29 Jun Scope for inter cropping in grown up oil palm gardens
विकसित तेल ताड़ के बगीचों में अंतर फसली के लिए गुंज़ाइश Oil palm, the highest vegetable oil yielding crop, is grown in an area of 2.08 lakh ha in India. Basic resources like soil, solar radiation and aerial environment are not being fully utilized in pure crop of oil palm. In view of unstable price structure, higher cost of cultivation, coconut based cropping systems and economic status, farmers are looking for some alternate cropping in oil palm gardens. Often, inter cropping is chosen as an insurance against the risk of main crop failure/ low price or at least to ensure the stability of crop yields in variable environments. Inter cropping enhances productivity and employment potential considerably. Cultivation of banana, cocoa, black pepper, coffee, pine apple etc as inter crops in mature phase is practiced to some extent in oil palm gardens of India. The major constraint in oil palm gardens as compared to coconut gardens is presence of more density of shade. Even then, there is a scope for utilizing both horizontal as well as vertical space in oil palm gardens by growing suitable inter crops. Criteria for selection of suitable inter crops for oil Palm gardens Crops should have complementary effects rather than competitive effects on the base crop. The component crops should have different...