Which farming technique involves cutting down vegetation and burning it to clear land for farming?

Which farming technique involves cutting down vegetation and burning it to clear land for farming?

• A. Slash-and-Burn Agriculture
• B. Terrace farming
• C. Drip irrigation
• D. Green manuring

Answer: (A)

Clearing land by cutting vegetation and then burning it is a hallmark of slash-and-burn farming. This method, also known as swidden agriculture, involves cutting down plants, letting the debris dry, and setting it on fire to clear a plot for crops. The fire releases nutrients back into the soil, giving a quick boost to fertility for a season or two, which is why this approach is described in the question. The technique is commonly used in traditional shifting cultivation, where farmers move cultivation to new plots after soil fertility declines. Terrace farming focuses on leveling hillsides to control erosion, drip irrigation is a water-delivery system for crops, and green manuring involves growing and then plowing under cover crops to enrich soil—none of these describe the act of cutting vegetation and burning it to clear land.

Clearing land by cutting vegetation and then burning it is a hallmark of slash-and-burn farming. This method, also known as swidden agriculture, involves cutting down plants, letting the debris dry, and setting it on fire to clear a plot for crops. The fire releases nutrients back into the soil, giving a quick boost to fertility for a season or two, which is why this approach is described in the question. The technique is commonly used in traditional shifting cultivation, where farmers move cultivation to new plots after soil fertility declines.

Terrace farming focuses on leveling hillsides to control erosion, drip irrigation is a water-delivery system for crops, and green manuring involves growing and then plowing under cover crops to enrich soil—none of these describe the act of cutting vegetation and burning it to clear land.