catch crop

noun

a crop that reaches maturity in a relatively short time, often planted as a substitute for a crop that has failed or at a time when the ground would ordinarily lie fallow, as between the plantings of two staple crops.

Origin of catch crop

First recorded in 1880–85

OTHER WORDS FROM catch crop

catch cropping, noun

Words nearby catch crop

catch a tartar, catch as catch can, catch at, catch basin, catch cold, catch crop, catch dog, catch fire, catch in the act, catch it, catch napping

Example sentences from the Web for catch crop

  • Sometimes the grape itself is planted as a catch-crop in the vineyard.

    Manual of American Grape-Growing |U. P. Hedrick

  • A catch-crop is one grown between the rows of another crop for profit from the produce.

    Manual of American Grape-Growing |U. P. Hedrick

  • A catch-crop grown between the rows of pears is a profitable adjunct to the pear-orchard for the first four or five years.

    The Pears of New York |U. P. Hedrick

  • Moreover a number of weeds are buried with the catch-crop before they have time to blossom and to shed their seed.

    Wildflowers of the Farm |Arthur Owens Cooke

British Dictionary definitions for catch crop

catch crop

noun

a quick-growing crop planted between two regular crops grown in consecutive seasons, or between two rows of regular crops in the same season