the soil, and some may provide protection against harmful plants as well.

More nutrient-rich soil may yield better crops as well. Relay cropping is also beneficial because it can help cut planting costs down, as the second crop also benefits from the moisture the first has amassed in the soil.

AdvantagesThe rotating crops should bring some diversity. It can help balance the nutrients and suppress

weeds.It gives maximum production from small plots.Including legumes in the cropping pattern helps

maintain soil fertility by fixing nitrogen in the soil.Because of high planting density weeds are

suppressed.With multiple cropping the risk of total loss from

drought, pests and diseases is reduced.

DisadvantagesBecause of year-long crop some pests can shift from

one crop to another.

The large number of different crops in the field makes it difficult to weed.

New technologies such as row planting, modern weeding tools and improved varieties may be difficult to introduce.