MP Board · Class 9 · Science · Improvement in Food ResourcesDefine intercropping and state one major advantage of this cropping pattern.

Intercropping is the practice of growing two or more crops simultaneously on the same field in a definite row arrangement or pattern, such as alternating rows of soybean and maize. The main advantage of intercropping is that it prevents pests and diseases from spreading to all plants belonging to one crop in a field, thereby ensuring maximum utilization of applied nutrients and increasing the overall crop yield per unit area.