A farming system whereby the fallow period is longer than the farming period. Hance (1969, in Omofonmwan and Kadiri (2007) J. Hum. Ecol. 22, 2) argues that bush fallowing is a major hindrance to food production in Nigeria, but Chokor (1993) Env. Manage. 17, 1 argues that ‘modern’ methods, which shorten the fallow period, disrupt ‘the conservation principles inherent in the traditional man–nature relationship’.