Search

Elephant foot yam, the king of tubers is a long duration tropical tuber crop with multifaceted uses. It is a slow growing crop especially in the initial phases and there is a time lapse of two months or more for the spread of its canopy due to slower sprouting. The interspaces remain fallow and therefore, may be successfully exploited for the cultivation of short-term vegetable crops. To achieve maximum land use efficiency and to control weed growth, the field experiments were conducted at Horticultural College and Research Institute, Coimbatore, India for two seasons, 2021 and 2021/22. Four short-duration vegetables, viz., cluster bean, amaranthus, radish and fenugreek were grown in the inter-spaces of elephant foot yam and compared to its solo crop. At initial stages, the growth parameters of elephant foot yam were higher in solo crop whereas, at later stages, the cluster bean intercropping fared better. Weed control efficiency was greater in the cluster bean intercropping system at 90, 120, 150 and 180 days after planting. A higher yield of elephant foot yam 46.54 t/ha and 38.37 t/ha was obtained at season I and season II respectively in the cluster bean intercropped treatment. The land equivalent ratio was at its maximum (1.66 and 1.61) in the cluster bean intercropping system, indicating that the system is very productive. Thus, for increasing the productivity and profitability, it is suggested for elephant foot yam intercropping with cluster bean. Furthermore, planting elephant foot yam in summer (season I) is preferred since it resulted in higher yield (46.54 t/ha). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]