KISSAN - Kerala

Cropping pattern
The yearly sequence and spatial arrangement of crops and fallow on a given area.

Cropping system
The cropping pattern used on a farm and its interactions with farm resources, other farm enterprises, and available technology which determine their makeup.

Mixed farming
Cropping pattern which involve the raising of crops, animals and or trees.

Ratooning
One of the important methods of intensive cropping, allowing the stubbles of the original crop to strike again after harvesting and to raise another crop.

Live mulch system
Live mulch crop production involves planting a food crop directly into a living cover of an established cover crop without tillage or the destruction of the fallow vegetation.

Mixed cropping
Growing of two or more crops simultaneously and intermingled without row arrangements, where there is significant amount of intercrop competition.

Intercropping
Growing of two or more crops simultaneously in alternate rows or otherwise in the same area, where there is significant amount of inter crop competition.
Advantages of intercropping are
a)greater stability of yield over different seasons,
b) better use of growth resources,
c) better control of weeds, pests and diseases,
d) one crop provides physical support to the other crop,
e) one crop provides shelter to the other crop,
f) erosion control through providing continuous leaf cover over the ground surface, and g) it is the small farmers of limited means who is most likely to benefit.

Thereare some disadvantages as well,as for eg.
a)yield decrease because of adverse competition effect,
b)allelopathic effect,
c)creates obstruction in the free use of machines for intercultural operations and
d)large farmers with adequate resources may likely to get less benefit out of intercropping.

Relay planting is inter planting or inter sowing of seeds/seedlings of the following crop in the preceding/maturing crop.
Multiple cropping is defined as the growing of more than one crop on the same land in one year.

There are some other terms related to multiple cropping are the following.
Sole cropping-One crop variety grown alone in pure stands at normal density. Also known as solid planting.
Monoculture-The repetitive growing of the same sole crop on the same land.
Crop rotation-The repetitive cultivation of an ordered succession of crops or crops and fallow on the same land.