Effect of Flowering Strips in Associated Broccoli and Lettuce Crops on Increasing Land Use Efficiency

Abstract

Diversifying agroecosystems enhance the sustainability of agricultural production and reduce input dependency during agroecological transitions. To achieve this objective, a study was conducted to assess the impact of intercropping and the introduction of flowering plant strips on land use efficiency and crop damage in a lettuce and broccoli association. The results indicated that the introduction of flowering plant strips alone led to a significant increase in land use efficiency, while intercropping alone did not have any such effect. The efficiency was measured using the land use equivalent ratio (LER), which consistently showed values greater than 1, suggesting a significant increase in efficiency. It should be noted that the presence of flower strips in the crop fields were found to increase the incidence of molluscs and Plutella xyllostella. Additionally, the competitive ratio analysis revealed that broccoli was more competitive than lettuce in the intercropping system. Therefore, farmers can increase the efficiency of land use and profitability by incorporating flower strips in the intercropping systems of broccoli and lettuce.