Competition indices for wheat and faba bean intercropped together under sandy soil conditions [electronic resource].

Includes references.

Egyptian faba bean cultivar Sakha 1 was planted either solely or intercropped with four Egyptian wheat varieties i.e., Giza 168, Sakha 94, Gemmiza 9 and Sids 1 by seven cropping patterns. The cropping patterns i.e., sowing wheat at three seeding rates(3oo,350and 400 grains/m2) solely and intercropped with faba bean as well as solid faba bean plantings, were tested for each wheat variety in alternative rows 20 cm apart (1:1). The main objective of this work was to determine the suitable (wheat /faba bean) intercropping treatment for maximizing the land productivity of sandy soil through calculating the degree of competition indices for both crops. Hence, both faba bean seed yield and wheat grain yield tons/ ha were used to calculate the degrees of competition indices in terms of Land Equivalent Ratio (LER), Aggressivity (Ag) and Relative Crowding Coefficient (RCC). Two field experiments were carried out at the Experimental Station Farm of the Faculty of Agriculture, Damanhour University, EI-Bostan Region, EI- Behera Governorate, Egypt, during 2009/2010 and 2010/2011 seasons. A split-plot design with four replicates was used in both seasons. Wheat varieties were randomly assigned to the main-plots, while intercropping patterns were allocated in the sub-plots. The obtained results can be summarized as follows: _ LER was insignificantly affected by the four studied wheat varieties in both seasons. Meanwhile, the intercropping patterns significantly affected LER values, in both seasons. LER values averaged of both seasons were greater than one (1.40) for intercropping plantings. _ Values of aggressivity of wheat varieties were significantly differed in the second season only. Sakha 94 was the most aggressive wheat variety compared with the other studied varieties in both seasons. The data also, revealed that the aggressivity values of faba bean were positive, while that of wheat was negative, under intercropping treatments in both seasons. _ RCC for wheat and faba bean was insignificantly affected among wheat varieties, in both seasons. The higher values of RCCw were produced when using Giza 168 (wheat variety) meanwhile, the lowest RCCf values were produced by Sids 1 variety in both seasons. A significant interaction was detected between wheat varieties and cropping patterns (VX C1) for the relative yield of wheat, in the first season only. In general, it could be concluded that intercropping any studied wheat variety with seeding rate of 300 grains/m2 with Sakha 1 faba bean cultivar at 166667 plants/ ha in alternative rows 20 em apart (1:1) could be recommended to maximizing the productivity of land unit area under sandy soil conditions, in EI-Bostan Region, El- Behera Governorate, Egypt.

Summary in English.

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