Statistical design and analysis for intercropping experiments. Pdf intercropping, the agricultural practice of cultivating two or more crops in the same space at. This chapter reports on intercropping field work in three locations in india, one in the state of kashmir and two in the state of maharashtra. Mixed cropping, companion planting, relay cropping, interseeding, overseeding, underseeding, smother cropping, planting polycultures, and using. Systems are often referred to in distinguishi ng one type of multiple cropping from another. Cereallegume intercropping in eastern and southern africa. Perspectives and define intercropping although there is no recorded history for intercropping and multiple cropping, however, considering the available evidence planting crops as a combined has a long history.
Pdf advancing intercropping research and practices in. Intercropping an agroforested and permaculture technique among other commonalities, agroforestry and permaculture share ancient and organic agricultural techniques, but what is most unique about them is their use of intercropping. Pitman books, london ciba foundation symposium 97 p 83100. Effects of intercropping on the performance of maize and cowpeas in botswana gabatshele. Guidelines for intercropping sustainable agriculture. Intercropping principles and production practices iatp.
Developing countries such as china, india, indonesia, niger, mali and ethiopia have shown considerable interest in intercropping to enhance productivity. Intercropping enhances productivity and maintains the most. This reduces the time and energy the insect has to cause crop damage or deposit offspring, and in some instances it encourages the insect to migrate from the area. Perspectives for intercropping in modern agriculture citation. Plant spatial arrangements, planting rates, and maturity dates must be considered when planning intercrops. Intercropping has a year old history in chinese agriculture and is still widespread in modern chinese agriculture. In other words, intercropping is the cultivation of two or more crops simultaneously on the same field. Intercropping creates biodiversity, which attracts a variety of beneficial and predatory insects that isnt possible with monoculture gardening. Mixed intercropping is commonly seen in traditional. Why some farmers try something different intercropping is defined simply as growing two or more crop types on one field. Intercropping, the growth of two or more crop species simultaneously cogrowth in the same field area, has been widely practiced worldwide. However, the use of land equivalent ratio ler as a measure for calculating the cropping advantage of intercrops over sole crops is too simple.
Of the latter two, the alandi study took only a few days, whereas the girvi investigation took many weeks in each of four different years. Incorporating local and scientific knowledge in the. A technology to increase productivity and profitability in tigray. Intercropping is the companion planting method of growing one crop alongside another. However n root concentration was enhanced under intercropping treatment for s1 and s3 while it was decreased by 31. Intercropping for ecological and economic efficiency in. Marokane, witness mojeremane department of crop science and production, botswana college of agriculture, private bag, 0027, gaborone, botswana. Intercropping increased n seed concentration for s1 and. Effects of intercropping on the performance of maize and. The large uolume of literature that involves intercropping can be divided into two categories. Multicropping, intercropping and adaptation to variable. The ecology of intercropping free ebook pdf download added by alexandra debendorf on october 19 2018. Reduce damage to cash crops attract beneficial organisms decrease the use of external inputs e. Environmental issues agricultural industry agricultural research agricultural systems innovations beans environmental aspects corn cropping systems legumes mimosaceae sustainable.
History media compliance careers affiliate program. Abstract this study was carried out at busia farmers training center during the short rains of 1998 and long rains of 1999. Intercropping, also referred to as mixed cropping or polyculture, is the agricultural practice of cultivating two or more crops in the same space at the same time andrews and kassam, 1976. Row intercropping is working this arrangement with at least one of the components being planted in rows. Perspectives for intercropping in modern agriculture.
Intercropping systems range from mixed intercropping to largescale strip intercropping. Intercropping persisted in agrarian societies after being rejected by the western world with the advent of highly mechanized farming. Another benefit of this system is the suppression of weeds liebman and dyck, 1993 to achieve integrated weed management baumann et al. Intercropping is growing two or more crops next to each other at the same time. Garden books, such as amaranth to zai holes, will give advice on which plant.
Examples of common intercrops in the agroecological zones in. Interplanting, or relay planting, is a version of companion planting where the second crop is planted while the first is still growing. Of course this does not mean that in the intercropping, plants can be planting at a time together, but is the purpose that two or more. Intercropping is sometimes complemented with double cropping, wherein a farmer may. Search library collection of books, reports, proceedings of the congress was also performed.
Intercropping is a multiple cropping practice involving growing two or more crops in proximity. Intercrops are typically small grains or sod crops such as alfalfa or clover grown between the rows of a field crop that reach maturity shortly after the field crop has been established and furnish mulch cover. It is emphasized that intercropping is especially beneficial to the small farmer in the lowinputhighrisk environment of the developing areas of the world but some brief comments are made on its applicability in more developed conditions. Intercropping it also means the growing of two or more crops on the same field with the planting of the second crop after the first one has completed its development. Intercropping with two or more crops appears to be less common with annuals than. Biological facilitative interactions and their roles on. Intercropping, the simultaneous cultivation of more than one species or cultivar on the same piece of land, can increase organic cereal and grain legume protein production in europe, enhance biodiversity in european farming systems and safeguard the organic farmers earnings. Intercropping involves the planting of two or sometimes more species in a mixture at the same time or with one species interplanted during the growth of another species. There are many spatial combinations possible for intercropping, including mixed intercropping, in which different crops are planted in the same row or without regard to row, and row intercropping, which involves planting different crops in alternating rows. Intercropping is as a multiple cropping system, in which two or more crops species planted simultaneously in a field during a growing season.
The intercropping of lucerne with oats produced greater green and dm yields than those of sole crops of either legume table 3. Because of these benefits, intercropping was the primary method of agriculture worldwide throughout most of history. Despite the large amount of research activity directed towards the subject over the last 20 years, the practice of intercropping has, until now, received very little serious academic attention. Nowadays, agricultural systems in china are stigmatized to exhaust high levels of input factors like n fertilizer or irrigation water and to contribute severely to environmental problems like desertification, river eutrophication, soil degradation and greenhouse effect. Mixed cropping, also known as polyculture, inter cropping, or cocultivation, is a type of agriculture that involves planting two or more plants simultaneously in the same field, interdigitating the cropslike interlocking your fingersso that they grow together. Apart from improved yield, there are other reasons why intercropping is practiced. In rainy sections, intercropping extends the protection against erosion provided by mulches. Strip intercropping is a more industrialized version with rows of individual crops big enough to be harvested with machinery.
Vandermeer, 1992 and is one mechanism by which the functional diversity of an agroecosystem can be increased brooker et al. Intercropping is an incredibly resilient planting method created by building by a multilayered, multifunctioning ecosystem. In maizepigeon pea systems in india and sri lanka, planting four rows of maize to two rows of pigeon peas provided the highest net returns. Enhancing agriculture in africa princeton university. Intercropping is an allencompassing term for the practice of growing two or more crops in close proximity. Pdf types of interaction in intercropping of maize and. This practice is ancient, as numerous records from human societies all over the world indicate. The most common goal of intercropping is to produce a greater yield on a given piece of land by making use of resources or ecological processes that would otherwise not be utilized by a single crop.
Phd student of agronomy, university of zabol, iran 2. Multiple cropping, then, is a form of farming to maxi mize the use of land each year. Publication of research outputs including internationally refereed journals, a book and. The purpose behind intercropping is to increase yields by doubling up on available growing space. The effect of intercropping groundnut arachis hypogea l. The main purpose of intercropping is to produce more crops in a given area. Biological facilitative interactions and their roles on maximize growth and productivity of crops in intercropping systems jasem aminifar1, ahmad ghanbari2 1. The two major categories of multiple cropping are succession cropping and intercropping. Williams soybeans planted in 21inch rows in tilled ground on may 5 served as a control. Intercropping includes the growing of two or more cash crops together. The ecology of intercropping is unique in approaching the question of intercropping from a theoretical point of view. Relay intercropping involves the planting of more than one crop on the same piece of land with the planting of the second crop after the first crop has flowered or completed its development or just before harvesting the first crop. In particular, cereallegume intercropping is commonly employed in china and. Intercropping remains widespread in developing countries, though it has been largely abandoned in developed countries e.
Insects rely on visual, olfactory, and tactile cues to find host plants. The component crops of an intercropping system do not. Coffee and tomato courtesy of ciatintercropping is growing two or more crops together at the same time in the same space in a beneficial manner. Intercropping of oats with berseem clover provided earlier and greater fodder yields, and increased milk production by as much as 20 litres per cow per month on average compared with traditional practices. Intercropping is the practice of growing different crops in the same field. Plucknett dl, smith njh 1986 historical perspectives on. It is commonly practiced in developing countries in the tropics, especially in subsistence farming. Fyi, i do not store file download the ecology of intercropping on, its only pdf generator result for the. Intercropping is the practice of growing two or more crops or genotypes together for a part of or the whole growing season willey, 1990. It is a pdf of the ecology of intercropping that reader could be safe this with no cost at. Intercropping is an allencompassing term for the practice of growing two or. Intercropping is a method of sustaining or improving soil structure by growing two or. Intercropping offers farmers the opportunity to engage natures principle of diversity on their farms.
The ler values from intercropping of maize and soybean are shown in table 3. On the other hand, intercropping is a multiple cropping system whereby two or more crop species are planted simultaneously on the same farmland in one planting season. Intercropping is the agricultural practice of growing multiple crops in the same field at the same time. Intercropping, crop diversity and pest management 2 time and energy searching for an acceptable plant. The rationale behind intercropping is that the different crops planted are unlikely to share the same insect pests and diseasedcausing pathogens and to conserve the soil. It also includes the growing of a cash crop with a cover crop or other noncash crop that provides benefits to the primary crop or to the overall farm system. Intercrop is composed by a multidisciplinary team of european scientists which work coordinately,conducting research on intercropping and facilitating the exchange and synthesis of existing knowledge in order to make recommendations for using intercropping under different regional conditions and farming systems. The practice of intercropping has actually been around since farming began. These agricultural crop planting practices assist in varying the set of soil nutrients, thereby reducing the likelihood of soil erosion. It also makes use of resources that would otherwise not be used by a single crop.
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