Intercropping lettuce (lactuca sativa)‎ with pea (pisum sativum)‎ and its impact on the growth, yield and nutritional quality

Abstract EN

A field experiment was carried out during the two successive seasons of 2017/18 and 2018/19.

The aims of the experiment were to investigate the effect of different planting arrangement patterns: T₁ (3 pea: 1 lettuce), T₂ (2 pea: 1 lettuce), T₃ (1 pea: 1 lettuce), T₄ (side pea: side lettuce) in addition to sole lettuce and sole pea (control) treatments regarding the growth, yield, and nutritional quality, along with the financial aspects of applying intercropping systems for lettuce and pea productivity.

The obtained results revealed that, intercropping lettuce with pea was more effective than planting pea crop alone, as it increased the lettuce yield by 12.2% -37.7% and 27.7% - 60 % in the first and second seasons respectively according to the intercropping system applied.

All intercropping treatments except for T₄ (side pea: side lettuce) treatment reduced the pea yield.

The highest pea yields were produced by both sole pea andT₄ treatments, while the lowest pea yield was form T₃, in both seasons.

T₃ treatment depressed pea pod yield to 60% of its mono-cropped yield.

On the other hand, T₁ and T₂ treatments produced the highest yield for lettuce in both seasons.

Intercropping lettuce with pea, led to an improvement in the protein percentage in pea.

LER of pea/lettuce intercropping treatments were more than unit.

Moreover, the highest values for both LER and MAI obtained fromT₁ treatment.

Calculated “aggressiveness” suggested that all secondary crop treatments were more dominant than pea in all intercropping treatments.

The intercropping system of 3pea: 1 lettuce could be a gainful system to obtain the greatest efficiency of land.