Alley cropping on the sloping upland field in Northeast Thailand
Country
Thailand
Description
[Synopsis]
A model field for alley cropping (0.5ha:50x100m) was set up with a leguminous tree species, Leucaena leucocephala , on the contour lines in the 5% sloping field in Northeast Thailand to prevent erosion and to supply organic materials into upland fields. Growth of crops (sweet corn, mungbean etc.) was evaluated at various distances from trees. Shading by tree canopy in rainy season and depletion of water by roots of trees in dry season were the main obstacles to crop growth when the trees and crops were planted closely. Width of tree rows was reccomended to be 20m in view of crop production, mechanized crop management and prevention of soil erosion. Pruning of alley trees and subsequent supply of organic materials were effective to improve soil properties. Regeneration of twigs after pruning followed a similar pattern as that of the annual rainfall, and the appropriate frequency of pruning was three times in a year to save the labor under the sequential crop cultivation through rainy and dry season.
- Affiliation
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Japan International Research Center for Agricultural Sciences Crop Production and Postharvest Technology Division
- Classification
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Administration
- Term of research
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FY2000 (FY1995-2000)
- Responsible researcher
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KABAKI Nobuyuki ( Crop Production and Postharvest Technology Division )
KATAOKA Kenji ( Utsunomiya University )
TABUCHI Ryuichi ( Forestry and Forest Products Research Institute )
- ほか
- Japanese PDF
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2000_11_A3_ja.pdf1.16 MB