Mj. Jones et Z. Arous, Barley-salt-bush intercropping for sustainable feed production in a dry Mediterranean steppe environment, J AGRON CR, 184(4), 2000, pp. 253-260
Citations number
10
Categorie Soggetti
Agriculture/Agronomy
Journal title
JOURNAL OF AGRONOMY AND CROP SCIENCE-ZEITSCHRIFT FUR ACKER UND PFLANZENBAU
Dry rangelands in the Syrian steppe have been degraded by overgrazing and i
ncursions of barley cultivation. Replanting with Atriplex spp. (salt-bush)
is recommended for rehabilitation; but, for land already ploughed, growing
barley between atriplex hedges may be the best compromise, providing comple
mentary feed sources and soil protection against wind erosion. The trial de
scribed here measured the biomass output of barley and atriplex browse mate
rial in a range of treatments, in which hedge dimensions and crop-strip wid
ths were varied in partial factorial combination. Results over 6 years show
ed little interaction between hedges and barley crop, but growing the two t
ogether tended to buffer total feed output against annual fluctuations due
to rainfall variability. An apparent decline in atriplex vigour towards the
end of the study period drew attention to the need to optimize browsing pr
essure on the shrubs. Altogether, the indications are that barley-atriplex
systems have potential to provide sustainable production in currently degra
ded steppe areas, but essential conditions for success will be full control
of land access and skilled management of atriplex shrubs.