Changes In Soil Properties Under Alley Cropping System Of Three Leguminous Crops

Ci Okonkwo,So Egwu,Jc Mbagwu

doi:10.4314/as.v8i1.44116

Abstract

A study to evaluate the changes in soil properties, under existing alley cropping system with three leguminous crops (Leucaena leucocephala, Gliricidia sepium, and Cajanus cajan) was conducted in the experimental farm of the Faculty of Agriculture and Natural Resources Management, Ebonyi State University, Abakaliki between 2003-2005. The study was established in a randomized complete block design with five treatments consisting of 10 t ha-1 each of L. leucocephala, G. sepium and C. cajan prunings, 300kg ha-1 of 20:10:10 and a control with no amendments. The study was replicated four times. Soil pH increased from pH 4.2 (strongly acid) in the pre- planting to pH 6.1 (slightly acid) in C. cajan alley plots. The organic matter increased from 1.01g kg -1 in the pre-planting to 5.98g kg-1 in the C. cajan alley plots in 2005. Total N increased in all the alley plots with the highest N content of 2.31g kg-1 in the G. sepium alley plots, which was 68% in 2003, 90% in 2004 and 95% in 2005 over the pre-planting. Available P and exchangeable Ca and Mg increased significantly (p

Highlights

One of the crucial factors for the success of improved farming system is efficient recycling of organic materials
This study was carried out in an existing alley cropping system established in 1991, in the experimental filed of the Faculty of Agriculture and natural Resources Management, Ebonyi State University, Abakaliki, Southeast Nigeria
The low K and exchange capacity (ECEC) observed in this study could be due to low levels of both organic matter and percent clay

Summary

Introduction

One of the crucial factors for the success of improved farming system is efficient recycling of organic materials. Investigations were carried out at the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), Ibadan, Nigeria, to assess the potentials of intercropping woody species with food crops, as a land use system to manage fragile uplands, dominated by low-active clay soils, for continuous crop production, in the humid and sub-humid zone and to improve the traditional bush-fallow, slashand-burn, cultivation system (Lal and Greenland, 1986). This led to the development of and research on the alley cropping system (Kang et al, 1990)

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