Optimum plot size of planting and bio-agroeconomic revenues from arugula-carrot intercropping systems in a semi-arid region

Abstract

The production of vegetable crops has been characterized as a highly intensive activity in the use of soil, water, inputs and labor in semi-arid regions, being practiced mostly by small family farmers as a way of subsistence, or in the small-scale commercialization of surplus production. Among the agricultural practices that have been successfully used by vegetable producers are intercrop systems that, when implemented with adequate management, present gains in productivity, nutritional, economic, and environmental value. The aim of this study was to estimate the optimal plot sizes of plantings of carrot (Daucus carota L.) intercropped with arugula (Eruca sativa L.) in bi-cultivation in three spatial arrangements, as well as to determine bio-agroeconomic revenues from associations between these vegetable crops in a semi-arid region. Estimates of optimal sizes of experimental plots in intercropping systems, provided by the methods of bootstrap resampling and of sampling intensity (10%), were four, four and three basic units, respectively, for the spatial arrangements 2R:2C, 3R:3C, and 4R: 4C, between rows of arugula (R) intercropped with carrot (C), and by the Hatheway method, all spatial arrangements were of four basic units. The best bio-agroeconomic performance of carrot intercropped with arugula in bi-cultivation was obtained in the spatial arrangement 2R:2C.

Sustainability of carrot-cowpea intercropping systems through optimization of green manuring and spatial arrangements

“…In the 2:2 spatial arrangement, the values observed for AYL and IA were of 3.13 and 15.92, higher than those reported by CARVALHO et al (2018), who, when studying the agro-economic return of arugula and carrot intercropping in different spatial arrangements, also obtained higher values with the use of the 2:2 spatial arrangement, obtaining AYL and IA values of 1.06 and 3.56, respectively. Different results were recorded by MORAES et al (2018), who investigated the competitive and biological ability of the intercropping of beet with cowpea under different green manuring and spatial arrangements, observing a higher AYL value of 0.21 in the 4:4 spatial arrangement.…”

“…This is confirmed by the values of the economic indicators in the 2:2 spatial arrangement, which were higher than those obtained by CARVALHO et al (2018), who studied the viability of carrot and arugula intercropping as a function of spatial arrangements, also obtaining higher values in the 2:2 spatial arrangement.…”