Productivity and Land Equivalent Ratio of Intercropping Cotton with Some Winter Crops in Egypt

Two field experiments were carried out at Research Station, El-Sharkia Governorate, ARC, Egypt during 2009/2010 and 2010/2011 seasons to investigate the effect of relay intercropping cotton with some winter crops as compared with sequential solid plantings of these crops on the productivity, land equivalent ratio and net returns from these systems. The split plot design with three replications was used. Two cotton cultivars were grown in the main plots, while cropping systems were allocated in sub-plots as follows: relay intercropping cotton with faba bean and wheat at 20th March, faba bean and wheat were grown with two population densities. These treatments were compared with growing cotton after Egyptian clover each of 20th March, 20th April and 20th May, as well as, faba bean at 20th April and wheat at 20th May in solid plantings. Intercropping cotton with faba bean and wheat lead to significant reductions in yields of these crops. The results showed that cotton cultivar Giza 86 had higher seed cotton yield than Giza 90. Intercropping cotton with faba bean at 20th March as well gave higher yield, also it had the same effects of cotton characters grown in sequential solid plantings at 20th April after faba bean and after Egyptian clover at 20th March. Intercropping cotton with wheat at 20th March had the same values of cotton characters of traditional culture. Late planting date of cotton (20th May) as followed after Egyptian clover or wheat caused significant reductions in cotton characters as compared with those grown in the early date. Low plant densities of faba bean or wheat decreased their effects on cotton characters under relay intercropping. Also, cotton cultivars and the interactions between cotton cultivars and cropping systems had insignificant effects on yield of preceding crops (faba bean and wheat), while cropping systems had significant effects on yield of wheat and faba bean. Solid planting of wheat in two rows/ridge (S10) has the highest grain yield; also, solid planting of faba bean in high density has the highest seed yield. All intercropping systems gave advantages in LERs as compared with sequential cropping systems where it ranged from 1.9 to 2.81 of S2 and S4 respectively. The results revealed that cotton cultivar Giza 86 had higher values of economic returns than cultivar Giza 90.