**Advantages**


**33**

*Soil and Water Conservation Measures for Agricultural Sustainability*

• Reduce the weed population and epidemic attack of insect pests or diseases.

Growing alternate strips of erosion permitting and erosion resistant crops with a deep root system and high canopy density in the same field is known as strip cropping. This practice reduces the runoff velocity and checks erosion processes and nutrients loss from the field [36, 44]. The erosion resisting crops protects soil from beating action of raindrops, reduces runoff velocity, and thereby increased time of concentration which results in a higher volume of soil moisture and increased crop production [4]. Strip cropping is practiced for controlling the run-off and erosion

i.**Contour strip cropping:** The growing of alternate strips of erosion permitting and erosion resisting crops across the slopes on the contour is known as contour strip cropping. It reduces the direct beating action of raindrops on the soil surface, length of the slope, runoff flow and increases rainwater

ii.**Field strip cropping:** In this practice the field crops are grown in more or less parallel strips across fairly uniform slopes, but not on exact contours. It is useful on regular slopes and with soils of high infiltration rates, where contour

iii.**Wind strip cropping:** It consists of the planting of tall-growing row crops (such as maize, pearl millet, and sorghum) and close or short growing crops in alternately arranged straight and long, but relatively narrow, parallel strips laid out right across the direction of the prevailing wind, regardless of the contour.

iv.**Permanent or temporary buffer strip cropping:** It is the growing of permanent strips of grasses or legume or a mixture of grass and legume in highly eroded areas or in areas that do not fit into regular rotation, i.e. steep or highly eroded, slopes in fields under contour strip cropping. These strips are not practiced in normal strip cropping and generally planted permanent

Mulch is any organic or non-organic material that is used to cover the soil surface to protect the soil from being eroded away, reduce evaporation, increase infiltration, regulate soil temperature, improve soil structure, and thereby conserve soil moisture [45–47]. Mulching prevents the formation of hard crust after each rain. The use of blade harrows between rows or inter-culture operations creates "dust mulch" on the soil surface by breaking the continuity of capillary tubes of soil moisture and reduces evaporation losses. Mulching also reduces the weed infestation along with the benefits of moisture conservation and soil fertility improvement. Hence, it can be used in high rainfall regions for decreasing soil and water loss, and in low rainfall regions for soil moisture conservation. Organic mulches improve organic matter and consecutively improving the water holding capacity, macro and micro fauna

*DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.92895*

• It improves soil fertility.

and thereby maintaining soil fertility.

absorption into the soil profile.

strip cropping may not be practical.

biodiversity, their activity, and fertility of the soil [48, 49].

or temporary basis.

*6.1.7 Mulching*

*Types of strip cropping*

*6.1.6 Strip cropping*

• Drought conditions can be mitigated through intercropping.


#### *6.1.6 Strip cropping*

*Soil Moisture Importance*

ing the soil erosion [42].

cowpea, green gram, black gram, groundnut, etc.

through biological nitrogen fixation.

*6.1.4 Cover crops*

**Advantages**

runoff and soil loss.

productivity.

*6.1.5 Intercropping*

erosion [36, 43]. **Advantages**

• High total biomass production.

different periods.

• Efficient utilization of soil and water resources.

• Drought conditions can be mitigated through intercropping.

incorporation of crop residue improves organic matter content, soil health, and reduces water pollution. A suitable rotation with high canopy cover crops helps in sustaining soil fertility; suppresses weed growth, decreases pests and disease infestation, increases input use efficiency, and system productivity while reduc-

The close-growing crops having high canopy density are grown for protection of soil against erosion, known as cover crops. Legume crops have good biomass to protect soil than the row crops. The effectiveness of cover crops depends on crop geometry and development of canopy for interception of raindrops which helps in reducing the exposure of soil surface for erosion. It has been reported that legumes provide better cover and better protection to land against runoff and soil loss as compared to cultivated fallow and sorghum. The most effective cover crops are

• Protection of soil from the erosive impact of raindrops, runoff, and wind.

• Act as an obstacle in water flow, reduce flow velocity, and thereby reduce

• Increase soil organic matter by residue incorporation and deep root system.

• Improve nutrients availability to the component crop and succeeding crops

Cultivation of two or more crops simultaneously in the same field with definite

• Reduction of marketing risks due to the production of a variety of products at

or alternate row pattern is known as intercropping. It may be classified as row, strip, and relay intercropping as per the crops, soil type, topography, and climatic conditions. Intercropping involves both time-based and spatial dimensions. Erosion permitting and resisting crops should be intercropped with each other. The crops should have different rooting patterns. Intercropping provides better coverage on the soil surface, reduces the direct impact of raindrops, and protects soil from

• Improve water quality and water holding capacity of the soil.

• Improve soil properties, suppress weed growth, and increase crop

**32**

Growing alternate strips of erosion permitting and erosion resistant crops with a deep root system and high canopy density in the same field is known as strip cropping. This practice reduces the runoff velocity and checks erosion processes and nutrients loss from the field [36, 44]. The erosion resisting crops protects soil from beating action of raindrops, reduces runoff velocity, and thereby increased time of concentration which results in a higher volume of soil moisture and increased crop production [4]. Strip cropping is practiced for controlling the run-off and erosion and thereby maintaining soil fertility.
