Potential of economical productivity of faba bean/onion intercropping patterns under North Sinai conditions.

Abstract

A field experiment was conducted during two seasons in North Sinai, to study the effects of intercropping and density treatments on yield and the productivity of faba bean and onion plants. Combinations of intercropping and density treatments were used. The experimental design used in this study was RCBD with three replicates in five treatments: single faba beans, and single onions, as well as the three intermodal patterns (faba beans: onions) with the substitution method due to changed density ratios. Three intercropping patterns include different areas of faba bean and onions. The intercropping area ratios occupied by faba bean and onion were 11.8:88.2%, 7.6:92.4% and 4.9:95.1%, respectively, for the three respective manners. Intercropping effects were significant for yields of each crop species. On average, monoculture faba bean yielded 1.965 and 0.462 ton/fed seed dry and straw yields, respectively, as well as a sole onion of 15.95 ton/fed bulb yield. The mean faba bean seeds dry yield and, straw decreased by 17.2% and 3.4%, respectively while, bulbs yield increased by 82.6% when the faba bean plants densities/m 2 , in the intercrop, decreased from 4.0 to 2.9 plants/m 2 while increasing the onion plants rate/m 2 from 30 to 50 plants/m 2 . The highest total intercrop yield of 15.125 ton/fed and a gross monetary value of 12853 L.E. was obtained when onion intercropped with faba bean in an intercropping pattern of F 3 O 3 (including 50 and 2.9 plants/m 2 for onion and faba bean, respectively). The gross monetary value followed the same trend as the total land equivalent ratio.