WHAT’S AT STAKE

Most row crops are “annual” food and fiber plants that can be mechanically planted, irrigated, fertilized, and harvested every year. Annual, in this case, means that these plants have a fairly short life cycle - usually, less than or equal to one year. They need to be replanted every year in order to remain productive, and therefore a full row crop “growing season” consists of all activities related to planting, cultivating, and harvesting the crops as well as re-incorporating the plant residue after harvest back into the soil. There are examples of row crops in the US, but […]