Advantages of Intercropping Cowpea with Maize Crop Under Different Tillage Methods and Inorganic Fertilizer Rates
Keywords:
Advantages, Intercropping, Cowpea, Maize, Tillage methods and Inorganic fertilizerAbstract
Field experiments were conducted during 2014 and 2015 cropping seasons at the Teaching and Research Farm, Federal University of Agriculture, Makurdi-Nigeria to determine the yield advantages of intercropping cowpea with maize under different tillage methods and inorganic fertilizer rates. The experimental design consisted of three factors: cropping systems at two levels (sole and intercropping), tillage methods at two levels (No-tillage and Ridges) and inorganic fertilizer rates at three levels (0, 150 and 300 kg/ha NPK 20:10:10). The treatments were laid out in a Randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD) in a split-split plot arrangement and replicated three times. The cropping systems were assigned to the main plots, tillage methods to sub-plots and the inorganic fertilizer rates were in the sub-sub plots. A composite soil sample was obtained from a plough layer (0-15 cm) at the beginning and at the end of the experiment according to the treatments and analyzed for particle size distribution, pH, organic carbon, total nitrogen, available phosphorus and exchangeable cations [Mg2+, Ca2+, Na+ and K+] as well as cation exchange capacity (CEC) to see if there was a change in the soil properties after the experiment for both cropping seasons. Data collected for the yield parameters of maize and cowpea were subjected to the Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) after which significant means were separated using Least Significant Difference (LSD) at P<0.05. Results obtained from the study showed that higher yields were obtained from crops cultivated on ridges than in notillage. Inorganic fertilizer significantly (P<0.05) increased the yield of the component crops than when no fertilizer was applied. There was interaction effect of cropping system, tillage methods and inorganic fertilizer rates with respect to most maize and cowpea crop parameters in both cropping seasons. Intercropping resulted in yield advantage; the land equivalent ratio (LER) was (1.52) in 2014 and (1.29) in 2015 indicating 34 % and 23 % land saved in 2014 and 2015 cropping seasons respectively. Ridge tillage method increased porosity and penetrability thus allowing roots to have better access to water and nutrients when compared with no- tillage. Based on yield and productivity advantage obtained from intercropping, the effect of different rates of inorganic fertilizer on the growth and yield of maize and cowpea intercrop deserve further investigation using higher fertilizer rates. Integrating cowpea into the maize production system is a viable option for maximizing land use efficiency in the study area.
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