Classification of Crop Plants in Agriculture: Agronomic Classification

Introduction

There are hundreds of crops grown in agriculture sector. These crops are grouped together or more precisely classified into various categories based on agronomic classification, seasonal classification special purpose classification etc.

The purpose of these classifications is to learn about the agriculture crops more deeply and accurately to judge their characteristics so that best agronomic practices can be applied to get maximum production and yield.

In this article, you will find the classification of crop plants in agriculture based on agronomic classification. In agronomic classification, crops are divided into 10 categories. A brief about each category is given below along with the suitable examples.

1 Cereal or Grain Crops

Cereal Crops or grain crops belong to the grass family. These are cultivated and utilized for their edible starch rich seeds. These are regarded as the base crops to make people food secure around the globe. The widely known cereal crop is the Wheat. It is the largest crop utilized globally. It is used in the form of its flour.

Other important cereal crops include Oats, Barley, Corn, Rye, Sorghum and Rice. This group provides the most important staple crops to the 7 billion people of the globe.

2 Legume Crops

Legume crops constitute the most important agronomic crops, known for fixing atmospheric nitrogen into the soil for further agriculture activities. Legumes have bacteria on their roots that fix nitrogen gas into usable form. Legumes are the most important source of protein in agriculture world. Important crops included in legumes are Peas, Groundnut, Lentils, Broad Beans, Chick Peas, Alfalfa, Clover etc.

3 Forage Crops

Like cereals have importance for humans, forage crops are the source of food for animals, livestock and wildlife. In other words, forage crops are the lifeline for animals on earth. Forage crops are utilized as feed for livestock in various ways like drying them to make hay or ferment them to prepare silage or even mechanized processing of forage crops results in making of pellets or cubes that are fit for animal consumption. Important forage crops include grasses, crucifers and legumes.

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