45 research outputs found

    Potential and Advantages of Maize-Legume Intercropping System

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    Intercropping provides enough scope to include two or more crops simultaneously in same piece of land targeting higher productivity from unit area. Maize, a cereal crop of versatile use, as planted in wide rows offers the opportunity for adoption of intercropping. The intercropping system with maize and legume is beneficial in multifaceted aspects. The success of maize-legume intercropping system largely depends on choice of crops and their maturity, density, and time of planting. Advantage of maize-legume combination of intercropping system is pronounced in the form of higher yield and greater utilization of available resources, benefits in weeds, pests and disease management, fixation of biological nitrogen by legumes and transfer of N to associated maize, insurance against crop failure to small holders, and control of erosion by covering a large extent of ground area. Though maize-legume intercropping system exhibits limitations like less scope of farm mechanization, dependence on more human workforce, and chance of achieving less productivity from maize, the system implies more advantages for small holders in developing countries where human workforce is not a constraint. The chapter has focused on beneficial impacts of maize-legume intercropping system

    Effect of the summer pearl millet-groundnut intercropping system on the growth, productivity and competitive ability of crops under south Odisha conditions

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    A millet-based intercropping system is common in dryland and rainfed conditions. Pearl millet (Pennisetum glaucum L.) exhibits wide adaptability to different agroclimatic conditions and seasons, making it suitable for an intercropping system. Groundnut (Arachis hypogea L.) is a leguminous oil-seed crop that can be cultivated as an intercrop in various cereals and millets to enhance productivity and resource efficiency. Based on these facts, the present study was conducted at the Research Farm of Centurion University of Technology and Management during the summer season of 2022 to assess the effect of the summer pearl millet + groundnut intercropping system on the growth, productivity, and competitive ability of crops under the conditions of south Odisha. The experiment consisted of nine treatments. In case of pearl millet, the highest plant height at harvest was achieved in pearl millet (30 cm × 10 cm) + groundnut (1:1) (186 cm), while the maximum plant height of groundnut at harvest was observed in pearl millet (45 cm × 10 cm) + groundnut (1:2) (70cm). Dry matter production at harvest and leaf area index (LAI) at 60 days after sowing (DAS) of pearl millet were highest in pearl millet sole (857 g m-2 and 2.19, respectively). The maximum dry matter production at harvest was found in groundnut sole. The highest yield of individual crops was observed in their pure stands, with 2677 kg ha-1 and 2633 kg ha-1 of pearl millet grain and groundnut pod, respectively. Among mixed stands, pearl millet (30 cm × 10 cm) + groundnut (1:1) and pearl millet (45 cm × 10cm) + groundnut (1:1) showed superior values of different competition functions, such as aggressivity, relative crowding coefficient, monetary advantage, land equivalent ratio, and area time equivalent ratio. The results concluded that pearl millet and groundnut could be intercropped with a 1:1 row proportion with pearl millet spacing of either 30 cm × 10 cm or 45 cm × 10 cm in south Odisha conditions
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