What is Monoculture?
[[File:Tractors in Potato Field.jpg|thumb|A potato field, in the United States]] [[File:Terrace field yunnan china.jpg|thumb|Rice terraces in China]] [[File:Palouse stubble fields from Kamiak Butte.jpg|thumb|Argarian [[steppe]], near [[Palouse, Washington|Palouse]], in the [[United States]]. This region is the biggest producer of [[wheat]] in the United States. ]] '''Monoculture''' is growing a single [[crop]] in a large area. Farmers decide what is the best crop, and grow only that. This is very common in modern [[agriculture]], as it simplifies the farm and allows relatively few people to [[harvest]] large amounts. Often the crop of a large area is not merely a single species, but a single variety. Monocultures have problems, however: [[Pest]]s and [[disease]]s that attack only one kind of plant can spread more easily when they only find that kind. Each kind of plant also needs particular [[nutrient]]s from the soil. [[Fertilizer]]s are used to supply that nutrient. [[Crop rotation]] is used in some areas. == Related pages == *[[Plantation]] [[Category:Agriculture]] {{stub}} {{Agriculture footer}}