Agronomic performance of maize, bean, soybean and squash under organic mono and polyculture systems

Abstract

The experiment was carried out in 2006/07, to evaluate the performance of intercropping and monoculture crop systems in a Typic Endoaquent soil at Southern Brazil, Pinhais city, Paraná state. The treatments were: i) maize-bean-squash (MFA); ii) maize-soybean-squash (MSA); iii) mayze-bean (MF); iv) maize-soybean (MS); v) maize (M); vi) bean (F); vii) soybean (S); and viii) squash (A), under organic production methods. Parameters evaluated were yield of the cultures; above-ground dry biomass (DB); land efficient use (LEU); labor demands for 1st and 2nd hoeing; profits and the hand labor relation by profit. Intercropping had the best performance, detaching MSA which had the best performance of yield of the cultures; DB; LEU and the hand labor relation by profit. From the monoculture systems, maize had the best performance in labor demands for hoeing and the hand labor relation by profit and remained in the intermediate group in the other parameters, followed by squash, which had a bad performance only to biomass compared to other treatments. Bean obtained the worst result. Intercropping systems yielded up to 71% more per area than monocultures.