A review on intercropping effects on growth and yield of sugarcane

Abstract

Intercropping is a practice in which two or more crops are grown in the same place and time. It is an ancient and commonly practiced method which usually aims to meet the crop demands more efficiently by facilitating proper utilization of the available resources. Intercropping is capable of giving greater yield on a given piece of land. Sugarcane can be selected as an important intercrops as it take about 90-120 days for full canopy development. It is intercropped with short duration crops during its early stages. Sugarcane + soybean cropping system is more profitable than cultivation of sole sugarcane. Selection of short duration intercrop, their minimum shading effect on sugarcane and no overlapping of peak nutrient demand of sugarcane with intercrop are key considerations for successful intercropping of sugarcane. Again the intercropping of soybean with sugarcane gave the highest possible values or profit only when 100% sugarcane + 40% soybean in one row. Paired row trench planting sugarcane with sole or intercropped with garlic gives highest cane yield. Therefore, sugarcane is considered as the most suitable crop to be intercropped with other crops to attain better yield and higher economic returns.