Hostname: page-component-78c5997874-s2hrs Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-03T05:12:18.017Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

The Effects of Sole and Traditional Intercropping of Millet and Cowpea on Soil and Crop Productivity

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  03 October 2008

K. C. Reddy
Affiliation:
Alabama A & M University, PO Box 1208, Normal, Alabama 35762, USA
P. L. Visser
Affiliation:
National Agronomic Research Institute of Niger (INRAN), BP 429, Niamey, Niger
M. C. Klaij
Affiliation:
International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT), Niamey, Niger
C. Renard
Affiliation:
International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT), Niamey, Niger

Summary

The after effects of three years' continuous cropping with sole millet, sole cowpea or a traditional millet/cowpea intercrop were compared using five levels of nitrogen fertilizer. The continuous sole cowpea system had reduced the carbon to nitrogen ratio more than the continuous sole millet or the traditional intercrop. The test crop millet yielded much more, and its uptake of nitrogen and phosphorus was greater, when it followed sole cowpea than when it followed sole millet or the traditional millet/cowpea intercrop. The three years' continuous sole cowpea had an effect equivalent to the application of 205 kg N ha−1 on the test crop of millet. It also caused the greatest reduction in Striga infestation in the test crop. It is therefore recommended that cowpea cultivation be increased in the Sahel.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1994

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

REFERENCES

Anon. (1991). Résultats Définitifs de la Campagne Agricole 1990. Répubique du Niger: Service des Statistiques Agricoles, Direction de l'Agriculture, Ministère de l'Agriculture et de l'Elevage.Google Scholar
Crookston, R. K., Kurle, J. & Lueschen, E. (1988). Relative ability of soybean, fallow and triacontanol to alleviate yield reductions associated with growing corn continuously. Crop Science 28:145147.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Dugue, P. (1985). Préparation du sol en zone Sahelo-Soudanienne, atouts et contraintes. In FSU SAFGRAD sur les Technologies Appropriées pour les Paysans des Zones Semi-arides d'Afrique Occidentales. Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso: FSU-SAFGRAD.Google Scholar
Ibro, G., Maliki, K., Lowenberg-DeBoer, J. & Reddy, K. C. (1992). La viabilité microéconomique des technologies améliorées: le cas de la culture associée mil-niébé au Niger. La Revue de la Recherche Agronomique 2:4955.Google Scholar
Juo, A. S. R. & Lai, R. (1977). The effect of fallow and continuous cultivation on the chemical and physical properties of an alfisol in western Nigeria. Plant and Soil 47:567584.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kadi, M., Lowenberg-Deboer, J., Reddy, K. C. & Abdoulaye, B. (1990). Sustainable millet-cowpea technologies for semi-arid Niger. Indian Journal of Dryland Agricultural Research and Development 4:9598.Google Scholar
Klaij, M. C., Renard, C. & Reddy, K. C. (1994). Low-input technology options for millet-based cropping systems in the Sahel. Experimental Agriculture 30:7782.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Krause, M. A., Deuson, R. R., Baker, T. G., Preckel, P. V., Lowenber-DeBoer, J., Reddy, K. C. & Maliki, K. (1990). Risk sharing versus low-cost credit systems for international development. American Journal of Agricultural Economics 72:911922.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lagoke, S. T. O., Parkinson, V. & Agunbiade, R. M. (1991). Parasitic weeds and control methods in Africa. In Combating Striga in Africa. Proceedings of the International Workshop, 22–24 August 1988, Ibadan, Nigeria (Ed. Kim, S. K.).Google Scholar
Olsen, S. R. & Sommers, L. E. (1982). Phosphorus. In Methods of Soil Analysis: Part II, 403427 (Eds Page, A. L., Miller, R. H. and Keeney, D. R.). Madison, Winconsin: American Society of Agronomy.Google Scholar
Pieri, C. (1989). Fertilité des Terres de Savanes. Bilan de Trente Ans de Recherche et de Développement Agricole au Sud du Sahara. Coopération Française et Centre de Coopération International en Recherche Agronomique pour le Développement (CIRAD).Google Scholar
Reddy, K. C., Visser, P. & Buckner, P. (1992). Pearl millet and cowpea yields in sole and intercrop systems, and their after-effects on soil and crop productivity. Field Crops Research 28:315326.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Walkey, A. & Black, I. A. (1934). An examination of the Degtjareff method for determining soil organic carbon and a proposed modification of the chromic acid titration method. Soil Science 37:2938.CrossRefGoogle Scholar