Crossed Sowing

a method of sowing agricultural crops in which half of the seeds are planted along the field in a north-south direction, and the other half in an east-west direction. Crossed sowing is done by seed drills and is used primarily for grain crops (wheat, rye, oats, barley). The seeds are distributed more evenly in the soil with crossed sowing than with ordinary grain drilling, and the seedlings make fuller use of the moisture, nutrients, heat, and light. As a result, the plants tiller better and lodge less. This greatly increases yield. The shortcomings of crossed sowing are the great expenditures of fuel and labor and the prolongation of seeding because the tractor must pass over the same field twice. A variation of crossed sowing is crossed-diagonal sowing, which is done along the diagonals of the field.