Useless info thread #1 to fight insomnia

Crop rotation is the practice of growing two (or more) dissimilar type of crops in the same space in sequence. It is one component of polyculture. Examples of types of crops that can be rotated include cereals and legumes, and deep-rooted and short-rooted plants. Permaculture Mandala illustration by Graham Burnett, summarising the ethics and principles of permaculture design. ...

Crop rotation is widely practiced in vegetable production, where it is possible to grow a cool-season crop (such as lettuce) in the spring, follow with a warm-season crop (such as tomatoes) in the summer, and then grow a winter crop (such as mache) harvested in early spring. Binomial name Lactuca sativa L. Lettuce is a temperate annual plant most often grown as a leaf vegetable. ... Binomial name Solanum lycopersicum L. The tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) is a plant in the Solanaceae or nightshade family, native to South, Central America and Mexico. ... Valerianella locusta line drawing showing its bolted state Corn salad (Valerianella locusta) is a small plant of the family Valerianaceae which grows in a low rosette and in mild climates is used as a winter green, especially in salads. ...

Crop rotation is less common with field crops because the timing is difficult to manage, particularly since most crop-growing regions experience a good deal of rainfall during the late spring and early summer season, which interrupts fieldwork.

Crop rotation avoids a decrease in soil fertility, as growing the same crop repeatedly in the same place eventually depletes the soil of various nutrients. A crop that leaches the soil of one kind of nutrient is followed during the next growing season by a crop that returns that nutrient to the soil, for example, rice followed by wheat, or rice followed by cotton. If crop rotation is done properly, farmers can keep their fields under continuous production, without a need to let them lie fallow or to apply artificial fertilizers, both of which can be expensive. This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ... For the heavy metal band see Soil (band) Soil is unconsolidated rock particle that lies on the surface of the earth, supporting the growth of plants, and serving as a habitat for animal life from microorganisms to small animals. ... Nutrients and the body A nutrient is any element or compound necessary for or contributing to an organisms metabolism, growth, or other functioning. ... Fertilizers or fertilisers are compounds given to plants with the intention of promoting growth; they are usually applied either via the soil, for uptake by plant roots, or by foliar spraying, for uptake through leaves. ...

Legumes, plants of the family Fabaceae, for instance, have nodules on their roots which contain nitrogen-fixing bacteria. It therefore makes good sense agriculturally to alternate them with cereals (family Poaceae) and other plants that need nitrogen. A common modern crop rotation is alternating soybeans and maize (corn). In subsistence farming, it also makes good nutritional sense to grow beans and grain at the same time in different fields. Subfamilies Faboideae Caesalpinioideae Mimosoideae References GRIN-CA 2002-09-01 The name Fabaceae belongs to either of two families, depending on viewpoint. ... Nitrogen fixation is the process by which nitrogen is taken from its relatively inert molecular form (N2) in the atmosphere and converted into nitrogen compounds useful for other chemical processes (such as, notably, ammonia, nitrate and nitrogen dioxide). ... Phyla/Divisions Actinobacteria Aquificae Bacteroidetes/Chlorobi Chlamydiae/Verrucomicrobia Chloroflexi Chrysiogenetes Cyanobacteria Deferribacteres Deinococcus-Thermus Dictyoglomi Fibrobacteres/Acidobacteria Firmicutes Fusobacteria Gemmatimonadetes Nitrospirae Omnibacteria Planctomycetes Proteobacteria Spirochaetes Thermodesulfobacteria Thermomicrobia Thermotogae Bacteria (singular, bacterium) are a major group of living organisms. ... Subfamilies There are 7 subfamilies: Subfamily Arundinoideae Subfamily Bambusoideae Subfamily Centothecoideae Subfamily Chloridoideae Subfamily Panicoideae Subfamily Pooideae Subfamily Stipoideae The true grasses are monocotyledonous plants (Class Liliopsida) in the Family Poaceae, formerly also known as Gramineae. ... Binomial name Glycine max Merr. ... Binomial name Zea mays L. Maize (Zea mays ssp. ...

Crop rotation is also used to control pests and diseases that establish in the soil. Families of plants tend to have similar pests. By regularly changing the planting location, the pest cycles can be broken or limited. This principle is of particular use in organic farming, where pest control is achieved without synthetic pesticides, herbicides and fungicides. Utilizing both traditional and scientific knowledge, organic agriculture is a system that relies on ecosystem management rather than external agricultural inputs. ... Biological control of pests and diseases // Overview A key belief of the organic gardener is that diversity furthers health. ...

Some plants follow one another favorably and others do not which brings risks of yield losses, development of diseases and weeds.

The choice of the rotation depends on the nature of the soil, which determines the species of plants that one can cultivate, but also on animal breeding, which plays a role in the choice of the rotation (fodder crops, straw). Finally a good rotation takes into account the proportion of natural meadows.
The choice of the rotation is also determined by the economical aspects (local needs, market accessibility). For the heavy metal band see Soil (band) Soil is unconsolidated rock particle that lies on the surface of the earth, supporting the growth of plants, and serving as a habitat for animal life from microorganisms to small animals. ...

Crop rotation was already mentioned in the Roman literature, and referred to by great civilizations in Africa and Asia. From the end of the Middle Ages until the 20th century, the three-year rotation was practised by farmers in Europe with a rotation: rye or winter wheat, followed by spring oats or barley, then letting the soil rest (fallow) during the third stage. The fact that suitable rotations made it possible to restore or to maintain a productive soil has long been recognised. Following the Black Death, it became common to grow peas or beans (for animal fodder) as the spring crop, in place of grains for human consumption. Ancient Rome was a civilization that existed in Europe, North Africa, and the Middle East between 753 BC and its downfall in AD 476. ... Africa is the worlds second-largest continent and second most populous after Asia. ... World map showing location of Asia Asia is the central and eastern part of Eurasia, defined by subtracting Europe from Eurasia. ... The Middle Ages formed the middle period in a traditional schematic division of European history into three ages: the classical civilization of Antiquity, the Middle Ages, and modern times, beginning with the Renaissance. ... (19th century - 20th century - 21st century - more centuries) Decades: 1900s 1910s 1920s 1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s As a means of recording the passage of time, the 20th century was that century which lasted from 1901–2000 in the sense of the Gregorian calendar (1900–1999 in the... Binomial name Secale cereale M.Bieb. ... Species T. boeoticum T. durum T. monococcum T. spelta References: ITIS 42236 2002-09-22 Wheat (Triticum spp. ... Binomial name Avena sativa Carolus Linnaeus (1753) The Oat (Avena sativa) is a species of cereal grain, and the seeds of this plant. ... Binomial name Hordeum vulgare L. Barley (Hordeum vulgare) is a major food and animal feed crop, a member of the grass family Poaceae. ... Illustration of the Black Death from the Toggenburg Bible (1411). ... Binomial name Pisum sativum L. A pea is the small, edible round green bean which grows in a pod on the leguminous vine Pisum sativum. ... Green beans Bean is a common name for large plant seeds of several genera of Fabaceae (formerly Leguminosae) used for food or feed. ... In agriculture, fodder or animal feed is any foodstuff that is used specifically to feed livestock, such as cattle, sheep, chickens and pigs. ...

A four-field rotation was pioneered by the Dutch and popularised by the British agriculturist Charles Townshend in the 18th century. The system (wheat, barley, turnips and clover), opened up a fodder crop and grazing crop allowing livestock to be bred year-round. The four field rotation was a key development in the British Agricultural Revolution. Charles Townshend, 2nd Viscount Townshend (1674 - June 21, 1738), English statesman, was the eldest son of Sir Horatio Townshend, Bart. ... (17th century - 18th century - 19th century - more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 18th century refers to the century that lasted from 1701 through 1800. ... Turnip can refer to two vegetables, which are described under the articles Turnip (brassica rapa) and Rutabaga. ... Species See text Clover (Trifolium) is a genus of about 300 species of plants in the pea family Fabaceae. ... Sheep are commonly bred as livestock. ... The British agricultural revolution is the name ascribed to a series of developments in agricultural practices in Britain somewhere between the Middle Ages and the mid-19th century which resulted in a massive increase in productivity and agricultural output. ...

Crop rotation was pioneered in the USA by George Washington Carver, not only through laboratory work, but through practical promotion and education. George Washington Carver, 1906 George Washington Carver (c. ...

In the Green revolution, the practice of crop rotation gave way in some parts of the world to that of simply adding the necessary chemical inputs to the depleted soil, e.g. replacing nitrogen with ammonium nitrate and restoring soil pH with lime. However, disadvantages of monoculture from the standpoint of sustainable agriculture have since become apparent. The Green Revolution is the process of technological development of agricultural techniques that began in Mexico in 1944 and has since spread throughout the world. ... The chemical compound ammonium nitrate, the nitrate of ammonia with chemical formula NH4NO3, is commonly used in agriculture as a high-nitrogen fertilizer. ... The title of this article begins with a capital letter, due to technical limitations of the MediaWiki software. ... Monoculture means literally a single shared integrated pattern. ... Sustainable agriculture integrates three main goals: environmental stewardship, farm profitability, and prosperous farming communities. ...

 

Bump for 2,000th post