dry-farm

American  

[drahy-fahrm] / ˈdraɪˌfɑrm /

verb (used without object)

1. to engage in dryland farming.

---

verb (used with object)

1. to grow (a specified crop) by means of dryland farming.

Other Word Forms

• dry farmer noun

Etymology

Origin of dry-farm

An Americanism dating back to 1915–20

Example Sentences

Steve Gliessman and Roberta Jaffe own Condor’s Hope Vineyard at the foot of the Sierra Madre Mountains, where they dry-farm wine grapes without irrigation, relying on the rains.

From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 13, 2023

“In terms of water used per serving, rice can be pretty good. Lots of crops use a lot of water, and in most of California, you can’t dry-farm everything.”

From Salon • Jun. 10, 2018

“I wouldn’t dry-farm unless it was worth it, if I didn’t think it made better wine,” Bucklin says.

From The Guardian • May 5, 2016

Grapes grow and yield well in many dry-farm districts, especially along the warm foothills of the Great Basin.

From Dry-Farming : a System of Agriculture for Countries under a Low Rainfall by Widtsoe, John Andreas

The chief dry-farm crop of this district is wheat, but the other grains, including corn, are also produced successfully.

From Dry-Farming : a System of Agriculture for Countries under a Low Rainfall by Widtsoe, John Andreas