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TROPICAL AND SUB-TROPICAL HORTICULTURAL SYSTEMS
TROPICAL AND SUB-TROPICAL HORTICULTURAL SYSTEMS |
Inter-cropping:
Plate 5.1:Raj mash as inter-crop in orchard Suitable inter-crops for different crops are: Ber : Green gram, moth, cluster bean, cowpea, cumin, chilies Citrus : Beans, carrot, tomatoes, berseem, onion, potato, chilies, pulses, cucurbits,lady’s finger, gram, peas, tomato, cabbage Date palm: Citrus medica, guava, sapota Grape : Vegetables relevant to area Guava : Cauliflower, peach, Frenchbean, cowpea, clusterbean, blackgram, Greengram, Lady’s finger, onion, turmeric, garlic, cabbage, chillies, Papaya Litchi : Turmeric, ginger, pointed gourd, sweet potato, tomato, radish, cabbage,turnip, brinjal, cucurbits, green gram, black gram, cowpea Mango : Phalsa, papaya, guava, banana, peach, strawberry, pineapple Papaya : Cabbage, cauliflower, chilies, radish, tomato Pomegranate: Berseem, Lucerne, cowpea, green pea, cucurbit, cabbage,cauliflower, bean, peas, tomato, carrot, onion, potato, brinjal Sapota : Banana, papaya, pineapple, broad bean, tomato, brinjal, cabbage, cauliflower, spider lily. Principles of inter-cropping To evaluate the effects of annual inter-cropped crops in fruit orchards on the productivity and sustainability of integrated fruit systems by enhancing the efficiency of both abiotic and biotic factors.
1. Generates supplementary income during the initial juvenile years of orchard plantings. 2. Increases organic matter. 3. Increases soil nutrient status by fixing atmospheric N to soil by leguminous crops. 4. Reduces weed growth. 5. Improves soil structure. Criteria for the selection of an intercrop: Main crops should always be given proper care in order to avoid root restriction, damage and infection, undue exhaustion of the soil, perpetuation of virus, fungal and nematode infection. Intercrops should therefore, receive secondary importance and fulfil following criteria.
Types of inter-cropping:
Cover crops:
Plate 5.2: White clover (Trifolium repense) provides year round orchard cover in temperate and sub-tropics regions. Advantages: 1. Increase water retaining capacity and biological complexes of soil. 2. Increase organic matter in soil. 3. Improve soil condition. 4. Improve soil fertility. 5. Check soil erosion and thus also nutrient losses from soil. Minimum tillage. The inter-space between the trees is maintained without any soil working. The method is particularly followed in uneven topography. In this method, sod, weeds, cover crops and any other vegetation are controlled by the use of herbicide in spring. The method is extremely useful in controlling weeds and moisture conservation. Besides, nutrients are slowly released from dead materials. Multi-storyed cropping: Multi-storied cropping systeminvolves the growing of crops of different height, rooting pattern, and duration simultaneously on the same piece of land. This is most common in coconut based cropping system in Kerala (Figure 5.1) to meet diversified needs of farming community for fodder, food and fuel, besides increasing net return per unit area, e.g. coconut+ pepper + pineapple + grass. Taller trees, which has greater requirement for solar light, are able to trap more solar lightwhen grown as top story and those having requirement of lower light are raised as ground story. In this system, annual and perennial crops are grown side by side in different tiers by exploiting soil and vertical space more efficiently. Inter-cropping and mixed cropping with compatible crops in coconut plantations has been found to give increased returns to the farmers, without affecting yield of the main crop. Figure 5.1: Coconut based multi-story cropping system |
Last modified: Saturday, 19 May 2012, 6:21 AM