Cropping systems organize crop production to best utilize resources like soil, water, sunlight, and labor. There are several types of cropping systems including mono-cropping, multiple cropping, intercropping, and sequence cropping. In India, major rice-based cropping systems include rice-wheat, rice-rice, cotton-wheat, soybean-wheat, and maize-wheat. Rice is commonly intercropped with crops like black gram, green gram, and sesame. Relay/paira/utera cropping involves sowing the next crop in maturing rice fields. Sequential cropping refers to growing rice with preceding or succeeding crops to utilize residual fertility.

1. Prepared By : Gurunath Upparatti
PALB 5185
Jr.Msc .Dept.of Agronomy

2. CROPPING SYSTEM
• Cropping system is a critical aspect in developing an
effective ecological farming system to manage and
organize crops so that they best utilize the available
resources. (soil, air, sunlight, water, labour,
equipments)
• It represents cropping patterns used on a farm and
their interaction with farm resources and farm
enterprises and available technology which determine
their makeup. It is executed in the field level.

3. Types of cropping systems
Mono cropping: Growing of single crop on a piece of
land year after year.
Multiple cropping: Two or more crops grown in the
same field within a given year with a definite row
arrangement.
Intercropping: Growing two or more crops
simultaneously on the same piece of land with a
definite row pattern.
Sequence cropping: Growing two or more crops in
sequence on the same piece of land in a farming year.

4. Efficient cropping systems
• Cropping systems depends on farm resources, farm
enterprise and farm technology.
• When land is limited, intensive cropping is adopted to
fully utilise available water and labour.
• When sufficient and cheap labour is available,
vegetable crops are also included in the cropping
system.
• When capital is not a constraint, commercial crops
like sugarcane, banana, turmeric etc can be fitted in
cropping system.

5. • Rainfall is <750 mm/annum, mono cropping is followed.
• Rainfall is >750 mm/annum, intercropping is practiced.
• When water is plenty, triple and quadrate cropping is
adopted.
• Farm enterprises like dairying, poultry etc also influence the
type of cropping system.
• When farm enterprises includes dairy, the cropping system
should contain fodder crops as component crops.

6. Benefits of cropping systems
• Maintain and enhance soil fertility.
• Enhanced crop growth.
• Minimize spread of diseases.
• Control weeds.
• Inhibit pest and insect growth.
• Use resources more effectively.
• Reduce risk for crop failure.
• Improved food and financial security.

7. Major Cropping Systems in India
Rice – wheat (10.5 m ha)
Rice – rice (5.89 m ha)
Cotton – wheat (1.09 m ha)
Soybean – wheat (2.23 m ha)
Maize – wheat (1.86 m ha)
P. millet - wheat (2.26 m ha)

8. Rice based cropping pattern in India:
• Found in heavy rainfall area
• Most traditional area- UP, Bihar, MP, WB, Orissa, AP,
TN, Kerala etc.
• Non traditional area- Punjab, Haryana & Western UP
• Total 30 rice based cropping patterns are adopted in
India and the most prominent & adopted one is Rice -
Wheat

9. Rice based cropping systems
In rice growing areas several crop combinations
(cropping systems) are in practice.Based on
1. Agro-ecological conditions,
2. Market and domestic needs
3. Facilities available with farmers.
Some of the rice based systems are,
1. Mixed varietal cropping of rice.
2. Inter cropping rice with other crops.
3. Relay/paira/utera cropping.
4. Sequential cropping in rice.

10. Mixed varietal cropping of rice:
• System of mixing seed of early rice (ahu) with late
maturing deep water rice (bao).
• Mainly practiced in West Bengal.
• Can avoid total crop loss at the event of flood.
• The seed of both the types of mixed in 1:1 ratio and
has given higher yield than sole cropping of either
type.
• Growing of a mixture of autumn and winter varieties
in 3:1 ratio in Tamil Nadu and Kerala

11. Intercropping rice with other crops
• It is a common practice under upland conditions in
north and north-eastern part of the country
• To grow rice intercropped with black gram, green
gram, sesame, maize, finger millet or other miner
millets.
• The ratio of rice and inter crop is preferred to be 3-
4:1.

13. Relav/paira/utera cropping
• The seed of succeeding crops like lentil, gram, pea,
lathyrus, berseem, linseed etc. is sown broadcast in
maturing rice crop.
• This practice saves time; money (to be spent on land
preparation etc.) utilizes residual fertility.
• This practice is common in both upland and low land
rice culture.

14. Sequential cropping in rice
Irrigated conditions
• Rice-Rice-Rice
• Rice-Rice-Cereal
Rice under integrated
farming system
• Rice-Fish-Poultry
• Rice-Fish-Duckery
Under upland
• Rice-Chickpea
• Rice-Lentil
• Rice-Rice-Pulses
• Rice-Wheat-Pulse
• Rice-Toria- Wheat
• Rice-Mustard/Unseed
Rice-Barley
• Rice-Pea
Sequential cropping refers to the crops grown as
preceding or succeeding with rice as shown below;

15. 15
Review of Research

17. Ray et.al. 2009West Bengal

18. Table : Effect of leguminous crops on soil
fertility in rice based cropping systems
Pakistan Ali et al. 2012

19. Conclusion
•The diversified rice based systems proved to be more
efficient than existing rice based systems and calls for
adoption of strategies as presented above.
•The quantum jumps in total farm production are
achievable with use of improved management
practices under diversified systems as identified.