All Topics  
Polyculture

 

 
   Email Print
   Bookmark   Link
 

 

Polyculture
 
 
  Topics Polyculture Topic Home

Polyculture is agriculture using multiple crops in the same space, in imitation of the diversity of natural ecosystems, and avoiding large stands of single crops, or monoculture
Monoculture

Monoculture is the agricultural practice of producing or growing one single crop over a wide area. The term is also applied in several fields. It is usually developed by extensive growing farmers....
. It includes crop rotation
Crop rotation

Crop rotation or Crop sequencing is the practice of growing a series of dissimilar types of Crop in the same area in sequential seasons for various benefits such as to avoid the build up of pathogens and pests that often occurs when one species is continuously cropped....
, multi-cropping, intercropping
Intercropping

Intercropping is the agricultural practice of cultivating two or more crops in the same space at the same time . A practice often associated with sustainable agriculture and organic farming, intercropping is one form of polyculture, using companion planting principles....
, companion planting
Companion planting

Companion planting in gardening and agriculture is planting of different crops in close physical proximity, on the theory that they will help each other....
, beneficial weed
Beneficial weed

A Beneficial weed is any of various plants not generally considered domestication, but which nonetheless has some companion plant effect, or else is edible or somehow beneficial....
s, and alley cropping.

Polyculture, though it often requires more labor, has several advantages over monoculture:





Polyculture is one of the principles of permaculture
Permaculture

Permaculture is an approach to designing human settlements and perennial agriculture systems that mimic the relationships found in the natural Ecology....
.








Discussion
Ask a question about 'Polyculture'
Start a new discussion about 'Polyculture'
Answer questions from other users
Full Discussion Forum



Encyclopedia


Polyculture is agriculture using multiple crops in the same space, in imitation of the diversity of natural ecosystems, and avoiding large stands of single crops, or monoculture
Monoculture

Monoculture is the agricultural practice of producing or growing one single crop over a wide area. The term is also applied in several fields. It is usually developed by extensive growing farmers....
. It includes crop rotation
Crop rotation

Crop rotation or Crop sequencing is the practice of growing a series of dissimilar types of Crop in the same area in sequential seasons for various benefits such as to avoid the build up of pathogens and pests that often occurs when one species is continuously cropped....
, multi-cropping, intercropping
Intercropping

Intercropping is the agricultural practice of cultivating two or more crops in the same space at the same time . A practice often associated with sustainable agriculture and organic farming, intercropping is one form of polyculture, using companion planting principles....
, companion planting
Companion planting

Companion planting in gardening and agriculture is planting of different crops in close physical proximity, on the theory that they will help each other....
, beneficial weed
Beneficial weed

A Beneficial weed is any of various plants not generally considered domestication, but which nonetheless has some companion plant effect, or else is edible or somehow beneficial....
s, and alley cropping.

Polyculture, though it often requires more labor, has several advantages over monoculture:

  • The diversity of crops avoids the susceptibility of monocultures to disease. For example, a in China
    China

    China is a Culture of China, an ancient civilization, and, depending on perspective, a national or multinational entity extending over a large area in East Asia....
     reported in Nature
    Nature (journal)

    Nature is a prominent scientific journal, first published on 4 November 1869. Although most scientific journals are now highly specialized, Nature is one of the few journals, along with other weekly journals such as Science and Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, that still publishes original research articles ac...
     showed that planting several varieties of rice
    Rice

    Rice is a staple food for a large part of the world's human population, especially in tropical Latin America, and East Asia, South Asia and Southeast Asia, making it the second-most consumed cereal grain, after maize....
     in the same field increased yields by 89%, largely because of a dramatic (94%) decrease in the incidence of disease, which made pesticides redundant.


  • The greater variety of crops provides habitat for more species, increasing local biodiversity
    Biodiversity

    Biodiversity is the variation of life forms within a given ecosystem, biome, or for the entire Earth. Biodiversity is often used as a measure of the health of biological systems....
    . This is one example of Reconciliation Ecology
    Reconciliation ecology

    Reconciliation ecology is the science of accommodating wild species within human-modified or -occupied landscapes. It holds that protecting wilderness, though necessary, is not enough to preserve biodiversity given the large area required for a diverse range of species to survive in the long term....
    , or accommodating biodiversity within human landscapes.


Polyculture is one of the principles of permaculture
Permaculture

Permaculture is an approach to designing human settlements and perennial agriculture systems that mimic the relationships found in the natural Ecology....
.

See also

  • Agroecology
    Agroecology

    The term agroecology can be used in multiple ways. Broadly stated, it is the study of the role of agriculture in the world. Agroecology provides an interdisciplinary framework with which to study the activity of agriculture....
  • Aquaponics
    Aquaponics

    Aquaponics is the symbiosis cultivation of plants and aquatic animals in a recirculating environment. Alternate definition: An integrated hydroponics and aquaculture system....
  • Beneficial weed
    Beneficial weed

    A Beneficial weed is any of various plants not generally considered domestication, but which nonetheless has some companion plant effect, or else is edible or somehow beneficial....
    s
  • Companion planting
    Companion planting

    Companion planting in gardening and agriculture is planting of different crops in close physical proximity, on the theory that they will help each other....
  • Forest gardening
    Forest gardening

    Forest gardening is a food production and land management system based on replicating woodland ecosystems, but substituting trees , bushes, shrubs, herbs and vegetables which have ecological yield directly useful to humans....
  • Heirloom plant
    Heirloom plant

    An heirloom plant, heirloom variety, or heirloom vegetable is a cultivar that was commonly grown during earlier periods in human history, but which is not used in modern industrial agriculture....
  • Home gardens
    Home gardens

    Home gardens, also known as forest gardens, are found in humid areas. They use inter-cropping to cultivate trees, agriculture, and livestock on the same land....
  • Integrated Multi-trophic Aquaculture
    Integrated Multi-Trophic Aquaculture

    Integrated Multi-Trophic Aquaculture is a practice in which the by-products from one species are recycled to become inputs for another. Fed aquaculture is combined with inorganic extractive and organic extractive aquaculture to create balanced systems for environmental sustainability , economic stability and social acceptability ....
  • Nurse crop
    Nurse crop

    In agriculture, a nurse crop is an annual plant crop used to assist in establishment of a perennial plant crop. The widest use of nurse crops is in the establishment of legume plants such as alfalfa, clover, and trefoil....
  • gardens


External links