Soil moisture dynamics and components performance in relay intercropping of tephrosia vogeli1 and maize in semi-arid Gairo, Tanzania
| dc.contributor.author | Ngegba, Moses S. | |
| dc.date.accessioned | 2022-11-24T08:24:25Z | |
| dc.date.available | 2022-11-24T08:24:25Z | |
| dc.date.issued | 2005 | |
| dc.description.abstract | A study investigating the effect of time of planting and spacing of Tephrosia on soil moisture and components performance in relay intercropping with maize were conducted at Gairo, Tanzania in three seasons. A split-plot design with main plot factor as time of planting having levels 0, 2 and 4 weeks after maize and spacing as minor plots factor with levels 30 x 90 (Tv30), 60 x 90 (Tv60) and 90 x 90 (Tv90) cm (intercrop and monoculture Tephrosia vogelii) plus control (TvO), was laid in the first season. For second and third seasons, a split- split-plot design was laid, where spacing treatment was split to two levels of fertilizer (without and with half and full recommended doses of N and P respectively). In the first season, soil moisture was assessed within 100 cm soil depths using Profile Probe. Maize height and stover yield were assessed at tasselling while grain yield was assessed at maturity, and Tephrosia biomass yield was assessed at three, six and eleven months of growth. Soil bulk density, organic carbon and root biomass yield were assessed at 11 months. In the second and third seasons, field mineral nitrogen and maize yield were assessed. Highest soil moisture and maize yield were maintained with Wk2Tv60 in first season. At three months in intercrops, total shrub biomass was significantly higher (P<0.05) in Wk2Tv30 than the rest. Total shrub yields at eleven months in monoculture plots were 2-6 times higher than intercrops. Mean shrub biomass increment, mean shrub height increment and mean shrub diameter increment were significantly higher (P<0.05) in Wk0Tv90 than the rest between six and eleven month assessments for intercrops. Soil properties after eleven months did not consistently differ, but monoculture Tephrosia showed superiority in most cases over intercrops. Maize yield was maximized with fertilized monoculture Tephrosia, but unfertilized intercrops recorded 50 and 58 percent increase over unfertilized TvO in second and third seasons, respectively. The study concludes that Tephrosia rclay-intcrcroppcd with maize can enhance sustainable maize production in land-scarce semi arid areas and recommends further study on continuous intercropping involving various provenances of Tephrosia. | en_US |
| dc.description.sponsorship | The African Academy of Sciences (AAS) and TARP II-SUA Project | en_US |
| dc.identifier.uri | http://www.suaire.sua.ac.tz/handle/123456789/4807 | |
| dc.language.iso | en | en_US |
| dc.publisher | Sokoine University of Agriculture | en_US |
| dc.subject | Planting - Tephrosia | en_US |
| dc.subject | Spacing-Tephrosia | en_US |
| dc.subject | Soil moisture | en_US |
| dc.subject | Maize | en_US |
| dc.subject | Tephrosia biomass yield | en_US |
| dc.subject | Intercrops | en_US |
| dc.subject | Soil properties | en_US |
| dc.subject | Gairo | en_US |
| dc.subject | Tanzania | en_US |
| dc.title | Soil moisture dynamics and components performance in relay intercropping of tephrosia vogeli1 and maize in semi-arid Gairo, Tanzania | en_US |
| dc.type | Thesis | en_US |