No rain but bumper harvest: the magic of pigeonpea in semi-arid Kenya
Date
2018Author
Karuku, GN
Kwena, K.M
Ayuke, F.O
Esilaba, AO
Type
ArticleLanguage
enMetadata
Show full item recordAbstract
Land degradation and low rainfall seriously constrain agricultural
production in arid and semi-arid areas. A study was conducted at Katumani
Research Centre between 2009 and 2013 to investigate the effect of pigeonpea
and crop residues on soil physical properties and maize yields. Sole- and
inter-crops of maize and pigeonpea varieties drawn from three maturity groups
and three crop residue application rates were evaluated in a split-split plot
design with pigeonpea varieties, cropping systems and crop residue application
rates as the main plot, sub-plot and sub-sub-plot, respectively. Results showed
that maize-pigeonpea intercrops accumulated very low soil organic matter and
hence, did not improve soil physical properties. Instead, they increased
soil bulk density and reduced soil aggregation. Intercropping maize with
pigeonpea requires more water compared to maize and pigeonpea sole crops.
Mbaazi II-maize intercrop offers the best option since it gave the highest maize
and pigeonpea grain yields and produced sufficient stover and stalks.
Citation
Kwena, K.M., Ayuke, F.O., Karuku GN, Esilaba AO. "No rain but bumper harvest: the magic of pigeonpea in semi-arid Kenya." International Journal of Agricultural Resources, Governance and Ecology, 14(2), pp.181-203.. 2018;14(2):181-203.Publisher
University of Nairobi
Rights
Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 United StatesUsage Rights
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/us/Collections
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