ALLEY CROPPING IN LEUCAENA LEUCOCEPHALA WITH FIELD CROPS FOR SUSTAINED PRODUCTIVITY

Abstract

PRESENTS RESULTS OF AN EXPERIMENT , CONDUCTED DURING 1981-90 , ON ALLEY CROPPING WITH SUBABUL HAWAIIAN GIANT K-8 ( LEUCAENA LEUCOCEPHALA) (LAM DE WIT) AND ANNUAL FIELD CROPS OF SORGHUM CSH-5 ( SORGHUM BICOLOR L) . PIGEON PEA LOCAL ( CAJANUS CAJAN L) (MILLSP) AND BLACKGRAM T-9 (PHASEOLUS MUNGO L) . THE RESULTS REVEALED THAT GROWING OF LEUCAENA WITH FIELDC ROPS IS FEASIBLE UNDER RAINFED CONDITIONS. LEUCAENA SPACED 3.75 m APART REDUCED THE GRAIN YIELD OF SORGHUM, SORGHUM+ PIGEONPEA AND PIGEONPEA+ BLACKGRAM BY 12.4, 13.6 AND 16.9% RESPECTIVELY WHICH IS LESS AS AGAINST EXPECTED REDUCTION OF 20% ON SPACE OCCUPIED BASIS. THE HIGHER BIOMASS PRODUCTION AND MAXIMUM NET RETURN WERE RECORDED WHEN LEUCAENA WAS GROWN WITH SORGHUM_ PIGEONPEA FOLLOWED BY PIGEON PEA+ BLACKGRAM. GROWING OF LEUCAENA ENHNACED THE SOIL FERTILITY. ON AN AVERAGE , LEUCAENA INCREASED THE ORGANIC CARBON FROM 0.37 TO 0.43% , AVAILABLE N FROM 163 TO 190 P , FROM 8.2 TO 14.9 AND K FROM 460 TO 500 kg/ha.