Glossary

Agroforestry

land-use systems in which trees or shrubs are grown in association with agricultural crops, pastures or livestock, and in which there are both ecological and economic interactions between trees and other components.

Double cropping

a form of sequential cropping in which two crops are grown in sequence within a year on a piece of land by seeding or transplanting one after the harvest of the other.

Intercropping

more than one crop on a given area at one time arranged in a geometric pattern. A typical pattern in India might be two rows of sorghum alternating with one row of pigeonpea.

Land equivalent ratio (LER)

the land needed under monoculture to produce the same amount of crop yields as from 1 ha of intercropping or mixed cropping.

Mixed cropping

growing two or more crops simultaneously in the same field without rows.

Monoculture

growing only one crop on the land in a given crop season.

Multiple cropping

the practice of growing more than one crop on the same land in one year. It involves several alternative patterns of crop arrangement in space and time such as mixed cropping, intercropping, relay-cropping, sequential cropping, double cropping, triple cropping, etc.

Multiple cropping index (MCI)

the sum of areas planted to different crops harvested during the year, divided by the total cultivated area.

Ratoon cropping

the cultivation of an additional crop from the regrowth of stubbles of a main crop after its harvest, thereby avoiding replanting as in sugar cane, sorghum and rice.

Relay cropping

a form of intercropping growing two or more crops in a sequence usually planting the succeeding crop after the flowering, but before the harvesting of the preceding crop.

Sequential cropping

growing two or more crops in a sequence, planting succeeding crop after the harvesting of the previous one.

Strip cropping

growing two or more crops simultaneously in different strips widely enough to permit independent cultivation but sufficiently narrow for the crops to interact agronomically.

Turnaround time

period between the harvesting of the preceding crop and planting of the succeeding crop in a specific field.

FAO TECHNICAL PAPERS

FAO SOILS BULLETINS

1

Soils of the arid zones of Chile, 1965 (E*)

2

A survey of soils laboratories in sixty-four FAO member countries, 1965 (E*)

3

Guide on general and specialized equipment for soils laboratories, 1966 (E*)

4

Guide to sixty soil and water conservation practices, 1966 (E*)

5

Selection of soil for cocoa, 1966 (E* F* S*)

6

Aerial photo interpretation in soil survey, 1967 (C* E* F* S*)

7

A practical manual of soil microbiology laboratory methods, 1967 (E*)

8

Soil survey interpretation and its use, 1967 (E*)

9

The preparation of soil survey reports, 1970 (E* F* S*)

10

Physical and chemical methods of soil and water analysis, 1970 (E F S)

11

Soil fertility investigations on farmers' fields, 1970 (E F S*)

12

The response of wheat to fertilizers, 1971 (E)

13

Land degradation, 1971 (C* E*)

14

Improving soil fertility in Africa, 1971 (E* F*)

15

Legislative principles of soil conservation, 1971 (E*)

16

Effects of intensive fertilizer use on the human environment, 1972 (E)

17

Trace elements in soils and agriculture, 1972 (E F S*)

18

Guide to the calibration of soil tests for fertilizer recommendations, 1973 (E S*)

19

Soil survey interpretation for engineering purposes, 1973(EF-S*)

20

Fertilizer legislation, 1973 (E* S)

21

Calcareous soils, 1973 (E* F*)

22

Approaches to land classification, 1974 (E*)

23

Management properties of ferralsols, 1974 (E)

24

Shifting cultivation and soil conservation in Africa, 1974 (E* F S)

25

Sandy soils, 1975 (E*) ^s

26

Planning and organization of fertilizer development in Africa, 1975(E*)

27

Organic materials as fertilizers, 1975 (E* F* S*)

28

S.I. Units and nomenclature in soil science, 1975 (E)

29

Land evaluation in Europe, 1975 (E*)

30

Soil conservation for developing countries, 1976 (Ar C* E* F* S*)

31

Prognosis of salinity and alkalinity, 1976 (E)

32

A framework for land evaluation, 1976 (C* E* F* S*)

33

Soil conservation and management in developing countries, 1977 (E F)

34

Assessing soil degradation, 1977 (E*)

35

Organic materials and soil productivity, 1977 (C* E)

36

Organic recycling in Asia, 1978 (C* E*)

37

Improved use of plant nutrients, 1978 (C* E)

38/1

Soil and plant testing and analysis, 1980 (E)

38/2

Soil and plant testing as a basis of fertilizer recommendations, 1980 (E* S*)

39

Salt-affected soils and their management, 1988 (Ar E)

40

China: recycling of organic wastes in agriculture, 1977 (E F* S)

41

China: azolla propagation and small-scale biogas technology, 1978(E*FS)

42

Soil survey investigations for irrigation, 1979 (C* E F)

43

Organic recycling in Africa, 1980 (E)

44

Watershed development with special reference to soil and water conservation, 1979 (C* E F S*)

45

Organic materials and soil productivity in the Near East, 1982 (E with Arabic summary)

46

Blue-green algae for rice production - a manual for its promotion, 1981 (E)

47

Le recyclage des résidus agricoles organiques en Afrique, 1982 (F)

48

Micronutrients and the nutrient status of soils: a global study, 1982 (E)

49

Application of nitrogen-fixing systems in soil management, 1982 (C* E F S*)

50

Keeping the land alive: soil erosion - its causes and cures, 1983 (E F S)

51

El reciclaje de materias orgánicas en la agricultura de América Latina, 1983 (S*)

52

Guidelines: land evaluation for rainfed agriculture, 1983 (C** E F S)

53

Improved production systems as an alternative to shifting cultivation, 1984 (E F S)

54

Tillage systems for soil and water conservation, 1984 (C E F S*)

55

Guidelines: land evaluation for irrigated agriculture, 1985 (C E F S)

56

Soil management: compost production and use in tropical and subtropical environments, 1987 (E F S)

57

Soil and water conservation in semi-arid areas, 1987 (C E F)

58

Guidelines: land evaluation for extensive grazing, 1991 (E)

59

Nature and management of tropical peat soils, 1988 (E)

60

Soil conservation for small farmers in the humid tropics, 1989 (E S)

61

Radioactive fallout in soils, crops and food, 1989 (E F S)

62

Management of gypsiferous soils, 1990 (Ar** E)

63

Micronutrient assessment at the country level: an international study, 1990 (E)

64

A study of the reasons for success or failure of soil conservation projects, 1991 (E F S)

65

Status of cadmium, lead, cobalt and selenium in soils and plants of thirty countries, 1992 (E)

66

Manual de sistemas de labranza para América Latina, 1992 (S)

67

Agro-ecological assessments for national planning: the example of Kenya, 1993 (E)

68

Field measurement of soil erosion and runoff, 1993 (EF)

69

Soil tillage in Africa: needs and challenges, 1993 (E)

70

Introduction à la gestion conservatoire de l'eau, de la biomasse et de la fertilité des sols (G C E S), 1994 (F)

71

Tillage systems in the tropics: management options and sustainability implications, 1995 (E)

72

Sustainable dryland cropping in relation to soil productivity, 1995 (E)

Availability: December 1995

Ar

Arabic

C

Chinese

E

English

F

French

P

Portuguese

S

Spanish

Multil

Multilingual

*

Out of print

**

In preparation

The FAO Technical Papers are available through the authorized FAO Sales Agents or directly from Distribution and Sales Section, FAO, Viale delle Terme di Caracalla, 00100 Rome, Italy.

The main themes of this bulletin are that management of soil productivity Is central to sustainable dryland cropping and that successful management depends on understanding the mechanisms underlying soil productivity and recognizing non-technical factors such as human goals. It follows that the publication's conclusions are not prescriptive; rather It aims to encourage researchers and policy-makers to work jointly with farmers to develop better cropping systems and to devise locally acceptable indicators of sustainability.

Agroforestry	land-use systems in which trees or shrubs are grown in association with agricultural crops, pastures or livestock, and in which there are both ecological and economic interactions between trees and other components.
Double cropping	a form of sequential cropping in which two crops are grown in sequence within a year on a piece of land by seeding or transplanting one after the harvest of the other.
Intercropping	more than one crop on a given area at one time arranged in a geometric pattern. A typical pattern in India might be two rows of sorghum alternating with one row of pigeonpea.
Land equivalent ratio (LER)	the land needed under monoculture to produce the same amount of crop yields as from 1 ha of intercropping or mixed cropping.
Mixed cropping	growing two or more crops simultaneously in the same field without rows.
Monoculture	growing only one crop on the land in a given crop season.
Multiple cropping	the practice of growing more than one crop on the same land in one year. It involves several alternative patterns of crop arrangement in space and time such as mixed cropping, intercropping, relay-cropping, sequential cropping, double cropping, triple cropping, etc.
Multiple cropping index (MCI)	the sum of areas planted to different crops harvested during the year, divided by the total cultivated area.
Ratoon cropping	the cultivation of an additional crop from the regrowth of stubbles of a main crop after its harvest, thereby avoiding replanting as in sugar cane, sorghum and rice.
Relay cropping	a form of intercropping growing two or more crops in a sequence usually planting the succeeding crop after the flowering, but before the harvesting of the preceding crop.
Sequential cropping	growing two or more crops in a sequence, planting succeeding crop after the harvesting of the previous one.
Strip cropping	growing two or more crops simultaneously in different strips widely enough to permit independent cultivation but sufficiently narrow for the crops to interact agronomically.
Turnaround time	period between the harvesting of the preceding crop and planting of the succeeding crop in a specific field.

FAO SOILS BULLETINS
1	Soils of the arid zones of Chile, 1965 (E*)
2	A survey of soils laboratories in sixty-four FAO member countries, 1965 (E*)
3	Guide on general and specialized equipment for soils laboratories, 1966 (E*)
4	Guide to sixty soil and water conservation practices, 1966 (E*)
5	Selection of soil for cocoa, 1966 (E* F* S*)
6	Aerial photo interpretation in soil survey, 1967 (C* E* F* S*)
7	A practical manual of soil microbiology laboratory methods, 1967 (E*)
8	Soil survey interpretation and its use, 1967 (E*)
9	The preparation of soil survey reports, 1970 (E* F* S*)
10	Physical and chemical methods of soil and water analysis, 1970 (E F S)
11	Soil fertility investigations on farmers' fields, 1970 (E F S*)
12	The response of wheat to fertilizers, 1971 (E)
13	Land degradation, 1971 (C* E*)
14	Improving soil fertility in Africa, 1971 (E* F*)
15	Legislative principles of soil conservation, 1971 (E*)
16	Effects of intensive fertilizer use on the human environment, 1972 (E)
17	Trace elements in soils and agriculture, 1972 (E F S*)
18	Guide to the calibration of soil tests for fertilizer recommendations, 1973 (E S*)
19	Soil survey interpretation for engineering purposes, 1973(EF-S*)
20	Fertilizer legislation, 1973 (E* S)
21	Calcareous soils, 1973 (E* F*)
22	Approaches to land classification, 1974 (E*)
23	Management properties of ferralsols, 1974 (E)
24	Shifting cultivation and soil conservation in Africa, 1974 (E* F S)
25	Sandy soils, 1975 (E*) ^s
26	Planning and organization of fertilizer development in Africa, 1975(E*)
27	Organic materials as fertilizers, 1975 (E* F* S*)
28	S.I. Units and nomenclature in soil science, 1975 (E)
29	Land evaluation in Europe, 1975 (E*)
30	Soil conservation for developing countries, 1976 (Ar C* E* F* S*)
31	Prognosis of salinity and alkalinity, 1976 (E)
32	A framework for land evaluation, 1976 (C* E* F* S*)
33	Soil conservation and management in developing countries, 1977 (E F)
34	Assessing soil degradation, 1977 (E*)
35	Organic materials and soil productivity, 1977 (C* E)
36	Organic recycling in Asia, 1978 (C* E*)
37	Improved use of plant nutrients, 1978 (C* E)
38/1	Soil and plant testing and analysis, 1980 (E)
38/2	Soil and plant testing as a basis of fertilizer recommendations, 1980 (E* S*)
39	Salt-affected soils and their management, 1988 (Ar E)
40	China: recycling of organic wastes in agriculture, 1977 (E F* S)
41	China: azolla propagation and small-scale biogas technology, 1978(E*FS)
42	Soil survey investigations for irrigation, 1979 (C* E F)
43	Organic recycling in Africa, 1980 (E)
44	Watershed development with special reference to soil and water conservation, 1979 (C* E F S*)
45	Organic materials and soil productivity in the Near East, 1982 (E with Arabic summary)
46	Blue-green algae for rice production - a manual for its promotion, 1981 (E)
47	Le recyclage des résidus agricoles organiques en Afrique, 1982 (F)
48	Micronutrients and the nutrient status of soils: a global study, 1982 (E)
49	Application of nitrogen-fixing systems in soil management, 1982 (C* E F S*)
50	Keeping the land alive: soil erosion - its causes and cures, 1983 (E F S)
51	El reciclaje de materias orgánicas en la agricultura de América Latina, 1983 (S*)
52	Guidelines: land evaluation for rainfed agriculture, 1983 (C** E F S)
53	Improved production systems as an alternative to shifting cultivation, 1984 (E F S)
54	Tillage systems for soil and water conservation, 1984 (C E F S*)
55	Guidelines: land evaluation for irrigated agriculture, 1985 (C E F S)
56	Soil management: compost production and use in tropical and subtropical environments, 1987 (E F S)
57	Soil and water conservation in semi-arid areas, 1987 (C E F)
58	Guidelines: land evaluation for extensive grazing, 1991 (E)
59	Nature and management of tropical peat soils, 1988 (E)
60	Soil conservation for small farmers in the humid tropics, 1989 (E S)
61	Radioactive fallout in soils, crops and food, 1989 (E F S)
62	Management of gypsiferous soils, 1990 (Ar** E)
63	Micronutrient assessment at the country level: an international study, 1990 (E)
64	A study of the reasons for success or failure of soil conservation projects, 1991 (E F S)
65	Status of cadmium, lead, cobalt and selenium in soils and plants of thirty countries, 1992 (E)
66	Manual de sistemas de labranza para América Latina, 1992 (S)
67	Agro-ecological assessments for national planning: the example of Kenya, 1993 (E)
68	Field measurement of soil erosion and runoff, 1993 (EF)
69	Soil tillage in Africa: needs and challenges, 1993 (E)
70	Introduction à la gestion conservatoire de l'eau, de la biomasse et de la fertilité des sols (G C E S), 1994 (F)
71	Tillage systems in the tropics: management options and sustainability implications, 1995 (E)
72	Sustainable dryland cropping in relation to soil productivity, 1995 (E)