EVALUATION OF INTERCROPPING SYSTEMS IN PIGEONPEA

In a field experiment the evaluation of pigeonpea as a sole crop and its intercropping with 1 and 2 rows each of sunflower, castor, groundnut and cowpea was done. The results showed that the growth characters and yield attributes of the sole pigeonpea crop were not influenced by a change in the inter-and intra-row spacings, when spaced at 60 x 30 cms and 90 x 20 cms While the pigeopea-sunflower (one or two rows) intercropping system maximised the total productivity, net profit per unit area, relative net returns, returns per rupee investment and the land equivalent ratios, the pigeonpea-castor (two rows) system gave the much higher proportion of pigeonpea yields. Where the pigeonpea yield requirement from the intercropping was met with, one row of groundunt was the best intercrop component.