Questions of what crops to grow and in what sequence to plant them are commonly thought of as narrow concerns, exclusive to the domain of agronomists. As they are important in the understanding of agricultural productivity, development strategies, environmental problems, and economic activity in general, cropping systems actually deserve a broader research appeal.
Cropping systems are area-specific. They are determined by the socioeconomic and natural conditions of a nation or region and also by the particular forms of agriculture employed within. specific, smaller locations. In Mainland China, the question of how to utilize the relatively small portion of arable land in an optimal way so as to feed the swelling population is a critical concern that has been the subject of experimentation and debate since the 1950s.
In the 1950s and the 1970s, two reforms were carried out in connection with cropping systems in Mainland China. These reforms led to two important changes in agricultural production: the extension of the multiple cropping index, and the excessive planting of certain high-yield grains in the hope of stimulating larger grain harvests. The effects on grain yields of this type of policy were at best debatable, and it was certain that the unrestricted planting of high-yield grains decreased the volume of land given to farming other crops and damaged the ecological balance.
In 1978, the Communist Party began to alter the emphasis placed on high grain yields earlier by paying more attention to matching cropping systems to specific locales and by stressing the maintenance of soil fertility. In 1979, commodity bases, one form of specialized agricultural production, were established. These commodity bases which were written into the central plan, were designed to promote the development of specific fairly specialized areas that would be able to supply the nation with agricultural staples. These agricultural commodity bases were seen as one way to adjust cropping systems to local conditions.
Since 1979, the agricultural outlook has improved. Cropping systems are being adjusted, and grain yields in base areas have increased, as have economic crops grown in other areas. Whether the current government in Mainland China will be able to continue to improve agricultural efficiency along these lines and to eradicate past mistakes will remain a crucial issue in the years ahead.
