1. Approaches to estimation of Area Under Mixed (Intensive) Cropping
Mukesh K. Srivastava
FAO Statistics Division
Roundtable, Samoa, March 2009

2. Concepts Strategies for getting maximum yield from a given land
Crop rotation: Many short duration crops in a year (Intensive Agriculture), or
Mixed cropping
Associated crops (temporary + permanent crops together)
Crop mixtures (combination of only temporary or only permanent crops)

3. Crop Rotation: Indicators
Gross Cropped Area (GCA): counting the physical area of utilized land as many times as are the number of crops cultivated in a year.
Facilitates estimation of area used by individual crops, even if same crop is grown twice or thrice a year.
Net Cultivated Area (NCA): Only the physical area cultivated
Indicator of land use = NCA/Operated area
Cropping intensity = GCA/NCA
together with cropping cycle, this indicator is used by agronomists to assess the sustainability of agriculture

4. Mixed cropping It is desirable
to estimate the area utilized by each crop for food/nutritional security analysis
to have information on cropping practices to assess sustainability of agriculture
Statistical treatment: assign areas to individual crop on the basis of “What area the crop would have occupied if it were grown in pure stand?”

5. When to assign area: in field or in statistical office?
Data processing stage:
preferable, if standard cropping mixtures are being promoted by agricultural scientist or extension officers.
standard cropping mixtures need to be notified as a “crop combination” as a single crop
This approach does not loose information that is useful for planers.
In the field: If many types of Non-Standard crop mixtures

6. Assigning area in the field itself
Systematic plantation in rows
eye estimation based on number of rows for each crops
Irregular plantation
based upon ratio of quantity of seed used for each crop
Eye estimation based upon plant densities
If too many crops, consult agronomists to develop national procedures

7. Key Message
In the situations of subsistence type intensive agriculture, mixed cropping could pose a serious challenge to Census Planner
Be aware of existence and nature of the issues since beginning of Survey Planning.
Take care to evaluate options for assigning area at Pre-test and Pilot stage.

8. The floor is open to discuss specific situation in the countries which do not fit into the approaches outlined.
Thank You!