Response of sugarcane to tillage and intercropping

Sugarcane productivity can potentially sustainable by rhizosphere improvement though tillage and crop diversification. To achieve this goal, an experiment was set up at the Agricultural Research Station, Navsari Agricultural University, Hansot to assess the impact of intercropping and tillage practices on sugarcane in vertisols for 2 successive years (2018 and 2019). The experiment was arranged in split plot design consisting three main plot treatments of tillage [Sub-soiling (45 cm depth, 2 m) + harrowing, Deep Ploughing (22.5 cm depth) + harrowing, and harrowing with cultivator] and four sub plot treatments of intercropping [three intercrops: Fenugreek, Gram, Indian bean, and control] replicated four times. Sugarcane variety CoN 07072 was planted in furrows at 100 cm row spacing. Subsoiling + harrowing influenced sugarcane yield significantly followed by deep ploughing + harrowing and augmented the average yield by 66.8 and 48.0 per cent, respectively compared to harrowing only. Subsoiling also improved the infiltration rate of soil. The intercropping had no significant influence on sugarcane yield or soil physicochemical parameters. Furthermore, subsoiling (down to 45 cm, 2 m) combined with harrowing resulted in higher growth and production, lead to maximum net realization and BCR. Further here Indian bean may be grain as an intercrop in sugarcane for enhancing true farm profitability benefit cost ratio.