alley cropping

noun

agriculture

: the practice of planting annual crops between widely spaced rows of woody plants or trees

A method called alley cropping can be used in which a variety of trees are grown in rows 40 to 60 feet apart.

—Statesman Journal (Oregon), 29 Jan. 2010

alley crop noun

Often, trees grown as alley crops are pruned, and their cuttings are spread on annual crop rows as mulch that protects the soil and adds nutrients.

—Deborah A. McGrath and C. Ken Smith, in Tropical Deforestation, 2006

alley crop transitive verb

The trees and maize were "alley cropped" (planted in alternating strips), which allows fertilizing and weeding of crop rows while also retaining the benefits of intercropping.

—Michael J. Dover & Lee M. Talbot, Technology Review, 1 Feb. 1988

Word History

First Known Use

1981, in the meaning defined above

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