EFFECTS ON THE YIELD AND GROWTH OF A YOUNG COMPACT ARABICA COFFEE HYBRID OF INTERCROPPING WITH FOOD CROPS IN 3 AGRO-ECOZONES IN KENYA

The intercropping of a young compact Arabica coffee hybrid with food c rops was studied in three coffee growing areas in Kenya. Intercropping with Irish potatoes, dry beans, tomatoes, cabbages, kale, carrots, fi nger millet, sorghum or soybeans was feasible in suitable coffee ecolo gical zones. Intercropping with maize or sweet potatoes was not feasib le because of their adverse effects on coffee growth in the early stag es of coffee establishment, which led to substantial reductions in cof fee yield.