Evaluation of advantageous of sunflower-grain legume intercropping

One of the key strategies in sustainable agriculture is diversity restoration to agricultural environments and effective management it. Intercropping, which is defined as growing two or more species simultaneously in the same field during a growing season, is considered one important strategy in developing sustainable production systems, particularly systems that aim to limit external inputs such as chemical fertilizer and herbicide etc. Compared to sole crops, intercropping system have higher utilization of resource i.e., nutrient use efficiency, water use efficiency, and land use efficiency. This research was done to evaluation advantageous of sunflower-legume intercropping systems,

The experiment was conducted as randomized complete block design with three replications at the Agricultural Research Station, Faculty of Agriculture, Bu-Ali Sina University, during 2013 and 2014 growing seasons. Experimental treatments were different planting patterns including sunflower, bean and soybean sole cropping, and additive intercropping of 30, 60 and 90% bean, as well as 30, 60 and 90% soybean with sunflower. Intercropping systems were evaluated by using indices of land equivalent ratio (LER), system productivity index (SPI), total relative value (RTV), area-time equivalent ratio (ATER), aggressivity index (AI), competition index (CI) and relative crowding coefficient (RCC).

Results showed that crops grain yield and sunflower equivalent yield affected by planting patterns. The highest sunflower, bean and soybean grain yields were achieved at sole cropping and intercropping decreased grain yield of these crops. However, sunflower equivalent yield at intercropping patterns of 60 and 90% bean and soybean were more than sole cropping. At this treatments, indices of land equivalent ratio, total relative value, area-time equivalent ratio and relative crowding coefficient were more than 1 and competition index was less than 1 that showed intercropping is advantageous. In this study pay attention to aggressivity index, sunflower was aggressive in comparison to bean and soybean.

The results of this present showed that, intercropping systems increased sunflower equal grain yield in comparison with sunflower sole cropping. In general, in the most of the treatments, sunflower-legume (bean and soybean) intercropping was better than their sole cropping and associated with improving economic yield and land use efficiency. The results of this present showed that, intercropping systems increased sunflower equal grain yield in comparison with sunflower sole cropping. In general, in the most of the treatments, sunflower-legume (bean and soybean) intercropping was better than their sole cropping and associated with improving economic yield and land use efficiency.