Strip cropping is a method of

farming Agriculture encompasses crop and livestock production, aquaculture, and forestry for food and non-food products. Agriculture was a key factor in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created ...

which involves cultivating a field partitioned into long, narrow strips which are alternated in a

crop rotation Crop rotation is the practice of growing a series of different types of crops in the same area across a sequence of growing seasons. This practice reduces the reliance of crops on one set of nutrients, pest and weed pressure, along with the pro ...

system. It is used when a slope is too steep or when there is no alternative method of preventing

soil erosion Soil erosion is the denudation or wearing away of the Topsoil, upper layer of soil. It is a form of soil degradation. This natural process is caused by the dynamic activity of erosive agents, that is, water, ice (glaciers), snow, Atmosphere of Ea ...

. The most common crop choices for strip cropping are closely sown crops such as

hay Hay is grass, legumes, or other herbaceous plants that have been cut and dried to be stored for use as animal fodder, either for large grazing animals raised as livestock, such as cattle, horses, goats, and sheep, or for smaller domesticate ...

wheat Wheat is a group of wild and crop domestication, domesticated Poaceae, grasses of the genus ''Triticum'' (). They are Agriculture, cultivated for their cereal grains, which are staple foods around the world. Well-known Taxonomy of wheat, whe ...

, or other

forages Foraging is searching for wild food resources. It affects an animal's Fitness (biology), fitness because it plays an important role in an animal's ability to survive and reproduce. Optimal foraging theory, Foraging theory is a branch of behaviora ...

which are alternated with strips of

row crop A row crop is a crop that can be planted in rows wide enough to allow it to be tilled or otherwise cultivated by agricultural machinery, machinery tailored for the seasonal activities of row crops. Such crops are sown by drilling or transplanti ...

s, such as

corn Maize (; ''Zea mays''), also known as corn in North American English, is a tall stout Poaceae, grass that produces cereal grain. It was domesticated by indigenous peoples of Mexico, indigenous peoples in southern Mexico about 9,000 years ago ...

soybean The soybean, soy bean, or soya bean (''Glycine max'') is a species of legume native to East Asia, widely grown for its edible bean. Soy is a staple crop, the world's most grown legume, and an important animal feed. Soy is a key source o ...

cotton Cotton (), first recorded in ancient India, is a soft, fluffy staple fiber that grows in a boll, or protective case, around the seeds of the cotton plants of the genus '' Gossypium'' in the mallow family Malvaceae. The fiber is almost pure ...

, or

sugar beet A sugar beet is a plant whose root contains a high concentration of sucrose and that is grown commercially for sugar production. In plant breeding, it is known as the Altissima cultivar group of the common beet (''Beta vulgaris''). Together with ...

s. The forages serve primarily as cover crops. In certain systems, strips in particularly-eroded areas are used to grow permanent protective vegetation, but in most systems, all strips are alternated on an annual basis.

Dimensions

The width of strips is determined by a number of factors, with the two most important being the average wind velocity in a specific site and the features of the slope, particularly the

gradient In vector calculus, the gradient of a scalar-valued differentiable function f of several variables is the vector field (or vector-valued function) \nabla f whose value at a point p gives the direction and the rate of fastest increase. The g ...

. Each strip typically ranges from 25 feet (7.6 m) to 75 feet (23 m) in width, but certain conditions may necessitate widths outside of this range. A minimum width of 50 feet (15 m) is ideal for the use of most farm equipment.

Use in conservation

The growing of a cultivated crop (as corn) in strips alternating with strips of a sod-forming crop (as hay) is arranged to follow an approximate contour of the land and minimize erosion. Saffron can also be planted with strip farming. Strip cropping helps to stop soil erosion by creating natural dams for water and preserving the strength of the soil. Certain layers of plants will absorb minerals and water from the soil more effectively than others. When water reaches the weaker soil that lacks the minerals needed to make it stronger, it normally washes it away. When strips of soil are strong enough to slow down water from moving through them, the weaker soil cannot wash away as it normally would. Because of this, farmland stays fertile much longer. The term strip cropping also refers to a method of

dry farming Dry or dryness most often refers to: * Lack of rainfall, which may refer to **Arid regions **Drought * Dry or dry area, relating to legal prohibition of selling, serving, or imbibing alcoholic beverages * Dry humor, deadpan * Dryness (medical) ...

sometimes used in areas including parts of the

Great Plains The Great Plains is a broad expanse of plain, flatland in North America. The region stretches east of the Rocky Mountains, much of it covered in prairie, steppe, and grassland. They are the western part of the Interior Plains, which include th ...

of the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

and the

Prairies Prairies are ecosystems considered part of the temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands biome by ecologists, based on similar temperate climates, moderate rainfall, and a composition of grasses, herbs, and shrubs, rather than trees, as the ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

. To accumulate moisture in those dry areas, cropland is periodically left

fallow Fallow is a farming technique in which arable land is left without sowing for one or more vegetative cycles. The goal of fallowing is to allow the land to recover and store Organic compound, organic matter while retaining moisture and disrupting ...

. Typically, the fallow and planted areas are organized in parallel long, narrow strips that are oriented normal to the prevailing winds to minimize the erosion of soil from the bare fields. Strip farming helps to prevent mass erosion by having the roots of crops hold on to the soil to prevent it from being washed away. In the

Midwestern United States The Midwestern United States (also referred to as the Midwest, the Heartland or the American Midwest) is one of the four census regions defined by the United States Census Bureau. It occupies the northern central part of the United States. It ...

, prairie strips integrate "native plant species into farm fields as contour buffers and edge-of-field filters." Prairie strips attract pollinators, build

soil health Soil health is a state of a soil meeting its range of ecosystem functions as appropriate to its environment. In more colloquial terms, the health of soil arises from favorable interactions of all soil components (living and non-living) that belong ...

, help prevent erosion, and provide wildlife habitat.

Types

Strip intercropping

Intercropping Intercropping is a multiple cropping practice that involves the cultivation of two or more crops simultaneously on the same field, a form of polyculture. The most common goal of intercropping is to produce a greater yield on a given piece of land ...

is the practice of growing two or more crops in the same field. The field is still divided into strips, but the strips are narrower and contiguous, which helps facilitate modern farm machinery as well as allows adjoining plants to benefit from synergistic growth effects.

Contour strip cropping

Contour strip cropping employs a crop rotation system down a slope to minimize runoff and rain velocity. It is used mainly on gentle slope gradients. The width of protective strips is often higher than that of the row crop strips, so they may effectively intercept runoff.

References

{{reflist Agriculture by type Soil