In soil conservation, the method in which the bare ground between crop plants is covered with a protective layer of organic matter such as straw, leaves, or husk to reduce erosion and conserve moisture is called what?

Introduction / Context:
Soil conservation practices are essential in agriculture to protect fertile topsoil from being washed or blown away. One common technique is to cover exposed soil with plant residues or other materials to protect it from direct sun, wind, and raindrop impact. This question focuses on identifying the correct name for the method where a layer of organic matter like straw is spread on the bare ground between plants. Recognising specific conservation methods is important for geography, environmental science, and agricultural studies.

Given Data / Assumptions:
- The question describes bare ground between plants being covered with organic matter such as straw.
- The purpose is soil conservation, including protecting the soil surface and improving conditions for plants.
- The options include mulching, contour barriers, rock dam, and terrace farming.
- We assume standard agricultural terminology used in textbooks and extension materials.

Concept / Approach:
Mulching refers to the practice of covering the soil surface with a layer of material, often organic, such as straw, leaves, grass clippings, or compost. Mulch helps reduce soil erosion by cushioning the impact of raindrops, slows evaporation so that moisture is conserved, suppresses weed growth, and can add organic matter as it decomposes. Contour barriers, rock dams, and terrace farming are also soil and water conservation methods but involve shaping the land or building physical structures rather than simply covering the soil surface between plants with organic matter. Therefore, the method described in the question clearly matches mulching.

Step-by-Step Solution:
Step 1: Identify the key action: covering bare ground between plants with straw or similar organic material. Step 2: Recall that mulching is defined as spreading a protective layer over the soil surface to conserve moisture and reduce erosion. Step 3: Note that contour barriers involve bunds or strips laid along contour lines, not simply covering the soil. Step 4: Recognise that rock dams are small stone barriers built across gullies or streams, and terrace farming reshapes slopes into steps. Step 5: Conclude that mulching is the correct soil conservation method described.

Verification / Alternative check:
Agriculture and geography textbooks often illustrate mulching with pictures of straw or leaves spread between crop rows. They list benefits such as reduced weed growth, improved soil moisture, and protection of topsoil from erosion. In contrast, contour barriers are shown as stone lines or grass strips on slopes, rock dams as stone walls across gullies, and terraces as step like fields carved into hillsides. These descriptions confirm that only mulching matches the practice of covering bare ground between plants with organic matter like straw.

Why Other Options Are Wrong:
Contour barriers, bunds built along contour lines, mainly slow runoff on slopes and are not simply a surface covering between plants.
Rock dam, small stone structures across gullies, is used to slow water flow and encourage sediment deposition, not to cover soil between crops.
Terrace farming, step like fields on hill slopes, is a land shaping technique and does not refer to laying a mulch layer on the soil surface.

Common Pitfalls:
Students sometimes confuse different soil conservation practices because all aim to reduce erosion. A helpful way to remember mulching is to associate it with “a blanket for the soil.” Anything that describes laying plant residues like straw over the soil surface, especially between plants, points to mulching. Other methods, such as terraces or dams, involve modifying land shape or building structures. Keeping these images clear in your mind will help you quickly identify mulching in exam questions.

Final Answer:
The method is called Mulching, spreading organic material over the soil surface between plants.