DIFFERED TEMPORARY CROP INTERCROPPING IN A STAR GRASS GRASSLAND .2. DOLICHOS (LABLAB PURPUREUS)

An experiment was conducted to study the effect of intercropping dolic hos at different intervals after the planting of star grass (0, 10 and 20 days), as well as the culture dosage (0, 10, 20 and 30 kg/ha) thro ugh a split plot design with 4 replications where the main plot was th e interval of intercropping the culture and the sub-plot was the dolic hos dosage. On increasing the time elapsing between pasture planting a nd culture sowing the latter was affected in leaf weight, stem and tot al plant. A similar situation (P<0.01) occurred for yield (2.8; 1.6 an d 0.1 t/ha DM for 0, 10 and 20 days, respectively). The sowing dosage showed effect (P<0.05) only For yield (2.8: 1.6 and 0.1 t/ha DM for do sages of 10, 20 and 30 kg/ha, respectively). The culture only resisted the third cut. Pasture yield was greater (P<0.05) as the intercroppin g was prolonged (0.8; and 1.9 t/ha DM), while with the increasing cult ure dosage (P<0.001) yield was lower (2.3; 1.5; 1.3 and 0.8 t/ha DM). Weed incidence was lower for the intercropped treatments and disappear ed in the second cutting when the pasture and the culture were planted at the same time. The intercropping effect was not reflected on yield since it did not differ from the pasture alone (7.3 t/ha DM) nor from the pasture + culture (7.0 - 7.4 t/ha DM), but it gives the possibili ty of having a higher quality forage, without damaging the star grass. The convenience of intercropping dolichos on planting star grass with dosages of 20 kg/hg of PGS, is analysed.