Grain legume as a doable remunerative intercrop in rainfed cotton (Gossypium hirsutum).

Abstract

A field experiment was conducted during 2004-05 to 2006-07 at Central Institute for Cotton Research, Regional Station, Coimbatore on a slightly alkaline medium fertile sandy clay loam soil to compare the viability and cost effectiveness of grain legume as an intercrop vis-à-vis diverse soil moisture conservation options in rainfed cotton. Here the objective is to find out the suitability of grain legumes as the intercrop to improve productivity and profitability in rainfed cotton in comparison to in-situ land configurations. Results revealed that simple in-situ land configuration measures through furrow opening at each inter-row of a rainfed cotton after last interculture resulted in obtaining significantly higher leaf area index (LAI 3.7), per plant bolls (14.7), burst bolls (10.2) and yield (33.4 g) that enhanced per unit area dry matter production (5,408 kg/ha) and seed cotton yield (1,699 kg/ha) over the control. Yet, growing of a urdbean crop as an intercrop at 1:1 row ratio (in additive series) had an additional yield of 311 kg/ha resulting in realization of the highest seed cotton equivalent yield of 1,902 kg and net return of Rs. 42,805/- per hectare. The intercropping system was remunerative over a range of soil moisture conservation techniques and other pulse based intercropping systems. The intercropping favoured for in terms of both relative production (34.6%) and relative economic efficiency (38.2%) besides obtaining higher nutrient uptake, rainfall use efficiency (33.7 kg/ha-cm), and above all, a better area-time equivalent ratio (1.22).