The educational materials listed on this page are about Crop Rotation.
Crop rotation is an important part of any sustainable cropping system. As you develop a crop rotation plan, seek out crop rotation guides and examples, which will help you maximize the benefits of crop rotation. For example, see SARE’s Crop Rotation on Organic Farms: A Planning Manual, which includes in-depth information about the advantages of crop rotation and real-world examples of vegetable crop rotation plans and crop rotation charts. Another useful resource is the SARE topic brief Cover Crops for Sustainable Crop Rotations, which summarizes the usefulness of rotating cover crops in any cropping system.
Crop rotation can be employed in many types of cropping systems, including vegetables, agronomic crops, livestock and organic. There are many benefits and advantages of crop rotation: a careful crop rotation plan supports ecological pest management, improves soil health, and helps with nutrient management and soil fertility management, among other benefits. Carefully planned rotations including forage crops and cover crops can improve the sustainability of dairy farming systems. Learn more from the SARE fact sheet Alternative Continuous-Cover Dairy Forage System for Profitability, Flexibility and Soil Health.
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2023–2024 Report from the Field
SARE grants havehelped our viabilityas a business anddemonstrated thatsmall businessescan make a positiveimpact on theenvironment when wedevelop relationshipswith each other forthe benefit of all. Jeanine SeabrookGlass Rooster Cannery Letter from the Director I have always appreciated the value of long-term research as well as the long-term impact of both applied and basic research. The core […]
¿Qué es la Agricultura Sostenible?
Una forma sencilla de pensar en la agricultura sostenible es que implica producir suficientes alimentos y fibra para satisfacer las necesidades actuales sin comprometer la capacidad de las generaciones futuras para hacer lo mismo. Los agricultores y ganaderos que valoran la sostenibilidad adoptan tres objetivos comunes mientras llevando a cabo operaciones productivas: Para lograr estos […]
What is Sustainable Agriculture?
This award-winning report provides a sampler of best practices in sustainable agriculture—from marketing and community vitality to cover crops and grazing—as well as eight profiles of producers, educators and researchers who have successfully implemented them.
Transitioning to Organic Production
Transitioning to Organic Production lays out many promising conversion strategies, covering typical organic farming production practices, innovative marketing ideas and federal standards for certified organic crop production.
Cultivos de Cobertura para Rotaciones de Cultivos Sustentables
Cultivos de Cobertura para Rotaciones de Cultivos Sustentables is an abbreviated, Spanish language translation of SARE's Cover Crops for Sustainable Crop Rotations topic brief.
Soil Health Principles and Practices Videos
Experienced farmers and Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE) provide information on managing and improving soil health. Farmers discuss practices such as cover cropping, and using mulch and compost to improve soil health.
Manage Weeds On Your Farm
Manage Weeds on Your Farm is a definitive guide to understanding agricultural weeds and how to manage them efficiently, effectively and ecologically—for organic and conventional farmers alike.
Building Soils for Better Crops
The fourth edition of Building Soils for Better Crops—enhanced and expanded—explains how to use ecological principles to build soil health and boost fertility, yields and overall sustainability.
Smart Water Use on Your Farm or Ranch
As producers throughout the nation grow increasingly concerned about water scarcity, farmers, ranchers and agricultural educators are beginning to explore new, conservation-oriented approaches to water use.
A Whole Farm Approach to Managing Pests
This 16-page bulletin helps producers—and the educators who work with them—use ecological principles across the entire farm to control pests.