Productive response of cassava intercrop (Manihot esculenta) in a agrosilvopastoril system of Pachira quinata. I. Agronomic results

Abstract

An agrosilvopastoral arrangement was evaluated as a productive alternative to promote better land use and increase rural productivity. The interactions presented in the integration of cassava cultivation (Manihot esculenta) with red ceiba (Pachira quinata) and leucaena (Leucaena leucocephala) were studied during the development of the cassava crop in the establishment phase of the system. In the experiments, a randomized complete block design was applied with two treatments and three replications. Cassava presented a similar yield between the agrosilvopastoral treatments (5688.0 g per plant) and monoculture (5604.1 g per plant), with a production per hectare of the first system equivalent to 58% of that obtained in the second. The presence of cassava cultivation influenced the increase in height and stem diameter of red ceiba and leucaena. A negative effect on the increase in stem diameter in both species is highlighted, presented in the final two months of the cassava crop cycle.