Evaluation of Cropping System for Rain Fed Agriculture
Abstract
Erratic and inadequate rainfall is one of the important factors for crop production under rainfed conditions. Crop grown as sole crop are found to be rather risky due to delayed monsoon accompanied with prolonged intermittent dry spells. A strategy for stabilizing production of dry-land crops through commonly recognized practice of intercropping of compatible crops is considered viable to overcome the situation. Mothbean and pearlmillet are important arid crop. So it is necessary to find out its intercropping proportion to resuce the risk of failure of sole crop. Therefore, an experiment was conducted at Dry Farming Research Station, Sardarkrushinagar Dantiwada Agricultural University, Radhanpur to evaluate of cropping system for rainfed agriculture in kharif season during 2010-11 to 2022-23. Significantly higher pearlmillet equivalent yield (3466 kg/ha) was recorded under Sole Mothbean which remained at par with pearl millet + moth bean (1:3) intercropping (3305 kg/ha).
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Introduction
Rainfed area occupies 58% of net cultivatable area in the India, have diverse farming systems, different potentials and constraints, which can only be addressed through development and application of location specific. Sole cropping is very risky in rainfed area because of erratic pattern and uncertainty of rainfall, there is a possibility of failure of sole crop. Researchers and farmers are developing different crop production systems to increase productivity and sustainability which includes intercropping, mix cropping, relay cropping and crop rotation since the Vedic times. There are several factors like variety, seeding ratios, planting pattern and competition between crop which affect the growth of species in mix cropping and intercropping.
Moth bean as arid legumes and Pearl millet as arid millets are largely grown in arid region. Due to the risk of failure of sole crop it is necessary to buildup an insurance against total crop failure. So that the study on intercropping of moth bean with pearl millet under rainfed condition is essential to find out the proportion of intercropping of moth bean and pearl millet and to increase the income by sowing the main crop with inter crop. Another objective of intercropping in rainfed area are to produce an additional crop by optimize the use of natural resources and to stabilize the yield of crops and to overcome the risk.
Conclusion
From the forgoing discussion it can be concluded that, rainfed pearlmillet should be grown as pearlmillet : mothbean (1:3) intercropping system with 45 cm spacing instead of sole pearlmillet forgetting higher pearlmillet equivalent yield, net profit and insurance against failure of one crop.
