Growth, Yield, Resource Parameters and Interspecific Competition of Intercropped Maize, Wheat, Peas and Peanut in Germany and China – a Model Approach

Publikations-Art

Kongressbeitrag

Autoren

Knörzer, H., Graeff-Hönninger, S., Claupein, W., Guo, B., Pu, W.

Erscheinungsjahr

2009

Tagungsname

Farming Systems Design Symposium 2009

Tagungsort

Monterey, USA

Tagungsdatum

23.-26.08.2009

Intercropping, defined as a kind of multiple cropping system with two or more crops grown simultaneously in the same area, is a widespread cropping system in China. China has the largest intercropping area in the world, with a long tradition and with arable land being scarce, thus land has to be fully used in time and space. Within a Sino-German research cooperation, development, simulation and evaluation of improved cropping strategies and multi-level interactions in intercropping systems were studied aiming to test intercropping systems’ performance in order to detect phenological, morphological and physiological differences between cereals and legumes for increased benefit and synergistic effects and to investigate field-border-cultivation.. After all, data from field trials were used to simulate and evaluate intercropping systems with the DSSAT crop growth model. Field trials were conducted in Germany with maize/wheat and maize/pea and in China with maize/peanut respectively. First results indicated that species behaviour under intercropping differs between each other and the influence of intercropping is mainly found at the borderline. Increased soil temperature, shading patterns and increased wind speed in the borderlines were the main effects influencing crop performance within intercropping systems. Slightly changed and adapted (micro-) climate offers a possible starting point for modeling different intercropping scenarios in future.