Effects of intercropping of maize and potato on sloping land on the water balance and surface runoff

It has been suggested that the increased yields of intercropping are strongly correlated to its effect on controlling water loss. However, studies of the effect of intercropping on controlling water loss on sloping land are few. In this study, with maize ( Zea mays L.) and potato ( Solanum tuberosum L.) as experimental crops, a comparison was made of surface runoff, soil evaporation, soil moisture content, crop transpiration and crop yield between the intercropping and the sole crop on sloping land during 2012–2013. Data showed that: (1) the accumulative runoff in maize and potato intercropping (IC) was not significantly different from that in sole potato (SP), but significantly decreased by 56.75–74.53% ( P P P = 0.034 in 2012 and P = 0.064 in 2013) as compared with that in SP; (3) the soil moisture content in IC at each observation period was higher than that in SM and SP ( P = 0.101 in late July and P P P