Intercropping Cassava/Maize

1. www.iita.orgA member of CGIAR consortium
Intercropping use case in Nigeria
Cassava/Maize
Intercropping Cassava/Maize

2. www.iita.orgA member of CGIAR consortium
IC Nigeria – Use case description
Product development:
• Decision support tool for intensification options for intercropping in
cassava
Overall goal:
• Demand driven identification of intensification options (e.g. planting
densities, planting arrangements, varietal choice of intercrop, fertilizer
application, …) in cassava intercropping systems
• Provide situational guidelines on the suitability of intensification options
that can be easily applied by public and/or private extension sector
Primary client:
• Extension agent and/or farmer
Outcome goal:
• Decision support tool that offers intensification options based on
environmental conditions and farmers’ demand and production interest in
the previously defined areas of interest

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IC Nigeria – Project frame

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IC Nigeria – Partners
Development partners:
• 2Scale working with Psaltry (starch factory in Ogun and Oyo states
• SG2000 in Anambra, Benue and Cross River states
• Implemented additionally with OYSCGA (Oyo) and CAVA II (Ogun)
National partners:
• FUNAAB (Oyo, Ogun; Prof. Salako and team)
• NRCRI (Anambra, Benue and Cross River; Dr Olojede and team)

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IC Nigeria – First year planning
Assumptions on farmers’ objectives:
• Quick cash generation during the long growth period of
cassava (e.g. pay back of loans)
• Increased to food security
• Risk spreading
Assumptions on current intercropping system :
• Cassava/maize across all states
• Grown in the flat (only Oyo and Ogun), on ridges, or mounds
• On ridges, maize either planted on the crest of the ridges
alternating with cassava or at half slope
• Low densities: ~10k cassava and ~20k maize plants/ha
• Main crop is cassava
• Estimated cassava yield: is 10 to 12 t/ha; no estimates on
maize yield
=> All of this is to be verified by the rapid characterization

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IC Nigeria – First year planning
First year trial objectives:
• Stepwise intensification
• Main crop should also increase in yield
 increase planting density
 add fertilizer
• Understand treatment environment interaction
• Understand treatment management/farmer interaction
 150 multi location trials (1 trial = 1 replicate)
 factorial researcher managed replicated trials

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South East
(Oyo, Ogun)
Multi location trials (MLTs)
IC Nigeria – Trial design
South West
(Anambra, Benue, Cross River)

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IC Nigeria – Trial design
MLTs treatments and management
Cassava variety (farmers’ choice):
• erect (TME 419)
• branching (TMS 30572, TMS 0581)
Maize variety
• Sammaz 35 or 27 (yellow or white)
• 4.5 to 5.5 t/ha yield potential
Fertilizer F1
• N/P/K: 90/20/37 kg/ha
• Basal NPK + 2 splits of urea
Fertilizer F2
• N/P/K: 75/20/90 kg/ha
• 3 WAP NPK + 6WAP urea + 10 WAP urea/MoP +16 WAP MoP
Ridged or flat: farmer’s choice; no mounds

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IC Nigeria – Researcher trials
• 3 full sets established
(2 in Anambra, 1 in
Oyo)
• 8 sets were planned
• very difficult to
manage; 1 trial
severely damaged by
cows

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IC Nigeria – data collection
Data types
• Trial identification
• Farmer, extension agent, village, assign trial ID, ...
• Site description
• Cropping history, slope, landscape, soil sampling,…
• Log of farmer’s operations in the field
• Plant establishment at 2 and 4 WAP
• Non-destructive measurements/monitoring at 7 WAP and maize harvest
• No of main stems, no branching levels, branch length and diameter
• Maize height, stem diameter
• Maize and cassava yield
• Assessment of ridge shape and height; cassava/maize distances
• Leaf samples
Logistics of data collection
1) Field book entry
2) Copy to ODK and upload to web site of field data
3) Lab data are entered into excel templates

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Design in South East and in South West
IC Nigeria – Multi location trials
Multi location trials

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Preliminary data collected at maize harvest about 3 MAP
• Number of maize cobs per plot as proxy for yield
• Height of maize plants
• Height of cassava plants as aggregated branch length
• Diameter of cassava main stems
• Height and diameter data from 5 plants per plot

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Total number of maize cobs/plot by treatment and state
Numberofcobs
CP D F1 F2
Benue
CrossRiver
Ogun
IC Nigeria – Maize harvest

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Maizeplantheight[cm]
F1CP D
Height of maize and cassava plants by treatment and state
CP D F1 F2
Cross River Ogun
Aggregatedcassava
branchlength[cm]
IC Nigeria – Maize harvest

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F1CP DCP D F1 F2
Cross River Ogun
Cassavabranch
diameter[mm]
Diameter of cassava main stems by treatment and state
IC Nigeria – Maize harvest

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No fertizer (CP)– fertilizer (F2) Lodging in F1
IC Nigeria – first impressions
Taller maize and cassava
on the side where fertilizer
was applied
On fertile soil hardly any
response to fertilizer but
lodging of cassava plants
after maize harvest

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Farmers’ comments – survey at maize harvest in Benue
at 30 farms
IC Nigeria – Maize harvest survey
• All farmers liked at least one of our test plot better than their own practice
• All farmers liked plot F1 best (but some confusion – sometimes F2 listed under better and F1 under best…)
• Positive aspects of F1:
• Good performance/high yield
• Fertilizer application
• But labour requirements are seen as increasing with intensification
• D: rated 6 x “higher labour than CP”
• => weeding and maize seeding
• F1 and F2: rated 20 x “much higher/higher labour than CP”
• => weeding, maize seeding, fertilizer application

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Negative aspects
CP D F1 F2
No fertilizer No fertilizer High maize
density
High maize
density
Stunted growth Stunted growth Dependence on
fertilizer
Late fertilizer
application
Low yield Low yield
High density
weeding
IC Nigeria – Maize harvest survey

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Fertilizer
• All farmers have access to fertilizer (NPK and urea)
• But 18 farmers travel more than 2 hours to buy (one way?…)
• NPK costs 7000 to 8000 Naira per 50 kg bag
• Urea costs 6000 to 8000 Naira per 50 kg bag
• => needs to be compared to prices of produce; probably firstly maize
Other remarks that we need to take into account for next year
• Maize was mature 2 or 3 MAP (probably depending if intended for green or dry harvest)
• Inadequate info from project on cassava and maize
• => disease incidents, striga
• Capital intensive
• Timing
• Lack of adequate improved varieties
• Lack of adequate planting material
• Low soil fertility, inadequate inputs, capital intensive
IC Nigeria – Maize harvest survey

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But would farmers want to change their practise?
Practise yes No Remarks
Density 30 0 Increase density (not always clear if maize or cassava)
Fertilizer 30 0 Basal application
other 28 2 Distance between ridges,
Adopt planting on ridges (changing from mounds?),
Weeding times
IC Nigeria – Maize harvest survey

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IC Nigeria – next steps
Challenges:
• Farmers need fresh cob yield (except Benue)
• Rodent/bird damage; stealing of cobs, cattle…
• Erosion (Oyo)
=> 2 protocols for next year: fresh and dry cob yield
=> adjust fertilizer application to the short duration maize
=> align planting time better (=> rapid characterization)
• Finalize data entry (site description, non-destructive
measurements,…)
• Harvest cassava
• Plan the next season planting season and V1

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