Abstract
ABSTRACT: The objective of this study was to evaluate the agronomic efficiency of intercropping combinations of carrot and arugula at different population densities in bicropping in the semi-arid conditions of the Brazilian Northeast. The study was conducted at the "Rafael Fernandes" Experimental Farm of the Universidade Federal Rural do Semi-Árido (UFERSA) during the period September 2011 to February 2012. The experimental design was of randomized complete blocks with treatments arranged in a 4 x 4 factorial scheme with four replications. The combinations were four population densities of carrot (40, 60, 80 and 100% of the recommended population in sole crop - RPSC) with four population densities of arugula (40, 60, 80 and 100% of the RPSC). The recommended population densities for sole crops of carrot and arugula are 500,000 and 1,000,000 plants per hectare, respectively. All treatments were fertilized with hairy woodrose (Merremia aegyptia L.), a spontaneous species of the Caatinga biome. The highest agronomic efficiency of carrot intercropped with arugula in bicropping was achieved in the combination of 40% of RPSC for the carrot and 100% of RPSC for the arugula. The commercial maximum yield (33.74 t ha-1) of carrot roots and the maximum yields of arugula green mass (8.06 and 2.67 t ha-1) in both cultivations were also obtained in the combination of population densities of 40% of RPSC for carrot and 100% of RPSC for arugula.
Highlights
In northeastern Brazil, carrot and arugula come constitute two extremely important crops in cropping systems with green fertilizers due to their good agronomic performance and their social, economic and nutritional characteristics
This study aimed to evaluate the agronomic efficiency of the cultivation of arugula intercropped with carrot at different population densities of the component crops in the semi-arid conditions of Mossoró-RN
The first factor consisted of four population densities of carrot plants (40, 60, 80 and 100% of the recommended population in sole crop — RPSC) and the second factor was four population densities of arugula plants (40, 60, 80 and 100% of the RPSC)
Summary
In northeastern Brazil, carrot and arugula come constitute two extremely important crops in cropping systems with green fertilizers due to their good agronomic performance and their social, economic and nutritional characteristics. Among the many multiple cropping possibilities, intercropping systems have received special attention, mainly because of the richness of their ecological interactions, plant population, spatial arrangement and management of the crops in the field. These are in contrast to modernized agricultural systems, which are based on monoculture, intensive use of capital and products originating from the industrial sector, such as synthetic fertilizers and pesticides (SANTOS, 1998). The success of the systems can be determined by a number of agronomic parameters that affect interactions between species These parameters include: overall population density, availability of resources and the type of intercropping system used (GLIESSMAN, 1998; HATFIELD; KARLEN, 1994; MAZAHERI; MADANI; OVEYSI, 2006)
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