Catch crop
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In
agriculture Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled people ...
, a catch crop is a fast-growing
crop A crop is a plant that can be grown and harvested extensively for profit or subsistence. When the plants of the same kind are cultivated at one place on a large scale, it is called a crop. Most crops are cultivated in agriculture or hydropon ...
that is grown between successive plantings of a main crop. For example,
radish The radish (''Raphanus raphanistrum'' subsp. ''sativus'') is an edible root vegetable of the family Brassicaceae that was domesticated in Asia prior to Roman times. Radishes are grown and consumed throughout the world, being mostly eaten raw ...
es that mature from
seed A seed is an embryonic plant enclosed in a protective outer covering, along with a food reserve. The formation of the seed is a part of the process of reproduction in seed plants, the spermatophytes, including the gymnosperm and angiosper ...
in 25–30 days can be grown between rows of most
vegetable Vegetables are parts of plants that are consumed by humans or other animals as food. The original meaning is still commonly used and is applied to plants collectively to refer to all edible plant matter, including the edible flower, flowers, ...
s, and
harvest Harvesting is the process of gathering a ripe crop from the fields. Reaping is the cutting of grain or pulse for harvest, typically using a scythe, sickle, or reaper. On smaller farms with minimal mechanization, harvesting is the most l ...
ed long before the main crop matures. Or, a catch crop can be planted between the spring harvest and
fall Autumn, also known as fall in American English and Canadian English, is one of the four temperate seasons on Earth. Outside the tropics, autumn marks the transition from summer to winter, in September (Northern Hemisphere) or March ( Southe ...
planting of some crops. Catch cropping is a type of
succession planting In agriculture, succession planting refers to several planting methods that increase crop availability during a growing season by making efficient use of space and timing. There are four basic approaches, that can also be combined: *Two or more c ...
. It makes more efficient use of growing space. Catch crops are also crops that are sown to prevent minerals being flushed away from the soil: crops such as grain are used to keep certain minerals not attached to the soil-clay connection in the soil.


References

Crops {{Agri-stub