Impact assessment of agroforestry system on yield of associated barley (Hordeum vulgare) and gram (Cicer arietinum) Crops

Abstract

Agroforestry systems can be advantageously used over conventional agricultural and forest production methods for increased productivity, economic benefits and ecological gains. In an agroforestry system integrating trees and crops, trees may have impact, positive or negative, on he yield of crops. The purpose of this paper is to investigate how far the yields of barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) and gram (Cicer arietinum L.) are affected in an agroforestry system under semi-arid conditions of India and to identify the factors that have significant impact on the yield. Linear model containing four factors, viz. tree species (Siris, Neem, Shishum and Babul), location of the trees in t he plot, direction of the crop on either side of t he tree and distance of the crop from the tree, has been defined along with the interaction effects. The data pertaining to the two crops for six years (1999-2005) was analysed separately. Contrast analysis has been performed to study the performance of the crops under different trees and without tree. The combined analysis of the crop was also performed to study the yield behavior over the years. It is found that yield of both the associated crops (barley and gram) is affected by the tree species as well as the distance of the crops from the tree base. The yield decreases over the years under the different tree species. The yield on north side of the tree is more as compared to south side for all the years. It is, thus, concluded that the system has a significant impact on the output of the associated crops.