Abstract

PEREYRA, T. W; PAGLIARICCI, H. R; OHANIAN, A. E  and  BONVILLANI, M. J. Production of aerial biomass and equivalent land use in alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.) intercropping. Pastos y Forrajes [online]. 2013, vol.36, n.2, pp. 177-183. ISSN 0864-0394.

Productivity increase has traditionally been associated to yield increase through breeding and crop management practices. Nevertheless, if production is considered per area and time unit, the intercropping system may be another way to improve cost-effectiveness. The objective of the experiment was to determine the produced biomass and the equivalent land use in alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.) monocrop and intercrops with sorghum Sudan (Sorghum sudanense L.) and oat (Avena sativa L.). The aerial biomass of all the treatments (expressed per surface unit) and the equivalent land use were determined. The design was completely randomized, arranged in blocks with two repetitions. The results were subject to an ANAVA and the means were compared through Duncan's test, by means of the statistical pack INFOSTAT. The alfalfa-sorghum intercrop triplicated the alfalfa production with regards to the monocrop, while alfalfa-oat did not exceed the production of pure alfalfa in the winter months. The alfalfa-sorghum intercrop was 57 % more efficient in land use than the respective monocrops, while alfalfa-oat did not surpass the unit

Keywords : biomass; Medicago sativa; multiple land use.

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