Abstract :
Two field experiments were carried out during the cropping seasons of 2012 and 2013 at the Teaching and Research Farm of the University of Agriculture, Makurdi, Benue State, Nigeria. The main objective of the study was to evaluate the suitability of some improved groundnut varieties for intercropping with millet to improve the productivity of groundnut/millet intercropping systems in the area.The treatments consisted of two cropping systems (sole cropping and intercropping) as the main plot, combined with 3 groundnut varieties (Ijunda, Tisha-1 and Samnut 21) as the sub-plot, laid out as a split-plot in randomized complete block design with three replications. The result obtained from the experiment showed that intercropping decreased seed yield of the groundnut component and also decreased the plant height, seed yield and total plant biomass of the millet component. Productivity indices measured by land equivalent ratio and land equivalent coefficient indicated benefits of intercropping the tested groundnut varieties with millet in Makurdi environment. Millet proved more competitive than groundnut under intercropping. These results suggested that intercropping the improved groundnut varieties with millet was suitable and more productive than the sole crop of either of the intercrop components.
Keyword :
Groundnut; Intercropping; Millet; Variety; Sole cropping