Intercropping Cotton and Groundnut in Low and High Rainfall Areas in Eastern Zambia

Abstract

SUMMARYYields of intercropped cotton and groundnuts grown on alternate ridges 75 cm apart were compared in areas of high (more than 1000 mm a year) and low (less than 800 mm a year) rainfall and in rainy seasons with a low and high frequency of drought periods. There was no advantage from intercropping in the low rainfall area but in the high rainfall area land equivalent ratios of about 1.4 were obtained, confirming that intercropping is more suited to wet conditions. These high land equivalent ratios were associated with enhanced yields per plant in the cotton and unsuppressed yields per plant in the groundnuts, suggesting that a crop such as cotton, which both tolerates a wide range of population density and has a late-developing leaf canopy, may be particularly well suited to intercropping.Cultivo simultáneo de algodón y chufa en zonas con altas y bajas precipitaciones en el este de Zambia