Spain: Intercropping melon and cowpea improves soil nutrients and increases melon yields

Published 2022년 3월 31일

Tridge summary

A study by the European Diverfarming project has found that intercropping melons with cowpeas can improve soil quality and increase melon yields. The research, which involved analyzing soil nutrients, physico-chemical properties, enzyme activity, and soil microbial community, found that intercropping led to increased total nitrogen levels, available phosphorus, and total organic carbon in the soil. The intercropping system also saw a greater abundance of beneficial microorganisms such as Pseudomonas, Bacillus, Streptomyces, and Sphingomonas. The study suggests that this diversified growing system can provide a consistent supply of food and income while reducing the need for external inputs.

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Original content

Intercropping is an agricultural practice that involves growing two or more plant species in the same ground at the same time. This practice enables growers not only to increase crop productivity, but also to improve soil quality. Moreover, it brings advantages such as reduced pests and diseases and a greater diversity of microbes and beneficial insects. Although intercropping with some traditional crops has shown high degrees of success, such as maize with bean and pumpkin in Mexico, which is known as milpa, not all intercropping systems constitute improvements, since there must be a balance between the crops used.With the aim of increasing the environmental and economic sustainability of agricultural systems, a team from the European Diverfarming project has ...

Source: Phys