Plantain-Tree Rubber Intercropping Systems Improved Productivity in the Tropical Humid Zone of Ghana, West Africa

Erasmus Narteh Tetteh,Vincent Logah,Kwame Twum-Ampofo,Stephen Yeboah,Henry Oppong Tuffour,Victor Rex Barnes,Emmanuel Amoah Boakye ,Akwasi A Abunyewa ,Eric Owusu Danquah ,B M Dzomeku ,Caleb Melenya Ocansey

doi:10.1155/2021/3240686

Abstract

A three-year field trial was conducted between 2014 and 2017 in the Ellembelle and Jomoro districts of the Western region of Ghana where rubber production is common to determine the optimum population density of plantain when grown in combination with immature rubber tree crops. The trials were arranged in a Randomized Complete Block Design with 3 replications. The treatments were sole rubber, sole plantain, and three intercrops of one row of plantain in between two rows of rubber, two rows of plantain in between two rows of rubber, and three rows of plantain in between two rows of rubber. The rubber clone used was GT1 while the variety of plantain used was false horn. The results showed that population density of plantain had significant effect on the growth of the associated rubber. Growing plantain at closer spacing of 1.5 m under the high-density plantain treatment significantly increased plantain yield compared to the other cropping systems. There was a significant positive relationship between population density of plantain and the rubber tree growth and development. The optimum population density of plantain when intercropped with rubber was 1,666/ha. The study showed intercropping was advantageous over sole cropping for both crops.

Highlights

Several other studies have reported improved growth of rubber when cultivated as an intercrop compared to those that are planted as sole crops [4, 25, 26]. ese are consistent with the enhanced girth and height of rubber trees under the intercrop relative to the sole rubber
It was found that Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungi (AMF) could increase nutrient content and growth parameters of banana plants [37] and improve soil structure by releasing glomalin when hyphae die and decay, improving soil stability and increasing water retention [38]. ese advantages of the AMF in association with the plantain could have resulted in the significantly higher moisture content recorded under the high-density treatment which benefitted the associated rubber
Rubber trees performed better when intercropped with plantain than under sole crop conditions. e population density of plantain had a significant effect on the growth of the associated rubber with the high-density system having a positive influence on the growth rate of the associated rubber

Summary

Introduction

Arg.) produces latex used in the manufacture of rubber products. E tree grows best under humid and semi-humid tropical conditions. Areas suitable for natural rubber production in Ghana include the forest zones of the Western, Central, Eastern, and Ashanti regions. Rubber plantation development is one of the lucrative farming ventures in the Western and parts of the Central regions of Ghana. Oil palm, and coconut, rubber cultivation stands out as one of the most profitable farming activities, despite the long gestation period of six to seven years. Coconut farmers whose farms were affected by the Lethal Yellowing Disease (LYD) as well as those who were not affected are cutting down their coconut trees to make way for the development of rubber plantations in the region [1]

Methods

Results

Conclusion