Effect of intercropping maize and closely spacedLeucaena hedgerows on soil conservation and maize yield on a steep slope at Ntcheu, Malawi (original) (raw)

Abstract

A six-year soil conservation trial was conducted on a steep slope, 44%, with a subhumid climate, based on very closely spaced (90 cm) hedgerows, using three intraspecific hybrids of_Leucaena leucocephala_. Soil loss averaged 2.0 t/ha per year on the_Leucaena_ plots compared with an initial 80 t/ha per year on the unprotected control plot, falling to 27 t/ha per year after the top soil had been eroded. After 6 years, micro terraces of 35 cm high and 81 cm wide had developed on the intercropped plots, with substantially improved soil properties. Maize yield (unfertilized) were maintained at 1.5–2.0 t/ha on the protected plots, compared with a progressive fall from 0.8 to 0.5 t/ha on the sole maize control.

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Authors and Affiliations

1. Land Husbandry Training Centre, P.O. Box 233, Zomba, Malawi
   A. Z. Banda
2. SADC-ICRAF Agroforestry Project, International Centre for Research in Agroforestry, P.O. Box 134, Zomba, Malawi
   J. A. Maghembe & D. N. Ngugi
3. Ntcheu Rural Development Project, Lilongwe Agricultural Development Division, P.O. Box 19, Ntcheu, Malawi
   V. A. Chome

Authors

1. A. Z. Banda
2. J. A. Maghembe
3. D. N. Ngugi
4. V. A. Chome

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Banda, A.Z., Maghembe, J.A., Ngugi, D.N. et al. Effect of intercropping maize and closely spaced_Leucaena_ hedgerows on soil conservation and maize yield on a steep slope at Ntcheu, Malawi.Agroforest Syst 27, 17–22 (1994). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00704831

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• Issue date: July 1994
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00704831

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