Photo: Farming in Eastern Washington, along I-90. © 2016 Delena Norris-Tull
Perennial crops, intercropping, companion planting, trap cropping, and beneficial insects
The Land Institute, a non-profit research organization in Salina, Kansas, is conducting plant breeding research and providing grants to collaborate with other researchers, to develop what they call Natural Systems Agriculture. To assist farmers in moving away from annual crops, which disturb the soil every year, and thus are more prone to invasive infestations, their researchers are breeding new perennial crops, both by domesticating wild perennial species and by cross-breeding annual crops with perennial cousins. They work with the Missouri Botanical Garden and Saint Louis University to identify potential food crops from wild perennial species. Visit their website for details on the crops they are testing, including perennial grains, pulses and other legumes for both food and forage, and oilseeds. And, to help farmers move away from monoculture crops, they are testing an intercrop system they call polyculture, to add diversity to agriculture, to more closely mimic sustainable natural ecosystems.
Perennial crops and intercropping both help reduce invasive infestations, thereby reducing the need for herbicides and other pesticides.
The World Economic Forum developed a report, Transforming Food Systems with Farmers, to assist the European Union nations in developing sustainable agricultural practices, practices the WEF calls Climate-Smart Agriculture. On pages 35 & 36, data on the value of tree intercropping is presented.
Other projects also work with intercropping and strip cropping. With strip cropping, for example, farmers alternate a strip of grains with a strip of soybeans.
The Tennessee extension service (Wszelaki, n.d.) provides a brochure titled, Trap crops, intercropping, and companion planting. That document provides examples of a variety of techniques used for intercropping. That document states that, “Intercropping is the growing of two or more crops in close proximity to promote beneficial interactions between them.” For example, farmers can grow a second crop or a non-crop plant, in the rows between the main crop rows, that attract beneficial insects, that benefit both plant species. This is also known as companion planting.
Beneficial insects include those insects that serve as pollinators for crops, and insects that prey on the insects that cause damage to the crop. For example, flowering plants attract a variety of pollinators. Growing diverse native flowering plants can help increase beneficial insects (such as native bees) that will also pollinate the crop plants.
The National Pesticide Information Center has valuable information on beneficial insects.
In some crops, farmers can plant “trap crops” in the rows between the crops. Trap crops, also known as sacrificial crops, are plants that attract harmful insects to them, diverting them away from the favored crop.
According to the Tennessee extension service, “The two primary techniques utilized in trap cropping are: 1) selection of a more preferred plant species or cultivar grown at the same time as the main crop; 2) planting of the same species and cultivar as the main crop timed to be at the most preferred stage of development before the main crop. Whether using the same or different species, it is essential that the trap crop be more attractive than the main crop.”
In Missouri Environment & Garden, Pinero (March 16, 2017), describes trap cropping strategies to control squash bugs and squash borers..
Organic farmers have developed a lot of knowledge related to which trap crops work with which insects, which beneficial insects work best with which crops, and which crops work well with other crops (for either intercropping, companion plantings, or crop rotation).
References:
Links to additional Agricultural Best Practices:
Links to additional Innovative Solutions:
Perennial crops, intercropping, companion planting, trap cropping, and beneficial insects
The Land Institute, a non-profit research organization in Salina, Kansas, is conducting plant breeding research and providing grants to collaborate with other researchers, to develop what they call Natural Systems Agriculture. To assist farmers in moving away from annual crops, which disturb the soil every year, and thus are more prone to invasive infestations, their researchers are breeding new perennial crops, both by domesticating wild perennial species and by cross-breeding annual crops with perennial cousins. They work with the Missouri Botanical Garden and Saint Louis University to identify potential food crops from wild perennial species. Visit their website for details on the crops they are testing, including perennial grains, pulses and other legumes for both food and forage, and oilseeds. And, to help farmers move away from monoculture crops, they are testing an intercrop system they call polyculture, to add diversity to agriculture, to more closely mimic sustainable natural ecosystems.
Perennial crops and intercropping both help reduce invasive infestations, thereby reducing the need for herbicides and other pesticides.
The World Economic Forum developed a report, Transforming Food Systems with Farmers, to assist the European Union nations in developing sustainable agricultural practices, practices the WEF calls Climate-Smart Agriculture. On pages 35 & 36, data on the value of tree intercropping is presented.
Other projects also work with intercropping and strip cropping. With strip cropping, for example, farmers alternate a strip of grains with a strip of soybeans.
The Tennessee extension service (Wszelaki, n.d.) provides a brochure titled, Trap crops, intercropping, and companion planting. That document provides examples of a variety of techniques used for intercropping. That document states that, “Intercropping is the growing of two or more crops in close proximity to promote beneficial interactions between them.” For example, farmers can grow a second crop or a non-crop plant, in the rows between the main crop rows, that attract beneficial insects, that benefit both plant species. This is also known as companion planting.
Beneficial insects include those insects that serve as pollinators for crops, and insects that prey on the insects that cause damage to the crop. For example, flowering plants attract a variety of pollinators. Growing diverse native flowering plants can help increase beneficial insects (such as native bees) that will also pollinate the crop plants.
The National Pesticide Information Center has valuable information on beneficial insects.
In some crops, farmers can plant “trap crops” in the rows between the crops. Trap crops, also known as sacrificial crops, are plants that attract harmful insects to them, diverting them away from the favored crop.
According to the Tennessee extension service, “The two primary techniques utilized in trap cropping are: 1) selection of a more preferred plant species or cultivar grown at the same time as the main crop; 2) planting of the same species and cultivar as the main crop timed to be at the most preferred stage of development before the main crop. Whether using the same or different species, it is essential that the trap crop be more attractive than the main crop.”
In Missouri Environment & Garden, Pinero (March 16, 2017), describes trap cropping strategies to control squash bugs and squash borers..
Organic farmers have developed a lot of knowledge related to which trap crops work with which insects, which beneficial insects work best with which crops, and which crops work well with other crops (for either intercropping, companion plantings, or crop rotation).
References:
- Pinero, J. (March 16, 2017). Trap cropping: A simple, effective, and affordable Integrated Pest Management strategy to control squash bugs and squash vine borers. in Missouri Environment and Garden. The University of Missouri.
- World Economic Forum. (April 2022). Transforming Food Systems with Farmers: A Pathway for the EU. World Economic Forum, in collaboration with Deloitte & NTT Data.
- Wszelaki, A. (no date). Trap crops, intercropping, and companion planting. University of Tennessee Institute of Agriculture, Extension brochure W235-F.
Links to additional Agricultural Best Practices:
- Soil Solarization
- Ecologically based Successional Management
- Natural Farming
- Permaculture
- Organic Farming
- Embedding Natural Habitats
- Conservation Tillage
- Crop Rotation
- Water Use Practices
- Tree Planting: Pros & Cons
Links to additional Innovative Solutions: