Conservation Crop Rotation (NRCS #328)

Applicable Systems

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About

Conservation crop rotation refers to the practice of planting a sequence of different crops on the same field over multiple growing seasons. A minimum of two different crops must be planted in a crop rotation. Perennial crops and crops high in residue are often most effective at improving soil health. Extended crop rotations often include small grains or forage. Benefits of conservation crop rotations include decreased soil erosion, improved soil stability, improved soil organic matter quality, and enhanced soil habitat¹ ². In terms of economics, costs and revenue will vary depending on agronomic and market responses.

Key aspects and considerations:

For better overall benefits, consider crop rotations lasting four years or longer.
Plant the same crop for a maximum of two consecutive years.
Select crops based on management goals, nutrient and water needs, crop family, site conditions, available equipment and labor, and climate.
Consider herbicide rotational restrictions, and the risk of herbicide carryover.

Benefits and Limitations

ACRE Category	Benefits	Limitations
Soil Health	Increasing soil cover reduces soil erosion and increases soil stability. Diverse crop rotations may increase soil carbon and improve soil fertility, especially when perennials or legumes are planted³ ⁴. Complex rotations provide both spatial and temporal diversity and may improve soil quality.	N/A
Water Management	Incorporating perennials improves infiltration and requires less irrigation, improving water use efficiency⁵. Improves water quality by reducing nutrient loss (often through cover crops or extended rotations)⁵ ⁶.	N/A
Nutrient Management	Reduces nitrogen fertilizer inputs when leguminous crops are included. Improves carbon and nitrogen cycling by increasing the diversity of soil microbial communities⁴.	Nitrate leaching may increase in years following legumes⁷.
Agricultural Production	Improves crop yield⁸ and yield stability over time⁹. Disrupts pest, pathogen, and weed cycles. Reduces reliance on pesticides. Crop rotations can more evenly distribute labor and machinery demand.	Depending on the selected crops, crop rotations may increase land-use intensity. May decrease management flexibility due to time constraints.
Biodiversity and Wildlife	Adding additional crops improves soil habitat. Increases plant species diversity on the field or farm and improves soil microbial community diversity⁴ ⁸.	Simplified rotations offer fewer biodiversity and wildlife benefits than complex rotations.
GHG Emission	Crop rotations including legumes require less fertilizer and reduce N₂O emissions⁹. May increase carbon storage, reducing the amount of CO₂ that remains in the atmosphere.	N/A
Economics	Diversifies income and reduces reliance on an individual crop. Provides a cost-effective way to manage weeds, pests, and diseases. Increases economic returns. May reduce herbicide and pesticide costs.	Potentially requires additional planning, specialized equipment, and storage. Some rotations can reduce short-term profitability. Lack of markets reported for extended rotations⁶.

Impact on Agricultural Resilience

Crop rotations disrupt pests, weeds, and disease cycles, which make cropping systems more resilient to change as species ranges shift.
Additionally, by protecting soil from erosion, crop rotations increase resiliency to high wind and large rain events.
Deep-rooted perennials, such as forages, may be more resilient to drought due to increased ability to take up water.
By growing a diversity of crops, farmers and producers are more resilient to disease, pest, and climate impacts.

Regional Applicability

Conservation crop rotations are applicable across the Midwest, both in large agricultural fields and in home gardens. In the Midwest, the most common crop rotation is corn-soybean, making up 65% of cropland in the region⁷. In Illinois, common 3-year rotations include corn, soybean, and wheat. Extended crop rotations incorporating small grains and forage were at one time prevalent in the Upper Midwest, but have since declined with changes in socioeconomics, technology, and a decrease in integrated crop-livestock systems⁶.
Previous research conducted in the Midwest highlights both yield and economic benefits of crop rotations. A recent study out of the University of Illinois found that corn-soybean rotations increased economic returns by up to $458 per acre compared to continuous corn, but the economic return varied based on both fertilizer application rate and market prices. In Ohio, long-term diversified crop rotations improved corn yield. Additionally, incorporating alfalfa into rotation may increase corn profit by $300 per acre due to reduced fertilizer costs.
However, despite observed benefits of diverse crop rotations, simplified cropping systems continue to dominate the Midwest¹⁰.

Case Studies

In Green, WI, Jake Kaderly implements conservation crop rotations on his farm, managing a 3-year rotation of corn, soybean, and winter wheat -- as well as integrating cover crops into his rotation. The farm has won corn and wheat yield contests, and organic matter has increased by 0.5% across fields.
In collaboration with an Iowa farmer, Practical Farmers of Iowa explored the return on investment between a 3-year conservation cover rotation, a 2-year corn-soy rotation, and a continuous corn rotation. Analysis found that including a hybrid rye in rotation increased profit.

Resources

Cornell Cooperative Extension: Rotating Vegetables by Family
University of Wisconsin Extension: Using Crop Rotation in the Home Vegetable Garden
University of Wisconsin Extension: Small Grains Economics
University of Illinois Extension: Cropping Systems and Alternative Crops
University of Kentucky: Center for Crop Diversification Resources
The Center for Regenerative Agriculture and Resilient Systems: Crop Rotation Fact Sheet
USDA-NRCS Fact Sheet: Conservation Crop Rotations for Specialty Crops
Video. USDA-NRCS: Conservation Crop Rotation
Video. Practical Farmers of Iowa: Crop Rotations for Weed Suppression

References

USDA-NRCS (2014). Conservation Practice Standard Document, Conservation Crop Rotation, Code 328. https://www.nrcs.usda.gov/sites/default/files/2022-09/Conservation_Crop_Rotation_328_CPS.pdf
USDA-NRCS (2014). Conservation Practice Standard Overview, Conservation Crop Rotation, Code 328. https://www.nrcs.usda.gov/sites/default/files/2022-09/Conservation_Crop_Rotation_328_Overview.pdf
King, A. E., & Blesh, J. (2018). Crop rotations for increased soil carbon: perenniality as a guiding principle. Ecological Applications, 28(1), 249-261.
Tiemann, L. K., Grandy, A. S., Atkinson, E. E., Marin-Spiotta, E., & McDaniel, M. D. (2015). Crop rotational diversity enhances belowground communities and functions in an agroecosystem. Ecology Letters, 18(8), 761-771.
Qi, Z., & Helmers, M. J. (2010). Soil water dynamics under winter rye cover crop in central Iowa. Vadose Zone Journal, 9(1), 53-60.
Weisberger, D. A., McDaniel, M. D., Arbuckle, J. G., & Liebman, M. (2021). Farmer perspectives on benefits of and barriers to extended crop rotations in Iowa, USA. Agricultural & Environmental Letters, 6(2), e20049.
Li, Z., Guan, K., Zhou, W., Peng, B., Nafziger, E. D., Grant, R. F., et al., & Jia, M. (2025). Comparing continuous-corn and soybean-corn rotation cropping systems in the US central Midwest: Trade-offs among crop yield, nutrient losses, and change in soil organic carbon. Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment, 393, 109739.
Beillouin, D., Ben-Ari, T., Malézieux, E., Seufert, V., & Makowski, D. (2021). Positive but variable effects of crop diversification on biodiversity and ecosystem services. Global Change Biology, 27(19), 4697-4710.
Behnke, G. D., Zuber, S. M., Pittelkow, C. M., Nafziger, E. D., & Villamil, M. B. (2018). Long-term crop rotation and tillage effects on soil greenhouse gas emissions and crop production in Illinois, USA. Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment, 261, 62-70.
Socolar, Y., Goldstein, B. R., de Valpine, P., & Bowles, T. M. (2021). Biophysical and policy factors predict simplified crop rotations in the US Midwest. Environmental Research Letters, 16(5), 054045.

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Conservation Crop Rotation photo 1 — Photo 1: By including alfalfa into the crop rotation, a farmer in central Iowa implements conservation crop rotations.

Photo courtesy of Iowa NRCS.

Conservation Crop Rotation photo 2 — Photo 2: A hay bale sits in a field. When rotated with at least one additional crop, hay can be part of a conservation crop rotation.

Photo courtesy of Iowa NRCS.