Biomass productivity and nutrient accumulation in summer green manure in single and intercropped cultivations

Abstract

The objective of this work was to evaluate the effects of the single and intercropped cultivation of the summer green manures, crotalaria (Crotalaria juncea), pigeon pea (Cajanus cajan), jack beans (Canavalia ensiformis), maize (Zea mays), millet (Pennisetum glaucum) and mucuna (Mucuna aterrimum), in the phytomass production and the nutrient accumulation. The experimental design used was randomized block with four repetitions which the treatments were of single cultivations of species and associate between maize and leguminous. The jack beans in single and intercropped cultivations showed higher productivity of dry and fresh mass, followed of the complete intercropped and of the leguminous. The higher nutrient accumulation in the jack beans phytomass occurred in single cultivation and in the intercrops jack beans + maize, leguminous and complete intercrops.